Potential of Cgtanduanes

On the Triple C Development Area

t•taria CNstina W 1ar

SYNOPSIS
pQ Qf the Department of Tour isll1'S s £ttienal
Development ppm for 2017-2022, Catanduanes is in the process
of adopting an (n t- strategy through the Triple C or the
Camarines
Sur-Catanduanes tourism alliance. Banking on its
and impressive Sof( S Ot8, Cñtanduanes ventures
» its potential to complement the developme nt of sports-aa•e»t»«
And ecotourism parks in Camarines Sur and Cama nnes Nortf.
the objective is to cultivate Catanduanes by developing its
line tourism sites and promoting it as a cluster with the two
marines provinces. The success of this plan will improve tourism
competitiveness, ensure sustainability and promote inclusive
growth among the Catandunganons and the region.
Rey worda: ecotourism, Catanduanes, Puraran, Triple C, Almasor,
tourism development plan

INTRODUCTION
In a roundtable discussion, Carmel Bonifacio-Garcia , the
Catanduaues Provindal Tourism Off icer, was givert a task by the
Bicol Regipnal Tourism Committee (BRTC}' that wnuld challenge
her careet. 8£t constituent was given t5 percent increased target
of foreign ourist arrival by 20t6, as opposed to its actual target last
year. Into
> hnal drah of the framework , BRTC iS One step closer to formally

n F).
An orsan›zation pioneered by the BiCoI Reg ional Development Cou cil (RD
It ›S create syr›eiqy in
5{ 2Cia] committee tasked to provide poI‹w direction IO
tOUFl5W
dWele pment th‹ the combined eff orts and
### establñh ng thr Camariner Norte-Carmari
ncs Sti r-
§ tovñsm Touriem is diJ h i coolest and rainiest ftom October to early January, and
JiCer,
fRX•dS tO had sustnined et tortn to
offcrings to promote the provincc. h£g va ble bottes* ¿tom March to May.
yn agricultur al province. CatandHanes prod«crs abaca artd tiger
wni \d operate su ri g th Pur8ran BCdCh in Baras, °fTnp{q . »• industry Includes the product on of native matenals m•de of
C
w akehaa rd ing at ata ndua aba handmade
Camsur Recently, thC origif\gI abaca §§ g commonly called “pinu\pok."
arid surfing ip 8agasbas BCac\1 in Daet, Camany
bg a *^* ned Surfer, but like one,
es She ytmmtcd and woven by the lucal6 n f Baras has nnw found its posic‹on
bOWS bu t nev •^ back
beyoSHE
nd Ehe horiz s in che tonal and \riternationa\ lash on ndustry. This native fabric has
h W n ›ts usefulness in thc ntemaCiona\Ty appealing ctcs gos and
S
t/}ât thts feat can hr achieved,
creation of the Catandunganons.’
s

THE ISLA ND PROVIN puraran Island in Catanduanes s referred to as “an Eco-Adventure

CE OF CATANDUAN g$ Paradise? Situated in the Caramoan-Catanduanes Tcunsm Link
(CC3'L),’ it Is a promising destination owing to irs rural-charm with
ts hacurical churches, caves, ecotourism wonders such as rock
formations and long coastlines, dive sites, and sea-surfing venues.
Although the Caramoan-Catan£tuanes tounsm alliance is in i‹s
early stage of development, CCTL is now operational, giving 'as to
tounst traffic between Guija\o in Caramoan, Camannes Sur, to
Codon Port in San Andf-£'S tDw'n in Catznduanes. .4fter
Catanduanes plus the nearby islands in Caramoan, tourists can
proceed by boat to Camsur Watersports Cump\ex, kagasbas Beach,
and Calaguas Island.

