Tourists Almost Double in Boracay

BORACAY, Malay, Aklan – The municipal tourism office of the local government unit of Malay, Aklan expressed optimism that its goal of 1.5 million tourist arrivals for this year could be reached, contrary to Caticlan jetty port administrator Niven Maquirang’s earlier pronouncement that the said target could hardly be attained.
This after Malay municipal tourism officer Felix delos Santos said that the number of passengers going to Boracay almost doubled several days before the New Year’s eve.
The town’s tourism officer said eve of New Year is considered a peak season in Boracay wherein foreign tourists and vacationers alike arrive in droves to celebrate the New Year in front beaches in the island-resort.

Groups of families and friends as well as lovers want to experience the aura of different New Year eve experience in Boracay owing to the island’s romantic scenery.
Delos Santos said the front beach starting from Station 1 up to Station 3 in Boracay is now overcrowded while heavy flow of vehicular traffic in major streets in the island was also noted.
He also said that majority of vacationers in the island this Yuletide season were local tourists owing to the long vacation this holiday season.
He said almost close to 1.4 million tourists have visited Boracay starting January up to the second week of December 2014 with South Koreans topping the list of foreign tourists visiting the island-resort followed by Chinese and Taiwanese, though he declined to give comparative figures.
Delos Santos admitted that the travel ban issued by China has greatly affected the tourist arrival in Boracay Island due to the cancellation of hotel bookings during the month of September this year as well as the onslaught of typhoons in the country particularly Typhoon Ruby that hit the country in the early days of December this month.
Meanwhile, officials of Malay appealed to vacationers and tourists alike to refrain from leaving their wastes in the front beaches of Boracay.