Bohol could be one of the tourist places hit by the massive cancellation of hotel bookings as a result of Monday's hostage-taking incident in Manila. The immediate backlash as a result of the hostage drama which killed the hostage taker and eight Hongkong Chinese nationals resulted in the scramble to the meeting table of Bohol's tourism stakeholders. A meeting was held Tuesday at the Provincial Tourism Office hosted by the Provincial Tourism Council to stem the tide of massive cancellation of tourists' bookings scheduled after the tragic incident or in the coming two months.

The cancellation was made mostly by Chinese tourists and there's no telling that it will continue while the follow up stories of the hostage incident are still on live television 24/7. While it was admitted by local tourism stakeholders that the hostage incident did affect the tourism business, it was observed that other Chinese tourists appeared to have been unperturbed about the sad news that befell their compatriots. As this paper's front page photo showed, a group of Chinese tourists were spotted at the Blood Compact site in Bool last Wednesday or two days after the Manila tragedy. Only yesterday, a truckload of Chinese arrivals took their lunch at the Shiang Ma Noh Restaurant along Gallares St., this city, apparently unmindful of the tragic ending of Chinese tourists visiting the country last Monday.

CANCELLATION

But in an interview with Josephine Cabarrus, provincial tourism officer, she said that the backlash resulting in the cancellation of reservations was felt by almost all resorts catering to the Chinese market. The Chinese are considered the biggest market of Bohol resorts compared to other Asian visitors like Japanese or Koreans. The Bohol Beach Club, a favorite destination of Chinese tourists among Panglao's resorts experienced a cancellation of 12-room booking. The Panglao Island Leisure Resort and Spa was also a recipient of cancelled bookings. Cabarrus added that a big group numbering 18 batches earlier booked at the Alona Kew in Tawala also cancelled its reservation.