IBA, Zambales — Zambales reaped top honors in the recent 2024 Tourism Recognition for Enterprises and Stakeholders (TRES) Awards, which recognize outstanding achievements in the advancement of the tourism industry in Central Luzon.

Zambales placed second runner-up in the Top Destination category based on tourist arrival, while the province’s iconic Dinamulag Festival was adjudged first runner-up in the Most Outstanding Festival category.

Zambales also received recognition for its advocacy on the Filipino Brand of Service Excellence, as well as for being one of the first to legislate and institutionalize the Mabuhay gesture as a province-wide official greeting in frontline tourism services.

Meanwhile, the town of Botolan, which initiated the popular Mount Pinatubo Adventure Trek program, also won recognition in the TRES Awards.

Botolan was named grand winner in the Most Creative Tourism Marketing Collateral for social media in the city/municipality category, and first runner-up in Most Creative Tourism Marketing Collateral for printed brochure.

Botolan’s municipal tourism officer Gennesy Detubio-Villar also received honorable mention for Most Outstanding Tourism Marketing Officer/Manager.

The municipality of San Antonio was also among the four nominees for this year’s TRES award for Most Outstanding Tourism Month Celebration for city/municipality.

The Department of Tourism Region III (DOT-3) headed by Dr. Richard Daenos conferred the awards on February 26 in a ceremony held at the Hilltop, Filinvest Mimosa+ Leisure City at the Clark Freeport.

Daenos described the TRES Awards, which recognize significant contribution and support by tourism enterprises and stakeholders in the advancement of DOT programs, projects and activities in the region, as “a celebration in the vibrant and ever-evolving field of tourism.”

“Tonight, we not only recognize those who have stood out in their achievements, but also to celebrate the remarkable collective progress of the tourism industry especially here in the region,” Daenos remarked in his welcome message.

“The future of tourism is bright because of your efforts,” he also told the awardees.

Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said on January 5 that the Philippine tourism sector has firmly established its position as a vital economic pillar, with an all-time high revenue of P760 billion in 2024.

The agency’s data on visitor arrivals placed a total of 5,949,350 international visitors by the end of 2024, which was higher by 9.15 percent compared to visitor arrivals of 5,450,557 in 2023. Of the visitors last year, 5,438,967 or 91.42 percent were foreigners, while the remaining510,383 or 8.58 percent were Filipinos living overseas.

The DOT also said the Philippines earned some P760.50 billion in tourism revenue from inbound tourism expenditures in 2024, marking a 9.04 percent increase over the P697.46 billion posted in 2023.

The DOT also noted that the 2024 tourism revenue figures exceeded pre-pandemic levels of P600.01 billion in 2019 by an impressive 26.75 percent, thus showing a recovery rate of 126.75 percent for the local tourism economy. 

COVER PHOTO: Street dancers highlight the popular Zambales product in the iconic Dinamulag Festival