Last week, Tagaytay City announced they are welcoming tourists without any restrictions. The move is meant to kickstart the city's tourist economy by welcoming all visitors who wish to enjoy the city’s climate and hospitality. The only condition is that they practice the minimum health and safety standards like wearing masks and face shields.
JTF-COVID Shield commander, Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, however, thinks otherwise.
“We have not received any new directive from both the NTF and IATF that travel restrictions to Tagaytay City are already lifted. So we are sticking to the existing policy that a Travel Authority is still needed if the travel requires crossing the border of Metro Manila, a province and a Highly-Urbanized City.”
From what the JTF commander said, all non-Cavite residents who wish to visit this city will be asked to present a valid Travel Authority at the boundary. If they can’t present any, they will be asked to turn back.
Heavy traffic caused by the influx of tourists on the weekend of September 12 and 13. Photo by Jojo Medina
A Travel Authority, commonly called a “travel pass,” is issued by the Local Government Unit’s (LGU) police department, authorizing a person to travel outside his or her province. Prior to getting this, a person must first secure a Medical Clearance certificate from his or her LGU’s health office. From there, his or her LGU will coordinate with the destination LGU to see if they will accept the traveller prior to issuing the Travel Authority.
Besides Cavite residents, people allowed entry to Tagaytay without the necessary travel pass are Authorized Persons Outside of Residence (APOR), but only if it is work-related, Eleazar added.
