Boracay tourists may take COVID-19 test 72 hrs prior to trip REGION

BORACAY – People planning to visit the world-famous Boracay Island in Malay, Aklan may undergo COVID-19 swab test at least 72 hours before the trip, according to the new guidelines released by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for Emerging Infectious Diseases on Friday.

“Pinahabaan po iyong period kung kailan pupuwedeng magpakuha ng PCR test bago bumiyahe patungo po ng Boracay,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said at the Laging Handa briefing.

Previously, the RT-PCR test must be taken within 48 hours prior to the date of travel. Only those with negative test results will be allowed to enter Boracay.

The IATF also “strongly advised” travelers to observe strict quarantine immediately after undergoing the test until the date of travel to the island.

Boracay reopened to tourists outside Western Visayas beginning October 1 as the government sought to revive the tourism industry which suffered due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The island is the first tourist destination that has officially opened nationwide.

Hotels and lodging facilities on the island have remained mostly empty, with local hotelier Henry Chusuey blaming the high cost and hassle of swab tests that keep people from traveling. Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat on Wednesday said she will propose the three-day window for tests to the IATF.

Aklan primarily depends on tourism, with some 20,000 people counting on the sector to make a living. ( Philippines/

GMA News/with a report from CNN

The world-famous Boracay Island saw less than a hundred tourists on the first few days when it was reopened to visitors from outside Western Visayas.