Boracay establishments reeling from COVID-19 scare

By Jennifer P. Rendon

From a bustling destination for Chinese and Korean tourists, the world-renowned Boracay Island in Malay, Aklan now relies on Filipino tourists to keep it afloat.

Majority of tourists who set foot on the island since cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) spiked in January 2020 are mostly local tourists while foreign tourists are mostly Europeans.

“Pero it’s not as it is before. The beachfront area is not teeming with tourists now even in the advent of the summer season,” a Boracay government official said.

Madel Joy Tayco, deputy information manager of the Boracay’s task force for COVID-19, denied reports that Boracay Island is on the brink of shutting down following the absence of its main patrons, the Chinese and Koreans.

Last year, Chinese tourists accounted for around 50 percent of the 434,175 of foreign visitors in the island.

But Tayco confirmed that several establishments have indeed closed shop.

Initial reports indicated that around 20 restaurants catering to Chinese customers have decided to close shop.

The information was relayed by Boracay businessman Peter Tay.

But Tayco claimed that hotels continue to operate.

To avoid laying off employees, some hotels decided to offer their personnel an extended leave or longer days off without pay.

A source claimed that some hotels offered a 15-day work and 15-day off to employees.

Almost all, if not all, hotels have offered huge discounts despite that it should have been the peak season in the island.

In a phone interview, Tayco said that she had to ask other stakeholders on how the COVID-19 scare and lockdown have affected the island.

But she later claimed that they will just be “issuing an advisory regarding the impact of COVID-19 in terms of tourism and business.”