Aloguinsan eyed as next DIVE7 event host

CEBU, Philippines —  The Department of Tourism and the Cebu provincial government are considering the town of Aloguinsan as the next dive destination for the DIVE7 event.

According to DOT-7 Director Shalimar Tamano, in an interview with the Cebu Provincial Information Office, it was an offshoot of DIVE7 event in Malapascua Island last May 13 when Governor Gwendolyn Garcia asked him to do more DIVE7 events in Cebu Province and suggested to go to Aloguinsan.

DOT-7 and the tourism officers of the provincial government immediately conducted an underwater survey in the area and saw the potential of a new diving ground due to its virgin corals which are heavily protected by the “bantay dagat” team.

“What they saw was really wonderful. Not really surprising because Aloguinsan really has the potential. In fact, even the rest of the towns in the province are potential dive sites,” Tamano said.

The event will be dubbed as DIVE7 Festivals – Dive Aloguinsan and will be a 3-day activity from July 29-31 to be held at Hermit’s Cove and is expected to bring new investors in the area which will provide jobs to the local people and raise awareness about protecting the underwater environment.

Meanwhile, Shane Navarro, designated tourism officer of Aloguinsan, said in a phone interview with The Freeman that their main problem is the lack of diving equipment and budget allocation since there are no available diving shops in town.

Tamano assured that the Moalboal diving operators are ready to help Aloguinsan in establishing their diving industry.

The local tourism office is unable to provide figures for the tourist arrival since the announcement of DIVE7 Festivals – Dive Aloguinsan came very shortly and there is no noticeable increase of people visiting.

“We need to evolve and find new activities kay ma bored man jud na ang mga tawo at least varied na atong options para nila,” Navarro shared on what they are planning to do once tourists will start to flock to Aloguinsan.

“The best is they should coordinate with the tourism office aron ma-advisan sila unsay dapat buhaton and also ma-schedulan aron dili sayang ang ilang giari,” Navarro said.

Hermit’s Cove is still strictly implementing the standard health protocols against the spread of COVID-19 by only accepting a maximum capacity of 30-35 persons that can only stay within 2-3 hours. — Ericailah Gerasmio, CNU Intern, GMR (FREEMAN)