The construction of the road to Monteverde in Costa Rica, which has been postponed for years and that in the coming weeks would publish the tender documents, promises to further enhance tourism in the sector.
This is not the first attempt by a government to develop this important road project. In July 2014 the Ministry of Public Works announced that it would publish in 2015 a "direct competitive tender" to asphalt 18 kilometers of road in the province of Puntarenas.
Last year, 2,48 million tourists arrived in the country, spending $4.605 million, 3.3% more than in 2017.
Figures from the Statistics Department of the Panama Tourism Authority (ATP), specify that the average time a tourist stays in the country is approximately 8 days and spends on average a total of $1,856, which is equivalent to $232 per day, expenses include accommodation, shopping, food, internal transportation, entertainment, visits to historic tourist sites within and outside the capital city.
Germany recommends German tourists to be cautious when travelling to the Central American country, mainly because of the general strike that has caused road blocks.
The German Information Center for Latin America informed its travelers that because a nationwide general strike continues in Costa Rica, there are restrictions on the public sector and road blocks in and around the capital, San Jose.
Last year almost 228,000 visitors from Europe came to the country, 8% more than the figure recorded in 2016.
The European airlines that increased passenger revenue in 2017 were: Iberia, with a total of 69,381 passengers, some 9,501 more than in 2016, with a growth of 15.9%; and KLM, with a total of 55,519 passengers, about 2,044 more than in 2016, an increase of 3.8%.
The union of tourism entrepreneurs estimates that the country will receive 1.9 million tourists, and they expect the activity to generate close to $830 million.
Combining efforts on promotion and marketing in order to attract more tourists from South American countries is one of the goals proposed by the National Chamber of Tourism (Canatur).Figures from the trade union indicate that the average daily expenditure of South American tourists exceeds the general average.
Between January and June, 219 thousand tourists came into the country from Europe, 6% more than the figure recorded in the first half of last year.
From a statement issued by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute:
During the first half of 2017, Europe showed steady growth in international arrivals (8.4% by air and a 6% increase for all routes to the country), according to data provided by the Directorate General of Migration and Aliens and analyzed by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute.
A new measure imposed by Nicaraguan immigration authorities requires foreigners who intend to enter the country to file a "notice of entry" seven days in advance.
The Nicaraguan business sector, particularly companies working in the tourism industry, regret the government's decision to implement this measure. The only thing it does is to discourage the entry of foreigners, who in their vast majority come to the country to take part in tourist activities.Complaints have arisen from El Salvador and other nations about the difficulties of this new measure, especially from tour operators and tourist companies that manage trips to Nicaragua from neighboring countries.
Through an agreement with Iberia flight connections will be improved from Rome and Milan to Madrid - San José, in order to connect both cities with San Jose.
A statement from the Costa Rican Tourism Institute says that in order to improve conditions of the connections between Madrid and the Italian cities of Rome and Milan, the airline Iberia will be taking the following measures:
Tourism entrepreneurs have suggested setting up a border post in El Naranjo in order to encourage the arrival of international tourists coming from Guanacaste, Costa Rica.
The announcement of the possible construction of a coastal highway in the Pacific, represents an opportunity for entrepreneurs in the tourism sectorto further enhance the development of tourism in the area and also provide a route for foreign tourists arriving at the Liberia airport in Guanacaste, Costa Rica.
In the first half of the year 1.4 million tourists visted the country, only 1.7% more than in the same period in 2014.
From a statement issued by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT):
In the first six months of the year, our country received 1,415,046 international arrivals; that is, more than 23,429 tourists entered through all ports, according to data provided by the Directorate General of Immigration (DGME) and analyzed by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT).
At the end of the fourth quarter of 2014 the average stay increased from 6.9 to 8.2 days from the previous quarter, but the average daily expenditure remained at $43.
The average stay for a tourist from South America is 8.6 days, while tourists from other regions reported 13.9 days on average. The average daily tourist expenditure during 2014 was $43.40, only $0.90 more than the amount reported in 2013.
During the year 2.3 million tourists came into the country, of which 48% came from South America, 24.3% from North America, 12.7% from Central America and 2.5% of the Antilles.
The increase of 4.7% compared to 2013 did not solve the problem of low occupancy in hotels, because the supply of rooms also continued to rise. A drop of 20% was reported in financial income from this sector.
Up until May incentives have been authorized for 22 tourism investment projects, including the construction of the airport in Costa Esmeralda, for $12 million.
Tourism growth and incentives granted to investment projects in the tourism sector are boosting investment in the country, which, according to estimates by the Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism, will amount to $400 million in the year.