20th Ad Congress starts tomorrow

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – The early birds get the best lodgings and accommodations.

The 20th Philippine Advertising Congress is held at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center (SBECC) here from Nov. 21 to 24, this year’s edition of what is touted to be “a gathering of the most brilliant minds in the advertising industry.”

From construction on the fully air-conditioned venue, to installation of directional signs and landscaping  of public areas, the Advertising Congress is getting “the full attention of the Subic Bay Freeport,” said Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) administrator/ chief executive officer Armand Arreza. 

The biggest project, Arreza said, is the conversion of the GVC building at the SBECC, which is the main venue for various activities scheduled for the four-day event. Arreza said the 2,456 square-meter main convention hall of the SBECC can accommodate at least 5,000 persons, or 5000 more than the 4,500 official delegates expected to attend the Advertising Congress. Aside from this, the SBECC will also have an indoor trade exhibit area with 64 booths, an administraton building, a 3,992-square-meter dining hall, and a large parking area.

The hotels and housing units in the Subic Bay area have announced full bookings for the four-day event.

From standard rooms that cost $30 a day to four-bedroom suites rented out at $250 per night, hotels and housing units in Subic have already been reserved by convention delegates, SBMA said.

“With this huge turnout, we’re expecting a big spillover to hotels in Olongapo City and Subic, Zambales,” said Ferdinand Hernandez, SBMA deputy administrator for administration and operations.

“Subic will really have its hands full this month,” he said.

About 5,000 visitors, 3,500 of them official delegates, are expected in Subic for this year’s staging of the biennial convention that tackles trends in marketing, media and creativity, said the Philippine Advertising Board, which organizes the event. The congress is also expected to bring to Subic a “power cast of international speakers” led by writer and graphic novelist Neil Gaiman, as well as 60 to 70 exhibitors for a  trade show that will open on Nov. 22. 

Anticipating a bigger delegation this year because of Subic’s proximity to Manila, organizers have accredited even some hotels outside the free port. Even then, most of the rooms have been booked as of Tuesday, last week. Anne Raquel’s Resort, which is at the boundary of Olongapo City and Dinalupihan, Bataan, has committed 31 rooms for the Ad Congress, but all have been taken now.