PURARAH: BREAKING NEW SURFING GROUND

(A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW)

The Stumbling Btocks

Puraran is located in the municipality of Baras. 40-kilometers
@n dua <> IS located in the
••stemm y
nJand Bicol KH Of the 8ieol
one hour
San * flstitute
Bagamanot Pandan, Bato, 'gmoto, week (Monday,
Pangani
*” P vince and one Con ban,
There are!83 iS Lhe gays all over
8 baran
d irectlyq alon th a j
8”gssion
* ' of Pacify first land in the
thp
Lar jd of th e hoons, thus
*t tC Ocra ,
*âtanduanp iG fro Winds" IS rmed • the "The
m
th
*lme ' Locals of Cata0dua
eweay‹x
together w1 Camarines Tounsm €irtuit Dwelopment Ran
DOTs Natior'a! you’›
 12-hn»r I».s ride Iron› h1»nita «› z’•i›n«,

175

l’t raran t›rcam kno»'n for its very fine

to IS fect barrel-waves termc‹t as the ”Majestict • The Band
havr been a\trawling cxycrt Starters frofj1 foreign I5g0s (hnTstcr, t38R).

t • • *PIn Fc potential surf pgyar0n was a quiet fieh‹ng village until fg8d when an Austr•t‹an -
£tCN llkr PU£aran,
d rav'c r surf d••tin6tton, Coniparab Tc to the 5t, fo r”, Prter Sutton, riding on his motorbike ›n sC0rch of a surf spot
later on. but coils dcring t\ r ymt upon the vi\lage and discovered “thc wave w›th the perfect

Rudy and Cecilia Estrada Maria—both teucht'rs in the village school.

Mr. s utton wasw elcomed to stay in their bungalow n front uflc
l0£g rmcd ate and Bdvanrcd hoof for m• +•. wtth his Japanese wife, Sally Sutton.
8hO -t0fm stays to enjoy the
Dg@theeay COmp ctitions organized After several months, LwO Japanese surfers and Canadian Mr.
Da)e Sorachcn came to Puraran. More Japanese nationals arrived and
^°'**hs, beginners can
^hrfing and urtrJ buyed land from thC village people. It was Mr. Jorge Jacob
its friendly wave
Tfir Estrada, Cecilia's father, who refused ‹a sell his land, recognizing
duti pg the the potential of tourism in bis v›tIsge. With the encouragement from
hnokngs pt
lean dunng tf\e nj• nths or Mr. Peter Sutton, Cecilia asked permission from his father to buy
cember, Ond anua y
his land and bu l£t a few cottages on ›t aJo»g the beach •rh‹rh
berate the present site of Puraran Beach Resort. Around the same
time, the Japanese corporation Halogen started constructing the
Puraran geach Resort.
In 1987. Typhoon Sisang destroyed the first cottages built by the
Soria Family. Now aware of the place's potential for business. Hatogrn
persuaded Cecilia to let the Esirada Pamily use the land she bought
from their father to become the first property to be developed. It
was then named the Penta View' Beach Resprt. The typhoon did not
discourage hudy, who sought the help of his father Pablo and started
building cottages on the beach-it was named Puting 8avbay Brach
Resort. Its etistence bec8me simultaneous with the Japanese-owned
Puraran Beach Resott and the Estrada Family-managed Pacific View
8cach desert tDlaz, 2013).
mother calamity destroyed the structures on Puraran lteach
when Typhoon Ro6ing hit tkc province in i995. Discouraged. ter
Japanese corporation Halogen did not fund che rehabilitation of the
destroyed property. It was then that the EstroJa Fam›l\’. who was
managing Pacific View Beach Resort, wax dissolved g v‹ng way to

