Dinagyang eyes national stage January 13, 2014 By : Wenceslao E. Mateo Jr. PLANS to turn the Dinagyang Festival into a national event will cement Visayas’ standing as the tourism center of the country. Once Dinagyang goes national, it will add to the tourism jewels of Western Visayas like Boracay Island in Aklan which remains the top tourist drawer of the country. Dinagyang has broken into the national consciousness after its grand slam victory (three years in a row) in the prestigious Aliwan Fiesta of a national radio network. Iloilo City’s premiere tourism event dominated the Aliwan (which is considered the festival of festivals) in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Iloilo City Tourism Officer Ben Jimena revealed the plan for a national Dinagyang over the weekend. Jimena said the plan could be launched during the 1st Philippine Costumes Festival & Expo which is one of the major sidelights of Dinagyang 2015. The costumes festival is slated on January 22-25 and will feature an exhibit of festival costumes at the lobby of the Iloilo Capitol. A Parade of Costumes alongside dancing Ati-ati warriors will be mounted on January 25. “It is still in the planning stage, of course. No drastic move though, as it is no joke rushing up such a big event. It is, nonetheless, something to hope for in the near future,” Jimena said. “Should we succeed with it, it could perhaps be the ‘Aliwan Festival of the Visayas’,” he added. He said 13 festivals from other parts of the country have already officially confirmed their participation in the 1st Philippine Costumes Festival & Expo. “We’re still waiting for more festivals to confirm their participation from the remaining 17 festivals we have also invited,” the city tourism officer also said. The festivals that already officially confirmed their participation are: Ammungan Festival of Nueva Vizcaya; Ati-atihan of Kalibo; Sinulog of Cebu; Desposorio of Hagonoy, Bulacan; Hiantes of Angono, Rizal; Pintaflores of San Carlos City; Padang-Padang of ARMM; T’nalak of South Cotabato; Karilangan of General Santos City; Kalivungan Festival of North Cotabato; Daragang Magayon of Albay; La Laguna of Laguna province; and Buglasan of Dumaguete City. The perks for the participating festivals include P12,000 for the round trip ticket and food, 4 nights free accommodation and transportation.
Posted on: Mon, 12 Jan 2015 22:13:42 +0000
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