Kalinga’s Bodong Fest is Best Cultural Festival in ATOP Pearl Awards 2024

Tabuk City, Kalinga – While being recognized worldwide for producing the largest number of gong players and dancers in 2023, the Bodong Festival of Kalinga also serves as one of the festivals in the country bannering cultural heritage preservation.

During the awarding ceremony for the Association of Tourism Officers of the Philippines (ATOP) Pearl Awards 2024 held Thursday, October 10, the festival was announced as the grand winner in the Best Cultural Festival category.

Said award giving body recognizes festivals that ‘play a pivotal role in maintaining the cultural identity of the country and passing down traditions and customs from one generation to another generation.’

Provincial Tourism Officer Lorraine Ngao-i relayed that they were notified earlier that the festival was among the three shortlisted for the said category and on September 26, they defended the province’s entry and was judged by representatives from various national-line agencies such as the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, among others.

Hailed as the first runner-up for the same category is the Capiztahan Festival of the Province of Capiz and Ilocos Norte’s Tan-ok ni Ilocano Festival of Festivals as the second runner-up.

Apart from said category, the province was likewise adjudged the first runner-up in the Best Tourism Promotional Video 2024.

Meanwhile, Pasil, Kalinga’s Slow Food Community, is the grand winner in two categories: Best Practices for Community-Based Tourism and Best Practices on Sustainable Tourism.

The municipality was also hailed as 2nd runner-up in the Best Local Event Hosting category, particularly on its Season of Creation event.

The ATOP Pearl Awards 2024

ATOP Pearl Awards is an annual event recognizing outstanding individuals, organizations, and local government units (LGUs) for their remarkable contributions to the development and promotion of the country’s tourism industry.