DENR: Boracay to hold ‘dry run’ for local tourists before reopening

MANILA, Philippines — The Boracay inter-agency task force will be holding a "dry run" or partial opening of the island from October 16 to 25 to get ready for its official reopening internationally.

“[The dry run] will allow us to assess what else needs to be done before the island is reopened to all tourists, both domestic and foreign on Oct. 26,” Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu said on Thursday.

Cimatu added that during the dry run, only local tourists will be allowed to enter Boracay, with Aklanons as priority.

The public is advised to wait for the Department of Tourism’s announcement on what hotels will be opened as only 1,000 hotel rooms will be available on the first day of the dry run.

Cimatu also told the public to hold hotel reservations for the soft-opening and also wait for the DOT’s announcement on which compliant and accredited establishments will be allowed to operate on October 26.

The DOT earlier announced that around 5,000 hotel rooms out of the total of 15,000 rooms in Boracay island are expected to be available during the soft-opening. — Philstar intern Ali Ian Marcelino Biong