Dinagyang 2019 ‘attracted most number of foreign tourists’

ILOILO City – The 51st staging of Dinagyang Festival has attracted the most number of foreign tourists in the city, said Department of Tourism (DOT) Region 6 director Atty. Helen Catalbas.

She also said that this year, most of the foreign tourists have witnessed various festival activities like the Kasadyahan contest on Jan. 26 and the dagyang tribes dance competition on Jan. 27.

“Compared to the prior years of Dinagyang, this year has the most number of foreigners,” Catalbas stressed yesterday, two days after the annual local celebration that centers on the devotion in Señor Santo Niño, or Child Jesus.

The DOT regional head said they were still conducting a survey on hotels and pension houses in the city to determine the estimated number of foreign and domestic tourists who attended Dinagyang.

The DOT has estimated that 3,500 to 4,000 hotel rooms have accommodated tourists during the three-day highlights of the festival.

Catalbas believes that the 250,000 target tourists this Dinagyang have been hit.

“Yes, I think and I believe na-reach ang target both sa foreign kag domestic tourists,” she added.

Catalbas noted that there is huge influx of domestic tourists coming from provinces in the recently concluded Dinagyang.

She attributed this to the improvement that the festival has made through the years and the innovation in the city.

“The Dinagyang has not lost its appeal. Naga-improve sia every year. The visitors are in for a big surprise because there are innovations nga gina-introduce,” Catalbas added./PN

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