BY HANAH TABIOS
Adventure seekers may now again experience some adrenaline-rush activities as Masungi Georeserve, a popular tourist spot in Baras, Rizal, formally reopened to tourists Wednesday after seven months of lockdown.
The reopening is a move to revive its massive tourism losses amid the ongoing global health crisis.
Ben Dumaliang, a trustee of Masungi Georeserve Foundation, said they have already zero income since no tourists came in over the past months.
They were forced to release about P2 million from their personal resources each month to maintain the conservation efforts in the area and prevent its hundreds of workers from losing their jobs.
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat was among the first visitors to experience both the newly reopened Legacy and Discovery trails. Her presence also aimed to encourage tourists to go out under the new normal.
She was joined by other officials from the Department of Tourism (DoT). Her brother, Pasig Rep. Roman Romulo, also attended the reopening, along with his wife former Valenzuela City Councilor Shalani Soledad.
“We’re always looking for ways na makapag-develop mga bagong tourism products. Although Masungi is already existing pre-COVID, na-identify based on the survey na talaga ang hinahanap ng tao, open-air, mountain climbing, and one with nature,” Puyat said referring to the recent tourism survey released by the Asian Institute of Management (AIM).
With Masungi’s proximity to the National Capital Region, the tourism chief also pointed out that Metro Manila residents will finally be able to visit the area.
According to Ann Dumaliang, Masungi project manager and management trustee, all tourists from areas under general community quarantine (GCQ) and modified (GCQ) may now start reserving their slots at Masungi’s website www.masungigeoreserve.com.
But unlike during the pre-COVID period when the average carrying capacity of the area is 250 tourists per day, only 50 visitors per day for each trail will be accommodated in accordance with the guidelines of the national government’s Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF).
For those coming in groups, a slot should be composed of five to eight persons per reservation but as much as possible, groups should be ideally composed of households of close contacts in the meantime for safety.
Pre-screening forms like conservation agreement, health declaration form, and COVID-19 agreement need to be submitted online three days before the visit.
These can be filled out upon securing a reservation. Walk-ins are strictly prohibited and visitors are advised to arrive 30 minutes ahead of time.
Though outdoor visits are generally safer than indoor spaces outside visitors’ private households, Dumaliang said Masungi is not eliminating the risks entirely brought about by the deadly coronavirus disease.
Hence, during hiking, a 1-meter distance will be implemented and the wearing of face masks is required.
“Visitors must avoid prolonged exposure of more than 15 minutes. If this is not possible, they have to move to a different location,” she added.
Dumaliang also stressed that trails in Masungi are a circuit, thus, guests are moving in a single direction which limits the chances of encountering other groups and having deliberate density control.