thr
 To this 6a;‘, gp)lia is st ill managing Pu rar$ l' 1
Rcso« (fo rri1Prlt P«ti 1 ftaybay Rrsort). It offtrt
da
ncc ›pancy surf huuse. V s tors can choose among
occupancy, triple occu pancy, and single/double
bed costs PHP200. Tr«r to the Filipino rural ittak<,
in, tftr a«i›« kxb cottages were made from light malt
as bamboo, nipo, anal Jnahdl . E0Cli cottage has a singly
The bathrooms are made of concrete materials, suppObat#t
t-(e g
faucets installed on the sink and a shower with cold
coming from thc strearñ. Tt COITIf'S math
a
occupants. The resort has a water tank installed
i nterruption.
Pacific 5urfcr's Paralyse Beach Resort (FSBR) catchy t y
guests and backpackers. The IS-bed dooTiit6ry has
a kitchen, and a common bathroom and
vantage point of card}' morning wave
overlooking balcony r cing the Pacific
accommodations, PSBR offers surf tutorials, through
Surf Camp wh ch puts emphasis on the one-on-one s»rf
beginner-friendly beach or reef breaks away frnm the*oachin
crowd,
nephe»', ityan Soria, sefves as one ot the surt instructors.
PSBR is ownrd by Cecilia's older sister, Luz E6trada
J°•on,
m^ bctng managed by her stun Rodolfo. It otters three type g¿
aCCommodationx: a single cottage with no air-conditioning
C8Ft BOCOmmodat e up to four people; a duplex cotta
g• iih
conditionin g which can accommodate to eight people;
up
standard room with air-conditionin g which can aecom
rnoda
six people. Separate rates apply to old and newly built
TOOm and the cottages have a built-
materials. lt has a shower
1nStead, a set of
durin for the guests. How
have a weter tank installed in the scarce s| nCe chey do
ptqp
TO ensure
the privacy of the guest' holiday, Maj•›ti
Bedch Resort (MPBR) offers six
› d•• nt urc• , Majestic Puraran is thC p\act yOU ." Each cottage
en pinning water. The resort ha8 a water Lank ready for any water
i fl t ption.
h y (rom us accommodation, MPBR ale» off €'rs shortboard
And Ie gb ard surfing tutorials. for beginners learning to surf, the
„ b• ard is recommended because of the i»reased length of the
board offers more stability. I€ i9 8]& gggicr tn paddle as opposed
to tn'e
8wp,
ebo by expc rienced surfers because it offers a greater amount of freedom.
t0
shape and shorter lesn allow better control when
aking 4h8rpCU W flntothr wavei
Board rentat is off0£ed, as well 6S â One-stop souvenir shop fat
»iIs beach wears and souvenirs. As›de from surfing, oder act vities
jTercd arc hiking, swimming, snorkelling, and island hopping. Hrccn's
brother, Chris Tanael, is the surf instructor for the resort. be
MPBR staff is trained to impart genuine Catandun n hospitality
to guests a f\d encour age them to visit by offering a rewarding
experience to all who come to the island.
Tanael saw no shortage of attractions and activities for
tourists beyond Puraran island premises. MPBR arranges tours to £
MO$t famous att7aC tIons in Catanduancs such as trekking the
Balacay Point.
PAG-xsd Yif‘ac Radar Sratfon, Beto Church, Luyang Cave, Maribana
serves as the tour guide of the guests.
"to cup« Cth th» oaso»ai demand, PSBR decided to offer English
lessons tO of8igner s who are gon speakers of the language. Puraran
lish and Surf School’s teaching approach is done thf'DUgh 0
combination of formal and Informa) methods aft eaching. The student
will live on the b08Chfor the n of the program. Teachers live in
duratio
’° th some area so the students take breakfast, lunch,
d
g curricuium ca rs vocabulary , speaking, listening, • n
reading
(p q] end informal sctttrigs. The class size
m imurri of three stuilents. Depending
the p't Ogram varies from t»'o weeks, one
Tanael assum ed the position of resort
cottages
 responéble g s de, a Russ:an contact is
the mdtk0ttn
c i•i tio» fee is
ospeciiv scuclents. The
r
(Cecilia’s wider sister) dJed in 2000. T PSBit. English
of airport pickup, acco liimOdtttiOR In the
friendly s t,dIf @arantce yon privacy and outdoor t0tlfS.
attention. personal
families, or
° 'rig a peaceful island retreat, nature
bacLpacke
 c •• tcr where they need to pay the enmronment or
and
gq bleed tO COnOuct tourism awareness seminars to teach tour
5. t //gts and operators to take can of tounsts and earn frnm L

