ILOILO CITY, Iloilo, Philippines — Inter-province tourism needs to be established to develop the marketability of the airport in Iloilo for international flights.

“We need to increase inter-regional arrivals to attract international flights,” said Atty. Helen Catalbas, acting regional director of the Department of Tourism in Region 6 (DOT-6).

Tourism stakeholders from Iloilo and Guimaras recently met here to brainstorm ideas in spurring tourism growth in the two neighboring provinces.

Catalbas pointed out that partnership between Iloilo-Guimaras provinces to work at inter-provincial tourism efforts could spur tourism growth here, with the opening of direct international flights at the so-called airport of international standard straddling the towns of Cabatuan and Sta. Barbara.

The session participated in by said tourism stakeholders from both provinces delved in assessing the tourism potentials of both Iloilo and Guimaras, including the beach resorts and other eco-tourism destinations.

“We also need to find solutions to existing problems or issues in both areas that could later serve as an advantage to our tourism growth,” Catalbas said.

More importantly, partnership between the provinces of Iloilo and Guimaras could also most likely push up the standing of Western Visayas as one of the country’s top tourist destinations in the region.

Catalbas stressed that the Western Visayas region “should not solely rely on tourist arrivals headed for world famous holiday beach destination Boracay in Malay, Aklan.

Western Visayas has an outbound market of approximately seven million.