International Reality TV adventure filmmakers eye Philippine islands

International adventure film producers of reality game show consider the Philippines as a good site after the 8th edition of “Survivor France” was successfully filmed in Caramoan, Camarines Sur.

Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano told Davao reporters that the successful filming of Survivor France led other international producers to consider the islands in the Philippines as the right site for adventure.

Durano graced the Ecotourism Congress in Davao City on Wednesday, June 4, 2008 where tourism industry players, property owners, tourism officers and planners talked on the new standards as guide for developing ecotourism destinations.

Several tourists would go for physical activity and not just sightseeing and Davao with authentic destinations has the ingredient for adventure travel, he said.

Durano said they had been pushing for that to include diving and scuba diving is another market segment.

It maybe recalled that diving was promoted the Department of Tourism in the European market in a Travel Show early this year and generated interests among tourists.

The Adventure Travel is already a growing market, he said. With the global travel of about $900 million market, one-fifth of this is on adventure travel.

Durano meanwhile said that some of international producers from Korea and the US are looking for areas here that are ideal for location shoots.

In fact he said the “Survivor U.S.” is considering Caramoan as the site for their next episode.

“With our country consisting of several islands there will be lot of sites ideal for adventure,” he said.

Several tourists would go for physical activity and not just sightseeing and Davao with authentic destinations has the ingredient for adventure travel.

Durano said they had been pushing for that to include diving and scuba diving is another market segment.

As far as the airing of the Survivor France, he said part of the agreement is to include the showing of tourism sites of the Philippines as an opener to the main episode.

He said with nine million viewers daily for “Survivor France” beamed to television viewers in Europe and Canada that would be a high priced media mileage of promoting the destinations in the Philippines.

The airing of Survivor France will be from July to September of a reality game show that isolates its contestants in the wilderness to compete for cash and prizes in a location of exotic environments.

Durano said at Caramoan, a P200 million worth of facilities was built for the crew and contestants of Survivor France. And using it for four months, the producers paid P30 million to the provincial government of Camarines Sur. What the government paid was only the fuel needs for the entire filming, he said.

The Adventure Travel is already a growing market, he said. With the global travel of about $900 million market, one-fifth of this is on adventure travel.