Sagada regulates tourists’ entry due to overcrowding

SAGADA, Mountain Province – The local government of this town has regulated the number of tourists coming here starting the Yuletide season.

Mayor James Pooten said this was due to experience of the municipality during long weekends and holidays where thousands of tourists flocked to scenic town filling up tourist destinations with vehicles clogging narrow roads.

An incident during the long weekend on Nov. 30 to Dec. 2, showed thousands of tourists stuck in a sunrise viewing peak posted on social media.

 “The municipality of Sagada through its tourism council came up with interventions to limit the entry of visitors in Sagada,” Pooten said in an interview.

The mayor said from the weekend before Christmas to the first week of January, personnel from the local government unit were stationed at entry points of tourist destinations to act as gate keepers and count visitors coming in and out to make sure areas will not be overcrowded.

He said the local government started implementing restrictions in tourism destinations particularly in areas filled up or which reached their carrying capacities.

 He said they started monitoring carrying capacity of tourist destinations such as the sunrise and sunset viewing areas, trekking and eco-trail areas and even water bodies and caves. “This will help in the crafting and implementation of the municipal plans particularly on tourism, environment conservation and developments thru the partnership of the different national government line agencies,” he said.

 Pooten also called on tourist operators from the different parts of the country bringing in tourists to  Sagada to register their clients at the Sagada Tourists Center before going to destinations to ensure  they are counted and also for their safety.

Local officials urged tourists to leave their vehicles in their hotel areas or parking sites and use local jeepneys in visiting destinations to avoid traffic jams and clogging of narrow roads. Pooten said tourist arrival in the municipality sometimes goes up from 4,000 to as high as almost 9,000 so they are also calling on establishments to follow their bed capacities.

Latest survey of hotels, inns and other accommodation establishments in the municipality recorded 3,800 registered bed capacity.

The mayor urged tourists to respect people, place and the culture and tradition of Sagada and maintain its clean and  environment.   

In a social media post from the Sagada Tourism they posted general guidelines to be followed by visitors of the municipality to remind them of what to do and not to do and also guide them while they are in Sagada. -- JDP/RMC- PIA