By HENRY EMPEÑO | 

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — The Subic Bay Freeport has become a hotter summer vacation spot with the arrival of more visitors here for the observance of the Holy Week and Easter Sunday, two important religious events in the Christian calendar that commemorate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

According to the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), all the 45 hotels and lodging houses in the Freeport were either fully booked or nearing full capacity as early as April 15, or Holy Monday, and became completely jam-packed for Maundy Thursday until Easter Sunday.

These include all the biggest hotels here in both the Central Business District — Moonbay Marina, Best Western, Segara Suites and Villas, Subic Yacht Club, as well as those in the Cubi and Naval Magazine areas like Crown Peak and Camayan.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the Subic Bay Freeport has become a favorite spot for religious reflection and meditation because of its relative quiet and its peaceful atmosphere.

She said that the SBMA, in partnership with various stakeholder groups, has prepared a weeklong religious program, as well as some cultural presentations for the Holy Week.

Subic’s Holy Week program started with the re-enactment of the entry of Jesus to Jerusalem and the blessing of palms, locally known as “palaspas” on Palm Sunday, April 14.

This was followed by the “Pabasa”, which is the chanting of the life, passion and death of Jesus Christ on Holy Monday and Holy Tuesday, religious procession on Holy Wednesday, the Mass of the Lord’s Supper and Washing of the Feet on Maundy Thursday, and the Stations of the Cross, which re-enacted Jesus Christ’s crucifixion on Good Friday.

The religious observance here ended with the Easter Sunday procession or “Salubong” that started at 4:00 a.m. , and followed by an Easter-egg hunt at the grounds of the San Roque Chapel.

However, it was observed that a mixture of religious rites, summer festivities and relaxing natural environment served as an inimitable formula for Subic’s growing drawing power.

Jenny Angeles, CEO of GamaGen Media Services, which launched the Subic Revo Fest last Sunday, said they were expecting thousands of attendees, mostly millennials, for the day-long festival that kicked off with a fun run at the Moonbay Marina Water Park here.

“It’s also the secular side of Subic that helps draw visitors here. After the solemnity of the Holy Week, people are ready for some fun and Subic has plenty of fun to offer,” Angeles said.

The Revo Fest included an Easter egg-painting activity for special children conducted by the Subic art group REXA Center, and a musical concert that featured two of the hottest bands in the country today, December Avenue and This Band.

Angeles said the event, which was organized by the Rotonda Bar & Grill, Ocampo’s and GamaGen in cooperation with the SBMA, aims to further promote Subic as the Event Capital of Central Luzon.

Subic, which is the first free port zone to be established in the Philippines, has become a major tourism destination on top of being a progressive industrial and commercial center.

A recent listing by Traveloka, Southeast Asia’s leading online booking platform for hotels, named Subic as the fifth “hottest” destinations in the Philippines today for its +95% arrivals, with only Basco in Batanes, Legazpi City, General Santos City, and Laoag City doing better in terms of visitors count.