The island of Boracay will not reopen fully operational, department of tourism secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said.
She said only 3,000 of out a total of about 15,000 hotel rooms will be ready by the expected October 26 reopening date.
"I think it should be a soft opening. You cannot rehabilitate an island in six months. Everything’s on track, but it needs time," Romulo-Puyat told CNN Philippines.
Boracay was completely shut down on April 26 for a six-month clean-up and rehabilitation after being described as a cesspool by the Philippines’ President.
Romulo-Puyat and other government officials want to see a cap on the number of tourists allowed on the island.
"You can’t have too many people. In other countries, they really put a limit to the number of tourists entering their islands."
This issue is due to be discussed at a Boracay Inter-agency Task Force meeting on Wednesday.
