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CEBU will host next year's Philippine Meetings, Incentive Travels, Conventions and Exhibitions (PhilMICE) convention at the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC), organizers said over the weekend.
Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia made the official announcement on the third day of this year's four-day PhilMICE Convention held at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center last Saturday.
?The 2011 conference has been dubbed 'Cebu: Top Island Destination. See you in Cebu!,? Garcia said.
She said the success of Subic's hosting of this year's convention would pose a great challenge to the Capitol and their organizers.
Still, she added the selection of Cebu as next year's host is well deserved honor owing to Cebu's status as a premier tourist destination.
She credited the province's success to stakeholders like local government units (LGUs) and their communities.
Garcia said the LGUs responded with enthusiasm to the Capitol's call to promote countryside tourism.
The local organziers of the PhilMICE 2011 Convention have already mapped out plans for the event.
About 45 delegates from Cebu attended this year's convention which drew in 300 delegates from across the country and abroad.
Maria Rica Bueno, director of the Department of Tourism in Central Visayas (DOT-7) said next year's convention will have more international delegates.
?The delegations from international companies will also be invited to come aside from international speakers which we have this year,? Bueno said.
She said the 2011 PhilMICE convention will be held in time for the the Governor's One Cebu Expo in July.
?That's the initial plan and the plenary session will be held at CICC (Cebu International Convention Center) while the tours will be spread all throughout Cebu.?
Marco Protacio, president of the Hotels, Resorts and Restaurants Association of Cebu (HRRAC) and a member of the organizing committee, said the event will help cast the spotlight on Cebu's thriving hotel and restaurants industry.
For incentive travels alone, Bueno said a group of 10 people from multinational sales companies arriving in Cebu can help fuel the tourism industry since they usually spend on first class accommodations.
?Meetings is another promising market for the province because in a year, every company, associations and professional groups meet for an annual meeting like cardiologists, bankers and all,? she said.
For now, Bueno said they would urge more establishments to secure accreditation from the DOT.
?We want to improve our service standards to maintain our reputation as a top tourist destination like improving our front line service and all,? she said.
Jenny Franco, National Independent Travel Agencies (NAITAS) Cebu Chapter president, said they also plan to echo what they learned during the four-day event to their other members.
?We have learned a lot from this convention and from what we understand, MICE is a totally different industry which requires different kind of handling, so we want them (29 other member agencies) to know how to handle a highly demanding group,? Franco said.
