ALAMINOS CITY, Pangasinan: An average of 1,208 tourists travelled every day to this city from January 1 to November 15 this year to visit the Hundred Islands National Park (HINP) here, data from this city’s tourism and cultural affairs office showed.

Of the number, 21 were foreigners, 805 came from places outside Pangasinan, and the rest were locals.

“We really didn’t have a day this year when we had no visitors, except when we closed because of a typhoon signal,” said Miguel Sison, city tourism officer here.

Sison said that the number of tourists that have arrived here as of November 15 has reached 384,220, which is only about 5,000 less than the 389,006 tourists recorded from January 1 to Dec. 31, 2022.

“We will surely have higher tourist arrivals at the end of this year than last year’s,” Sison said.

He added that the income generated for the whole last year was P33 million.

“But as of today, we have already collected P38 million. Hopefully, until the end of December, we will reach our P40 million target,” Sison said.

Tourist arrivals here have not yet returned to its pre-pandemic level of 520,000 in 2019.

But this year’s tourist arrivals are much higher than the number of visitors to the national park in 2020, which was about 93,000, and in 2021, which had about 50,000 visitors.

Sison said that the HINP has much more to offer now than in the 1990s when the national park was under the defunct Philippine Tourism Authority (PTA).

At that time, only the Quezon, Children’s and Governor’s Islands had facilities for tourists.

The beautification program for the park began in 2013 when then-mayor (now Pangasinan 1st District Representative) Arthur Celeste began building tourism structures in the other islands, such as Lopez, Marcos, Clave, Romulo, Mayor’s and Virgin Islands.

In 2015, the city government began building more picnic sheds, pavilions and gazebos on the six islands to accommodate more tourists.

These islands are equipped with solar-powered light posts, gardens and beach lights, portable toilets and concrete trails, stairs and rails.

Of the 123 small islands inside the 1,676-hectare park, only 16 have beaches. The rest have coralline shores not fit for swimming.

More activities had been introduced in the islands. Tourists can see the sites on a zipline or enjoy wall climbing and rappelling, Sison said.

There are also venues for helmet diving, banana boat rides, kayaking and snorkeling.

The city government took over the administration, control and management of the HINP on Sept. 29, 2005, when it was transferred through an executive order.

“We have long expanded to more islands. Our newest attraction is the bonsai garden and coffee shop at Ramos Island,” Sison said.

Sison said that more tourists are expected to visit the Hundred Islands once the proposed airport in Bolinao town is completed.

Gov. Ramon Guico 3rd had earlier announced that the provincial government is now 70 percent done with the acquisition of land for the airport.

“We will definitely benefit from it because right now, we exchange tourists. Those who come here also go to Bolinao and those in Bolinao come here before leaving Pangasinan,” Sison said.