Dive industry keeps its head above

By Diana A. Uy

?Scuba diving could be our no. 1 product. We can be competitive in that market segment.?

In 2008, Tourism Secretary Joseph ?Ace? Durano, all beaming and optimistic, talked about the great potential of the Philippine dive industry to members of the press at the Salon de la Plongee Sous Marine held in Paris, France. Supported by a good product and a very strong marketing team, under the helm of Undersecretary Eduardo Jarque Jr., Durano had indeed nothing to fear. And besides, the country does have more than 7,000 islands. To quote Venus Tan, DoT Frankfurt tourism attach?, ?how can we go wrong??

But with the industry currently facing global recession, the year of good work could very well be in jeopardy. So the question now is, how is the country?s dive industry? Are we still as competitive or as confident as we were a year ago?

The year that was

Early last year, armed with bravado, determination, and pride, the country embarked on a mission introducing our beautiful dive sites to the European market particularly the previously impenetrable French market at the Salon de la Plongee Sous Marine, France?s biggest dive fair. Our timing couldn?t have been more perfect: A travel advisory ban on the country had just been lifted, we just finished hosting the phenomenal Koh Lanta Palawan, and Tourism just wrapped up a very successful year.

At the time, the Philippines was declared ?Destination of Honor,? enjoying the spotlight at the dive fair. This was followed by an equally successful campaign at The Boot Show, Germany?s most prestigious dive exhibition, held in Dusseldorf. Needless to say, the results were more than satisfactory: European tourist arrivals, especially the French market, shot up to almost 30 percent in the first half of last year alone.

No reason to slow down

Fast forward to 2009, where, despite the economic meltdown, the Philippine dive industry has shown no signs of slowing down.

?Our participation last year produced good results,? says Tan. ?It?s all been positive. We?ve created a buzz as far as this market is concerned. We?ve proven that the Philippines is a destination that can compare with the Caribbean and the Maldives [Madlives is considered the no. 1 dive spot among the Europeans]. It is important for us to sustain this, to maintain our focus in the market. To stop now would be a wrong move.?

Tan attributes the positive outlook to the surprisingly strong showing of euro as well as the European penchant for traveling.

?Let?s just put this in the context of a shop keeper and a shop owner,? explains Yvette Lee, director for marketing and media affairs of Expedition Fleet, ?Once the shop begins losing money, shop owner fires shop keeper and still goes on vacation.?

Making great connections

As one of the participants at the Salon last year, promoting her Live Aboard dive services, Lee says she?s made great contacts. In fact, her Tubattaha dive package sold like pancakes even before the year started, she is expecting a fully booked season ahead. And her French clientele? It went from zero to numeros.

?There?s definitely a lot of improvement,? says Lee, whose dive packages cost 1900 euros for 10 days, all inclusive.

Abyss Scuba Divers is one happy dive safari tour operator, too. Abyss, which charges about 2500 to 3200 euros per person all inclusive, was among the busiest last year thanks in large part to their participation at the Salon. Being a French company did great things for the business, as well. ?Last year after the dive show, we gained 5- to 10-percent increase of French tourists,? says Laurent Aellen, Philippine operations manager. ?We toured 500 French guests. That?s good already because one boat can only accommodate 14 guests. Five hundred guests are equivalent to many boats, many safaris.?

Though Aellen predicts 2009 to be a difficult year, it didn?t stop them from participating again at the 2009 Salon. Presence, after all, is vital especially when everybody else is going belly-up.

While Tommy Soderstrom, managing partner at Asia Divers/El Galleon Dive Resort, is being more patient. Soderstrom is a second-timer at the Salon, which also translates to the Swede native reaching the second stage of his three-rule formula for success at dive fairs: Create impression (first year, checked), recognition (second year, checked), and bookings (third year).

?I know, from experience, that it takes time,? says Soderstrom. ?Anything we got from the first year is good. We?ve got quite good bookings until the end of May. I think with last year?s show and this year?s show, for sure [we are gaining recall]. This is the way to do it, to show people that we are here. That said, I believe 2009 is going to be an okay year.?

Georg Bender, president at Atlantis Dive Resorts-Philippines, feels the same. ?We?ve generated a lot of interest [thanks to the Salon]. The Philippines is no longer a no-name dive destination. So long as we continue promoting Philippine dive destinations as high-end, not cheap, we are going to have a steady increase of [French] tourists.?

Sampaguita Resort, represented by Luigi Petrosillo, managing director, and Eleonora Boiani, marketing manager, enjoyed a surge in French tourist arrivals after the 2008 Salon, as well, encouraging them to participate again this year. The resort remains positive about the industry despite and in spite of the recession.

?People will always go back to their old lifestyle, to their usual way of travelling, to diving,? says Petrosillo. ?We work hard and make sacrifices and it is only natural that we reward ourselves after working so hard. We?ve been hit by big events before like the Twin Towers, SARS... normality will come back eventually.?

Outside help

With or without recession, the country?s dive industry remains in good hands, especially with outside help and support coming its way. For example, Nouvelles Frontieres, one of France?s biggest tour operators, finally included Philippine dive sites in their program as promised by Myriam Viennet, Nouvelles Frontieres scuba diving programs and tours manager, a year ago. Last October, Viennet went on a 10-day diving expedition from Boracay to Bohol to experience first-hand what the Philippines has to offer. Viennet was impressed.

?It was very well organized, beautiful dives, fantastic people,? says Viennet. ?It is a very good destination. We can see rare small fishes. [The Philippines] is maybe similar to Bali but, the water is clearer in the Philippines and the currents are less strong. It is good for all levels of diving.?

Cementing the country?s status as destination du jour is the happy news that the Philippines has just been named Ecotourism Destination of the Year at the Salon Nature.

?Diving is one of the product strengths of the Philippines for two reasons,? Tan says, echoing what Durano had said earlier, ?It has niche market and we own the world?s best.?

?You cannot compare [our dive destinations] with those in Thailand and Malaysia, for example. The Philippines has the best diving destinations. Nobody can deny it.?