By Danessa O. Rivera
07/29/2011 [ tribune.net.ph ]
Mindful of Boracay’s rising worldwide status by a prominent American travel and leisure publication based in New York, Global-Estate Resorts Inc. (GERI), a subsidiary of Andrew Tan’s Alliance Global Group Inc., said it is on schedule with its planned P20-billion tourism estate project called Boracay Newcoast.
As the first and only tourism estate spanning 14 percent of the island, Boracay Newcoast features an integrated, master-planned layout replete with world-class resort offerings and amenities and is expected to set new standards in Philippine tourism.
Travel and Leisure Magazine awarded Boracay the Fourth Best Island in the world and Second Best Island in Asia, besting other international island destinations such as Galápagos Islands in Ecuador, Great Barrier Reef Islands in Australia, Phuket in Thailand, and Maldives.
According to Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim, Boracay is an epitome of what the Philippines truly has to offer. “The awards and recognition it continues to receive speak for themselves. The Philippines is ready and we will continue to support Boracay in its bid to help make the Philippines one of the top tourism hot spots in the world,” he added.
The project will include 1,500 modern international-grade accommodations, specialty and boutique hotels, a shop house cluster, and a private residential village. Part of its leisure-driven community is Newcoast Station, a sprawling entertainment center, set at the center of the project’s kilometer-long white beach. The town center is encircled by a luxury hotel block and a retail strip with shops, restaurants and bars.
GERI is positioning Boracay Newcoast as a catalyst for Boracay’s long-term tourism growth as it is set to consistently help attract 350,000 more tourists to Boracay each year.
Last month, GERI announced that it will develop over 1,000 hectares of prime land in Boracay, Tagaytay and Nasugbu, Batangas into world-class tourism estates. It will allot about P5 billion in the 1,149-hectare community which is set to be a premier medical and educational tourism destination for the Twin Lakes project in Tagaytay to be developed in phases.
Its parent firm, AGI, is one of the country’s largest conglomerates with interests in real estate development, food and beverage, quick service restaurants, gaming and tourism.
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