Klook pushes domestic tourism to help combat ‘wanderlust withdrawal’

Travel and leisure booking platform Klook has partnered with domestic destinations and local tourism organizations to offer Filipinos a way to combat “wanderlost”—or wanderlust withdrawal.

The lack of travel as a result of the pandemic has taken a toll on Filipinos, according to an Asia-Pacific study commissioned by Klook. Out of the 13 markets surveyed between November 5–12, 2020, Filipinos ranked highest on wanderlust withdrawal symptoms.

More than 1,000 respondents from the Philippines participated in the study, which found that Filipinos are torn between visiting family (89%) and escaping from them (73%). Klook attributed the contradictory results to individuals who wish they had personal downtime after being confined with family members over the lockdown.

Filipinos also expressed unhappiness about not being able to travel with friends to create happy memories (93%), as well as constantly looking at past travel photos (81%) since they cannot travel.

DOMESTIC TRAVEL RECOMMENDATIONS
With the mass deployment of vaccines and the possibility of cross-border travel still at least a few months away, Klook has drawn up a list of domestic destinations as an alternative to international travel.

These local offerings, curated through partnerships with local tourism organizations, highlight activities that are already open to visitors and comply with Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) regulations and local government unit rules.

The list includes unlimited rides in Enchanted Kingdom (P711); a staycation in Shangri-La Boracay Resort (P16,305); a heritage walking tour in Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar (P1,200); and a pampering session at Luljetta’s Hanging Gardens Spa (P895).

The destinations in the list have, at the minimum, safety protocols that include reduced capacity, temperature checks, personal protective equipment for each staff, and regular sanitation.

Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar, for its part, has a reservation-only protocol for day tours and check-in guests; thermal scanning and sanitation on entrance; signage to remind visitors of handwashing, physical distancing, and respiratory etiquette; scheduled sanitation; a maximum of six persons per guided tour; and a QR (quick response) code for menus. Guests who have checked in are also not permitted to leave the hotel premises until checkout time.

Other select attractions, such as Cebu Ocean Park, have a Klook-powered Contact Tracing System that features QR code scanning with mobile number verification and entry timestamps to ensure database accuracy. The technology will soon be rolled out to other attractions as well. — Patricia B. Mirasol