Despite being Baguio City's newest popular tourist attraction, the Bamboo Eco-Park is temporarily closing due to vandalism.
Philippine Bamboo Foundation President Edgardo Manda made the announcement on his Facebook account on Monday, November 9, 2020.
His post read: "TO THE VISITING PUBLIC: WE ARE TEMPORARILY CLOSING THE BAMBOO ECOPARK IN BAGUIO CITY DUE TO VANDALISM.
"Some visitors do not respect the place and have defaced bamboo culms (or poles) by engraving their names and relieving themselves along the pathway."
The eco-park reportedly does not have security personnel to check on the visitors while inside the park. In the comments section of Manda's post, netizens reminded visitors to be mindful of their surroundings.
Lifestyle vlogger Lawrence Pacion of Vagabond Igorot recently went to this travel destination and saw a number of bamboo culms defaced with engraved names on them.
In the caption of his post, Lawrence encouraged other visitors to "PLS OBSERVE AND MAINTAIN CLEANLINESS!!"
Bamboo Eco-Park is known for showcasing different types or species of bamboos that are planted along pathways.
Similar to Kyoto's famous Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, the bamboo sanctuary opened late last year and started gaining traction from local tourists in March 2020.
According to baguio.gov.ph, this Bamboo Eco-Park is included in Baguio City's 1M-hectare bamboo plantation project as "part of the country's commitment to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to reforest 20M hectares by 2020."
As of writing, no details about the reopening of the bamboo sanctuary have been announced.
The Bamboo Eco-Park is located at St. Francis Xavier Seminary in Liteng, Pacdal, Baguio City.