signi ng the covenant for the Cafflartnes Forte-Carmariner

nduanes TouriSM NtiaflC€. th4• Catanduanes Governor
sur-c « adopt the inter-provincial tourism allj9pcp strategy ¿pt local
with tourism as the main driver for economic growth and
d eds. lbs aifft IS EO Uplift the living conditions in the region
And t he three w•• *• re S by tapping their naval tourism resources,
However, the two Camarines produces and Catnnduanes have
[ rmally estabksh Triple C. In 2g11 thC BRTC technical working
group has already completed the validation of tourist sites! nine
potential tourist sites were visited by the team in Catanduones. twelve
thirteen sitts in Camarines Sur. However,
this end gHvottr still needs to get the input of holders for
proposed t pJsm development projects to gtt Ro r conunitments.

IdOVING FORWARD
melT\orandu m of a Boasting of having the most beautiful waves for professional
@eement that yrovinc€'s ent€t* e surfers in the entire country, Catanduanes has all the potential to
onto t 4
ensures
Oh! tOU USm deve]o nt
Pment complement the development of sports-adventure anal eco-tourism
were identif ied during the assessment v parks both in Camartnes Sur and Camarines Norte, given that there is
CDhd uc ted by BHTC. and «Iidattom a comprehensive mastet plan on areas that neeñ to be developed,
According to
through the inioatives of the Catanduanes government end its
the
!^^^'sm autho rities are
looking at the
tination i nfrast w t mprovem en t of partnership with BitTC, they now to commit end execute the
market following action plan tor the Triple C alliance:
strat egje$
e and enhancemeet
{@ p address ‹h obstact pabilities as
1, improve transportauon Rcilities to the province as well as
ght u P during iTla, yo 4). the circumferential rond, national bridges, and port facility
8f fo reshor were: impmvements in Virac. San Andres, and Codon:
e lease iqgreerrt going
9 the detri ment of ents bY Ehe
8 the need t the environm e
•.r a Cit4t e
3. exclusi on of balikbayans ilj
do not thc t OUg ist ar nv j
a
4. Caramoa
2. lve the Sangguniang competitiveness in the island province ofCatanduancs;
i Panlalawigan° for
n Legislative measures
v that would enhance
o tourism ^ Aha known • the Ro ncol Baafd, it Is the »ame give ‹• i*›e leg slature uf each
éb il, usut'ssi›arnt on‹l th tiftllJ5 ‹›f Almosor uncl J’rlple
C United 5tq;qj
ñrvrlt›|›a1J‹’i›t glnf\ (Al)P) tl\Ft*t*?h !!e+ ^**PP^’* ^’
Agrilt'y 1’t›i’ liltcrnalioltiil lacvrl'›lin'ri›t (USAI *Ji
4. ltavr e lrai ittng vlslt tti hvlple C Areaa; snd
S. tit›ilatr tl1i• li›vrstinrnt plons of nlmaaor rind Triple C touriatn

lt wiis lair in thi• r›rn1ng. Parmrl still hos *e• thlnk ng csp on,
.Cl›r knrw tlult tl,P {›nre of cx›mpletlng the estab1l?thm0nt of touflggj
sll1aitt•r ln rutsiiduaites snd tltc two Ca marl nea pro*incea would
sll dej)citd or› l›ow fast the provlncial tourism offlcers, conaultanta,
8n§ the ’Prchulcal Worklng Group (TWG) cooperate, Wlth the
suppoq of thr local government and stakeholders In full foxe, lc 1s
only thee that the frulilon ot touñam development ln the Bicol
Reglon woul#: