PH Gears Up for Dive Resort Travel 2015

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Dive Resort Travel (DRT) Philippines Show 2015, envisioned to be the first and biggest international dive event in the country, will be held on 11 – 13 September 2015 at the SM Megatrade Hall in Mandaluyong City.

With the theme “It’s more fun to dive in the Philippines,” the DRT is a three-day exposition that will gather dive industry stakeholders, especially those from Asia and Oceania, together in one venue. Expected to participate are at least 2,000 international dive exhibitors, enthusiasts, and marine conservationists.

Organized by the Hong Kong and Shanghai-based LX Development Group (LXDG), the elements of “fun” and “festivity” will be infused in all components of the Dive Resort Travel Philippines Show from the exhibit to the travel exchange, seminars and workshops, photo gallery, familiarization tours, and other special events like cultural performances and entertainment showcase during the opening ceremonies and farewell dinner. The dive exhibit will feature the country’s dive destinations, beach and dive resorts, dive centers and shops of dive equipment and apparel. Participants include dive tour operators, resort owners, underwater photographers, marine conservationists, and instructors from international scuba diving schools like PADI, NAUI, SSI, TDI, SDI, UTD, PSAI and DAN.

The Philippine Dive Travel Exchange (DIVE-TRAVEX) will be a platform for invited foreign buyers of dive tourism products and services to meet with local dive tour sellers in one-on-one business-to-business (B2B) meetings in scheduled appointments. Selected foreign buyers and dive enthusiasts will also be invited to the five-day post-event and complimentary familiarization dive tours to some of the country’s top dive destinations like Batangas, Puerto Galera, Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Palawan. .

The public is invited to the photo gallery highlighting a myriad of underwater attractions and the best beach/dive resorts in the Philippines, as well as a series of marine conservation seminars and dive workshops, which will be conducted by international and national experts. These include world-renowned marine biologist Dr. Kent Carpenter of the US, dive and web master plus macro photographer Ken Thongpila of Australia, and celebrity underwater fashion photographer Aaron Wong of Singapore. Among those to be discussed are underwater photography, marine life education and conservation, dive safety training, and biodiversity in the Philippines.

“We are very proud to host the DRT Show because our archipelago’s more than 7,107 tropical islands are known in the world as a dive haven, offering truly diverse and meaningful dive travel experiences all year round. Along with our efforts to position our islands as enchanting dive destinations, the local tourism industry agrees with environmentalists worldwide that our country is a treasure trove of biodiversity on this side of the earth,” Tourism Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez, Jr. said.

“The country’s terrestrial and marine ecosystems are home to many of the best and rarest wildlife species. Most of these species are endemic to our country and can be found nowhere else in the world. These facts highlight the global significance of conserving the Philippines’ biodiversity. The abundance, distribution, and degree of threat to which these resources are exposed call for a rapid and effective response to accelerate the coverage of conservation efforts in the country. The DRT Show shall be an important venue to underscore the importance of responsible, ethical, and sustainable dive tourism,” Secretary Jimenez emphasized.

Aside from the Department of Tourism, DRT Show co-organizers include the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), Philippine Commission on Sports Scuba Diving (PCSSD), World Underwater Federation, Manila Ocean Park, Philippine Travel Agencies Association, Philippine Tour Operators Association, local dive associations and scuba diving equipment suppliers, hotels, resorts, and airlines.

For further details on the event, interested parties may contact Director Verna C. Buensuceso or Ms. Wen Sorioso of the DOT Marketing Development Group at (632) 459-5200 to 30, via fax at (632) 890-0216, or through e-mail at phdiveteam@gmail.com.