Manila, Oct. 6 -- The Department of Tourism (DOT) regional office here on Monday lauded the two Samar provinces and Ormoc City for bagging eight awards during the recent 2025 Association of Tourism Officers of the Philippines (ATOP) Pearl Awards.

Award recipients during the 26th ATOP National Convention are the provincial government of Samar, the provincial government of Northern Samar, and the city government of Ormoc in Leyte.

In an interview, DOT regional director Karina Rosa Tiopes said the awards include grand winners for the best tourism promotion video in the provincial level, and the best tourism gifts or non-food souvenirs for their entry, the Lara brand, won by Samar province.

Samar province was also the first runner-up for t...