By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson revealed yesterday that he is eyeing additional facilities including high-end villas and rooms at the Mambukal Resort in Murcia town.

The provincial government-run resort reopened to the public yesterday morning.

Lacson said entrance at the resort is free and that only the use of facilities will be paid by the tourists.

“We made the soft opening in line with Alert Level 2 category of the province so that we can open up to Negrenses as a symbol of tourism. Meaning we are opening tourism for local and foreign tourists, but we make sure to practice the minimum protocols such as masks and social distancing,” the governor said.

Lacson said tourists planning to go to the resort are required to pre-register first in order for the provincial government to more easily maintain the guests to 70 percent of the resort’s capacity for accommodation.

Lacson said they plan to reconstruct the “dining at the river” structures that were washed away by floods and also place a kitchen area by next year.

These are additional facilities as a new building for the food court built through the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority is nearing completion inside the resort./DGB, WDJ