The Boracaynon

By: Gil delos Santos Reading through the latest issue of Boracay Sun (August–September 2025), I cannot help but reflect on how diverse Boracay has become in terms of demographics. Yet, this diversity feels alienating at times. On crucial issues that shape the island’s future, I ask myself: where are the voices of my fellow Boracaynon community members? Who represents us? Who speaks for our sentiments? Now, in an island where true Boracaynons have become a minority—outnumbered and often overshadowed in representation and decision-making—I cannot help but wonder: tunay nga Boracaynons sa isip, sa salita, at sa gawa, diin ron kamo? I may be labeled conservative, even a hopeless romantic, for longing for the old Boracay. But if you have not truly lived and breathed how this island once was, you may never understand the depth of our yearning for its lost soul. I hold the highest respect for every industry player in Boracay and am grateful for the contributions that have shaped t...

By: Gil delos Santos I agree that if there’s nothing really that we can help, we better shut up. I have however been personally consulted or invited as a resource person by the municipal legislators when we first feel the decline in Boracay and they have in fact implemented some of our recommendations with the help of other stakeholders ( link for reference ). So we are extending that opportunity to present this another discussion. Again, we are looking at the wrong problem. That’s why our solutions don’t match. We acknowledge that there are ground works that truly need fixing — like for instance the nuisance vendors, accessibility and fees issues, infrastructure, myopic policies, and others. However, there are bigger issues which are not often discussed. We target Boracay to be a MICE destination but the event organizers are in pain in securing permits because of the overpriced licenses — which in some cases, the bigger amount is not declared to the municipal treasury — th...

By: Gil delos Santos  I always stress that a proper research could give us all the answers and solutions we need in Boracay. This can be done by a DMO or a Destination Management consultant which we always have recommended to LGU Malay. It could be hired under the office of the mayor as one of his executive arms.  See my presentation to them during an SB session when we were invited as resource person when Boracay first felt the tourism decline in November of 2023. While it's still in limbo, we want to share a bigger picture of the situation. The loss of foreign tourists, which is identified as the high spenders and long staying guests have caused the economic slowdown in Boracay. Foreign decline is caused by many factors:  (1) Over regulation (mainly complained by the korean market), (2) Infrastructure issues, (3) Accessibility and transfer inconveniences, (4) Nuisance vendors, (5) Tourist bad experiences, (7) Lack of international travel ties, (8) Lesser ni...