Boarding houses checks on/ Tour guiding rules eyed

 CITY HALL BEAT

Aileen P. Refuerzo

BAGUIO CITY -- As classes began, the city government once again intensified inspections of boarding and lodging houses in the city to ensure the health and safety of students.
    The composite team on boarding houses led by the City Health Services Office through the Sanitation Division launched a surprise inspection last Aug. 15, 2023 which covered boarding houses, dormitories and apartments at New Lucban, T. Alonzo and ABCR barangays at random.
    This was to determine if operators of these accommodation establishments are complying with rules on business permit, building code, fire safety and sanitation code for the health and safety of their boarders.
    Those who are not complying were issued notices of violations and were given a month to meet all the requirements.  Continued defiance will mean issuance of closure orders.
    Per results of the inspections, violations found were lack of business and building permits, lack or obstructed fire exits, insufficient fire extinguishers, insufficient trash bins, unsanitary condition of comfort rooms, hallways and rooms, inadequate lighting, vermin infestation, poor building maintenance, obstruction of hallways, rainwater pooling, poor grease trap disposal and maintenance, among others.
    Some were also flagged for allowing smoking within their premises.
    Sanitation Division Head Charles Bryan Carame said the inspection will be sustained in addition to random operations being conducted year-round by their office.  Plans to do star rating for compliant establishments will also be pursued.
    The composite team was composed of the Public Order and Safety Division (POSD), Smoke-Free Unit, Sanitation Division, Population Division of the Health Services Office (HSO), City Permits and Licensing Division City (CPLD) Buildings and Architecture Office (CBAO), City Environment and Parks Office (CEPMO), City Planning and Development Office (CPDO) and Bureau of Fire and Protection (BFP) and the office of Coun. Betty Lourdes Tabanda joined the inspection as the chair of the city council Committee on Health and Sanitation, Ecology and Environmental Protection.
    According to the PLD, the city has 31 dormitories, 21 lodging houses, 1,773 boarding houses, 1,398 apartments and 543 transient houses listed in its registry of permitted establishments.
    ***
The city government will soon impose rules to regulate tour guiding activities in the city in line with the city’s thrust towards a responsible and sustainable tourism industry.
    Mayor Benjamin Magalong and the City Tourism Operations Office expressed agreement to proposals for said regulations which they said would serve to enhance the travel experience in the city.
    Currently, there are proposed regulations covering the tour guiding sector being studied at the city council as part of the proposed amendment to the city’s Tourism Code.
    The mayor expressed hope that the proposal will be adopted soon to prevent unpleasant travel experiences by some visitors because of untrained or non-local tour guides.
    “Tour guides should know our place’s tourist spots, culture and recreational activities by heart.  They should have relevant cultural, historical and practical knowledge of our city including its day-to-day conditions to be able to effectively guide our visitors,” the mayor said.
    However, there are many people in the hospitality and travel industry who take on the job without the proper qualifications such as non-locals who have very limited knowledge of the city and its circumstances.
    This, according to the mayor, results in hassles and problems that affect the image of the city.
    He said the city can tap the tour guides that were trained by the city and the Dept. of Tourism to professionalize their ranks.
    One tour operator told the mayor said because accredited tour guides are adequately trained, they know their roles to “deliver relevant commentaries including on history, facts, trivia, events, updates and information about the place, lead in navigating and pointing directions, shepherd and discipline the guests, implement and observe local ordinances and practices,  share about the culture, delicacies, creativity and other unique features of the destination and to implement responsible and sustainable tourism” as spelled out by a member of the tourism industry.
    “The city needs tour guides who know the city by heart, someone who lives in and "breathes Baguio," the operator said as he batted for the adoption of a legislation to regulate the practice and avoid the “malpractice of these non-local and non-accredited tour guides as what Banaue, Sagada, Puerto Princesa, Bohol, and others are (doing).”
    “Remember the incident with a bus stuck in Session Road? Had they been guided by a local guide, the tourist bus could have been properly guided with the right directions. Most independent tourists rely on ‘road maps/ navigators.’  The same goes with a tour guide who is not a resident of the place. The AI navigator and the non-local guide are not aware of the current situation of the roads or the traffic conditions.  I have also heard inaccurate information shared by non-local guides.  Misinformation may taint or jeopardize the image of our city,” the tour operator said.
    “On the economic side, regulating the ‘practice’ of non-local guides in our city will help sustain the jobs of our very own tour guides. After undergoing 26 days of training and other series of training, our tour guide's job security is uncertain. Since Baguio is an open city with tourists doing their own itineraries, relying on Waze and the internet for information and directions, plus the competing tour guides from outside, securing a tour for the tour guides gets slimmer. Kaya kami pong accredited tour operators avail of their services as part of our tour package offerings.
One accredited tourist guide who is a member of the World Federation of Tourist Guide Association also shared his piece:
    “I feel this has to be addressed urgently.  As a tourist guide myself and a tourist guide trainer of WFTGA, having (these rules) might be of great help not just for the sector but for the city, as it is the image of the city that is at stake.”
“This has been a problem for many years in many cities.  Locking in rules and aggressive execution based on the idea of mandating all tours to have a local guide will give our city a sense of security among tourists and the residents at the same time, where somehow, operators and guides from outside the city will hesitate to operate in face of a set of sanctions waiting for them if they violate.”