ABS-CBN Regional Network Group has launched the "Choose Philippines" travel website.

“It’s about time!”

The ABS-CBN Regional Network Group is proud to announce the launching of Choose Philippines—the 1st ever socialnet website on travel, places, events, food and people of the Philippines. We will be going live on the 15th of April 2011.

Our travel website has the URL http://www.choosephils.com and is committed to provide accurate and up-to-date information about the places, food and culture of the Philippines from a uniquely Filipino perspective. We will achieve this through the resources of the ABS-CBN Regional Network Group and its 32 bureaus spread all over the country.

Choose Philippines also has a dedicated and very active Facebook community page with “likes” of 200,000 and still increasing everyday!

There’s more to the Philippines than just Boracay, Coron and the popular tourist destinations. Our country has 7,107 islands and we intend to comb for hidden treasures and well-kept secrets. We hope you could help us. We believe Filipinos are naturally proud of their heritage: the islands they call home, their culture and even their food that they would like to share with the world.

ABS- CBN Regional Network Group Head Jerry Bennett said Choose Philippines was built, “because we wanted everyone, both Pinoys and non-Pinoys, to experience our country.”

“I love the Philippines, really! For me, it’s a country like no other. It’s my bragging right, my claim to fame that I am a Filipino. I’ve traveled this nation from north to south, east to west and I can only utter phrases of thanksgiving for the charm and the grandeur of the Philippines!” said Mr. Bennett.

World Tourism Organization statistics show there were 1 billion tourists that traveled in 2010. Thailand got 15 million visitors, Hong Kong 30 million and the Philippines, a mere 3 million.

Imagine—it is more expensive to go to Boracay than Hong Kong! Why? The Philippines lacks the infrastructure to support tourism where government should play a big role. Tourism is a growth sector that needs a lot of support.

Filipinos need not leave the country and work in distant, dangerous countries if there’s work and money to be made in their own hometown, where their families and loved ones are.

What is the answer? Tourism. Building alternative livelihood and SUSTAINABLE tourism may be the answer.

Choose Philippines will support the hyper-local business ventures of our fellow Pinoys in the provinces from all the different regions by showcasing their efforts. We intend to support Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in promoting and advertising their businesses on a platform with a guaranteed and ever-growing audience.

“It’s a country where the places and its people complement each other. The Filipino is hospitable second-to-none, resilient, fun-loving, hardworking, and given the right opportunities, can excel and even surpass the growth of our neighbors! And I believe that someday we will. The change has come and progress is set in motion.” Mr. Bennett said.

The RNG head also considers Choose Philippines as “a seminal event that will positively impact this generation and succeeding generations of overseas Filipinos to come here from abroad and be proud of their country, its culture and heritage, and thus bring us to greatness!”

Choose Philippines is encouraging Filipino residents and our foreign visitors to register on the website (it’s easy and it’s FREE!) and share their experiences.

We would love to hear about their travels, adventures and misadventures in their very own words: Where did they go? What can we expect (scary insects, tidal waves, the best places to eat, etc)? What do we need to bring (sandals instead of shoes, anti-mosquito lotion, etc)? How to get there and how much? Also a bit of trivia and local flavor about the place would be fantastic!

We also invite Choose Philippines users to email us their beautiful photos (high-resolution would be best!) and a short “caption-like” article about these images.

Story and photo contributions can be emailed to choosephils@gmail.com.

And please “like” our fan page “Choose Philippines” on Facebook. Invite as many of your friends to do the same! Just by doing this you are already making a difference for our country! Choose us! Choose Philippines!