ORMOC CITY – This city won four awards under the independent city/component city category during the recent 2025 Association of Tourism Officers of the Philippines (ATOP) Pearl Awards held in Baguio City on October 2, 2025.
The awards were bestowed during ATOP’s 26th National Convention, which is held annually to give honor and commend exemplary tourism practices and innovations by local government units (LGUs) in the country.
The city of beautiful people bagged three 1st runner-up awards for Best Institutionalized Culture and Arts Program for its “Gugma sa Kagikan: The Ormoc City Museum’s Legacy of Resilience and Culture,” Best Practices in Community-Based Tourism for the “Sea of Change: Sustaining Livelihood at Barangay Naungan Mangrove Eco-Park,” and Best Event Hosting: International Event for its UIPM Asian Development Camp 2024 event.
In addition, Ormoc City was also declared as the 2nd runner-up for Best Tourism Promotions: Non-Food for its “Crafting Stories, Weaving Futures: Alto Peak Chocolates’ Journey from Community to Culture,” highlighting Ormoc’s PDLs in Basket Weaving.
The said awards were proudly received by the Department of Tourism (DOT)-8 Regional Director Karen Tiopes, together with those representing Leyte 4th District Representative Richard I. Gomez and Mayor Lucy Torres Gomez, namely Sangguniang Panlungsod Member Krizea Caessandra Mercadal, Wilson Tolentino, Jr. and Alfe Mercado of the City Mayor’s Office; Nelson Alindogan, Serge Ilarina, Rans Benedict Lucero, John Cormanes, Ira Bantasan, Christine Mae Dagatan, and Dave Dela Cruz, all from the Ormoc City Tourism Office; and Sophia Dee from the City Sports Office.
In addition, Samar province was hailed the grand winner of the best tourism promotion video at the provincial level and the best tourism gifts or non-food souvenirs for their entry, the Lara brand, and was declared first runner-up for its best practices in Sustainable Tourism.
On the other hand, Northern Samar province was applauded for being the grand winner for Best Practices in Community-Based Tourism for the provincial level, whose entry was Lalaguna Mangrove Eco Park Association.
The awards program was created in 2005 by ATOP and the Department of Tourism (DOT) to honor exceptional contributions to the tourism sector, especially those established and implemented by LGUs; to promote excellence and motivate other localities to implement effective plans and projects in their own tourism development; and to promote innovative projects and exceptional services to give recognition and visibility for admirable actions. By Gwen Maurillo (EV Mail OCTOBER 6-12, 2025 issue)
