DESPITE the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the city is steadfast in its commitment to becoming a premier Mice (meetings, incentive travel, exposition, and convention) destination in the country.
To showcase its preparedness to entice Mice organizers to bring their events to the city, it hosted the Mice Conference (MiceCon) 2023 event early this month.
In her speech during the event, Tourism Secretary Ma. Esperanza Christina G. Frasco praised the city for leading the way in terms of Mice and becoming a model for other Mice destinations in the country to follow.
“Davao has shown us the way. It has become a model for us to follow and a springboard from which we can launch even more exciting MiceCons in the future and we will,” Frasco said.
The city leverages its strengths and unique offerings, including the tagline “From Islands to Highlands,” to promote both beach and inland resort destinations. As cited by Frasco, the city showcases new developments, cultural heritage, natural landscapes, culinary delicacies, and vibrant hospitality for the world to see.
In her 10-minute speech, Frasco said that through the event, the city has also shown itself a “shining example to all Mice destinations across the country” and emphasized that the city will continue to lead the way in terms of Mice.
However, there is still so much work to be done. According to Mary Ann M. Montemayor, a pillar in the tourism industry in the city, among the immediate steps for the city to take is to conduct a thorough inventory of its Mice facilities and encourage more investors to put up more facilities.
Among the key issues that need to be addressed, Montemayor said, is a need for tourism-related establishments to improve their service standards.
For those wanting to invest in facilities, the government should offer them more incentives so they “will help fill in the vacuum,” she added.
In 2018, LTS Holdings announced its plan to build a convention center and a world-class hotel, but the plan fizzled after the world was hit by the pandemic. There has yet been no announcement from the company, known for its retail stores in Mindanao and Palawan and several tourism establishments.
Some hotels and other tourism-related facilities have remained closed due to the pandemic, including the Marco Polo Hotel, the first five-star hotel located right at the center of the city and considered as among its landmarks.
Montemayor also pushed for the opening of more air connectivity that will feature the city to attract more travelers, particularly those looking for spots that the city and the nearby areas can offer.
“We still lack air connectivity,” she lamented, suggesting that both the private sector and government tap their partnership to ensure that the city becomes the focal point of Mice in the country.
