Boracay white sand beach courtesy of the Nachos Friday Night Club

Philippine Boracay among TIME's 'World’s Greatest Places of 2022'

This is one of Duterte's legacy recognized by the World 

By Edward Era Barbacena 

Manila: Boracay has been named by TIME Magazine as one of the “World’s Greatest Places of 2022.”

We can all remember that the rehabilitation of Boracay by the former President Duterte has undergone horrendous scrutiny and criticism by the opposition and bias media. Even the Nobel prize laureate and CEO of Rappler Maria Ressa condemned the president for saving Boracay stating that it was a fool's dream.  But the effort to restore Boracay wasn't futile after all. 

On its website, TIME described the world-famous white-sand beach as a “paradise reborn” and called it among the “50 extraordinary destinations to explore.”

In creating its list, TIME said it solicited nominations of places from its international network of correspondents and contributors “with an eye toward those offering new and exciting experiences.” 

The Department of Tourism (DOT), for its part, welcomed Boracay’s inclusion saying this affirms its “allure as a tourist haven.”

“Such recognition will surely help us attain our goal of regaining our position in the global market," DOT Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said in a press statement.

"Surely, the Philippines has a multitude of sites and tourism activities that we could offer to the world. And, in addition to natural resources, we look forward as well to developing and promoting the talents of our people and the products that have the potential for national and global marketability," she said.

Other tourist spots that made it to the list are:

Ras Al Khaimah, UAE

Park City, Utah

Galapagos Islands

Dolni Morava, Czech Republic

Seoul, South Korea

Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Doha, Qatar

Detroit

Kerala, India

The Arctic

Ahmedabad, India

Nairobi

València, Spain

Queenstown, New Zealand

Hwange National Parl, Zimbabwe

Historic Silk Road Sites, Uzbekistan

S?o Paulo

Trans Bhutan Trail, Bhutan

Devon, England

Bali, Indonesia

International Space Station

Kyushu Island, Japan

Rapa Nui, Chile

Salta, Argentina

Portee, Scotland

Tofino, British Columbia

Madeira, Portugal

Franschoek, South Africa

Miami

El Chaltén, Argentina

Bogotá, Colombia

The Alentejo, Portugal

Lower Zambezi National Park, Zambia

Kaunas, Lithuania

Setouchi Islands, Japan

Calabria, Italy

San Francisco

Skelleftea, Sweden

Copenhagen, Denmark

Marseilles, France

Thessaloniki, Greece

Istanbul, Turkey

Ilulissat, Greenland

Jamaica

Fremantle, Australia

Toronto, Canada

Kigali, Rwanda

Riviera Nayarit, Mexico

Portland, Ore