“Welcome back to Boracay! Or would it be better to say, Welcome back, Boracay,” these were the first words of Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat as she graced the reopening of the well-loved white sand paradise, together with other Cabinet secretaries and local officials.
In her speech, she proudly shared that during the dry run, people would come up to the members of the Boracay Inter-Agency Task Force (BIATF) and tell, “this shoreline, the beachfront we are seeing now, this is the Boracay we fell in love with 30 years ago.”
“Our concerted efforts have proven once again that change is indeed possible with a strong political will and eagerness to work together for love of country,” Berna added as she congratulated everyone for a job well done in the past 6-month rehabilitation. As seen in the ongoing excavation in roadworks beyond the beachfront, the reopening of Boracay is just the first phase of the restoration. The second and third phase will be on April and December of next year, respectively.
PeopleAsia editor-in-chief Joanne Rae Ramirez and Build Build Build Chairman Anna Mae Lamentillo
As the new rehabilitated Boracay unfolds, DOT urged everyone to be responsible tourists as it is the key to the preservation not only of Boracay but of all the islands in the Philippines. Tourists were also encouraged to reserve accommodations only from the 157 establishments that are allowed to operate as of this writing. The confirmed list of establishments are as follows.
