International hotel chain Marco Polo Plaza revealed plans to reclaim the title of being the wedding destination in Cebu.
"We want to be a place where memories are to be made," said Carlo Borromeo, Marco Polo Plaza public relations manager.
Apart from being one of the leading corporate hotels in this city, he said Marco Polo Plaza is positioning itself as a destination for garden weddings- a distinction formerly enjoyed by the foreclosed Cebu Plaza Hotel.
Cebu Plaza Hotel closed in 2003 after its owner, Pathfinder Holdings Philippines Inc. (PHPI), turned it over to Metrobank in payment of PHPI’s P 900-million debt. PHPI had used Cebu Plaza Hotel as collateral for its loan.
With the reopening of the Marco Polo Plaza in 2006, it was welcomed by local tourism stakeholders since it was a landmark -- the site of many wedding receptions, corporate affairs, and banquets in its over two-decade-long run.
Despite being, in a way, new to Cebu’s hotel industry, Borromeo said Marco Polo Plaza is slowly regaining its popularity as a one-stop shop destination for garden wedding ceremonies and receptions.
The hotel, he said during a recent interview, caters to at least three weddings per month.
In 2007, Marco Polo hosted a two-day event dubbed "Weddings at the Marco Polo Plaza," that brought together local designers, stylists, florists, photographers and jewelers, as well as makers of giveaways and invitation cards.
"It [was] an event where people [made] the right choices for their weddings. Stakeholders [were] there not as sales people but wedding advisers," Borromeo said.
Earlier, Tourism Secretary Ace Durano said the Department of Tourism is pushing to promote Cebu as the primary wedding destination of the Philippines, another marketing strategy that is seen to be a boon to the local tourism industry.
"Cebu will soon become the wedding and honeymoon center of the Philippines, even besting Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore," Durano said.
Apart from Marco Polo Plaza, other city-based hotels like the Waterfront Cebu City Hotels and Casino also provide facilities for city-garden wedding ceremonies for both local and foreign couples.
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