In an aim to increase tourist arrivals in Cebu and boost the island's tourism industry, Cebu Vice Governor Hilario Davide III and Gangwon Deputy Governor Jeong Kwang-Yeol are eyeing the establishment of direct flights to and from Cebu and Gangwon province in South Korea.

The plan was discussed during the bilateral talks with the officials during the East Asia Inter-Regional Tourism Forum (EATOF) in Mongolia.

The direct flights will be through Yangyang Airport in Gangwon to Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) and vice versa, cutting the travel time without layovers in Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and Incheon in South Korea.

Aside from South Korea, reviving the direct flight from Cebu to Siem Reap was also tackled after the Deputy Governor of Siem Reap in Cambodia expressed interest to establish again the said flights after it was stopped during the pandemic.

Davide led the delegation of Cebu Province for the three-day EATOF, which highlighted talks about different programs to promote tourism in East Asia regions.

EATOF is an international tourism association formed in 2000 with nine local government units in East Asia.

It has 10 member provinces which include Cebu Province, Gangwon in South Korea, Tottori in Japan, Jilin in China, Tuv in Mongolia, Sarawak in Malaysia, Yogyakarta in Indonesia, Quang Ninh in Vietnam, Luang Prabang, Laos and Siem Reap in Cambodia.

Other officials who went with Davide were board members John Esmael Borgonia, Glenn Anthony Soco, Ricardo 'Kuya Nick' Pepito, Raymond Calderon, and Tourism Officer Maria Lester Ybañez.

Next year Cebu is set to host the next general assembly of EATOF. The last time Cebu hosted the said event was in 2011.

Copyright © 2022 PhilSTAR Daily, Inc Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).