The Department of Tourism (DOT) said it will push for the resumption of leisure travels in and out of the National Capital Region (NCR)-plus once quarantine protocols allow it.
Tourism Undersecretary Benito Bengzon Jr. said on Thursday, April 22, that the DOT will wait for the recommendation of medical experts to lift the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) over NCR-plus.
"Ang gusto lang naman po ng DOT, kagaya ng palaging sinasabi ni Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, ay yung slow but safe restart of tourism activities (like what Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat has been saying, the DOT wants a slow but safe restart of tourism activities)," Bengzon said.
Metro Manila and its nearby provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal–collectively known as NCR-plus–are under MECQ until April 30. The government previously placed these areas under the stricter ECQ between March 29 and April 11 amid an alarming surge in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases.
The tourism official reminded local government units (LGUs) and tourist destinations to maintain the strict observance of health protocols and guidelines to assure the safety of travelers, frontliners, as well as the host community.
Before the implementation of quarantine restrictions in NCR-plus, the DOT batted for the streamlining of travel requirements from the different tourism sites in the country in order to draw more visitors in time with the summer season.
With this, the government's pandemic task force approved last February a uniform set of travel protocols which include the scrapping of the mandatory COVID-19 test requirement, except when required by the LGU.
"Kung irerequire pa rin ang RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) ng LGU, kailangan pa rin magpakita ang mga turista ng negative test result (If the LGU would still require an RT-PCR test before travel, then the tourists would have to show a negative test result)," he said.
"Sa panig ng DOT, talagang gusto nating siguraduhin na sinusunod ng husto itong ating mga health and safety protocols (For the part of the DOT, we want to make sure that the health and safety protocols are always being followed)," Bengzon added.