Central America must be the driving force behind a globally accepted document that will be vital for the recovery of the global economy and tourism in particular.
The generation of a physical or digital document of global acceptance (like national passports) that certifies that the bearer has been vaccinated against Covid-19 will facilitate the movement of people that has been severely restricted as part of the measures adopted by governments, both locally and internationally, to contain the pandemic.
The National Assembly approved a bill that aims to streamline the procedures for granting concessions for the development of yacht clubs and berths.
The deputies of the National Assembly approved on March 12 a new Law for the Development and Operation of Tourist Marinas that will stimulate the development of the tourism industry and encourage national and foreign investment, both public and private, in the water tourism sector, the government informed in a press release.
An apartment building in Guatemala, an educational center in Panama and a tourist complex in Costa Rica, are part of the projects that are planned to be developed in the coming months in the region.
The interactive system "Construction in Central America", compiled by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData, includes an up to date list of public and private construction projects that are planned to be built soon.
The union has reported that five months after the outbreak of the social and political crisis in Nicaragua, the country has lost about 68,000 of the 120,000 jobs generated by the sector.
The National Chamber of Tourism (Canatur) presented a report highlighting the impact of the country's social and political crisis on the tourism sector.
On May 25 and 26, a meeting of tourism companies from Central America will take place in Panama City, in which buyers from all over the world will take part.
The International Tourism Expo 2018 will be held at the ATLAPA Convention Center, in Panama City.
The meeting, organized by the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama, will involve more than 160 international issuing wholesalers from Europe, North America and Latin America, with the aim of seeking service providers and tourism products.
Construction has started in Tola of a mixed tourist complex estimated at $20 million which includes 12 houses, a four-story tower with 18 apartments and a commercial area.
Travis and Lucas Boychuk, promoters of the tourism project that will be located in Gavilán beach, reported that for the tourism development called "Surf Ranch Hotel & Resort-Emerald Coast Popoyo", they will be building condominiums, apartments, restaurants, an events center, commercial premises, swimming pools, a spa, casino, gym and other amenities.
A highway in Panama, a tourist center in Costa Rica and a high rise residential complex in Guatemala, are some of the projects planned for the coming months in the region.
The interactive system "Construction in Central America", compiled by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData, includes an up to date list of public and private construction projects that are planned in the region.
A development company has started in Rivas the construction of a 1,800 square meter hotel with 24 rooms, two meeting rooms and other amenities.
Without disclosing the total amount of the investment, representatives of Gran Victoria S.A. stated that on February 1 construction started of a hotel that will be located in the center of the city of Rivas, which will have a swimming pool, restaurant and a basement.
Businessmen from the Panamanian tourist sector welcome the arrival of Air China flights in March 2018, but consider it will be a challenge to attract a type of tourist that seems to prefer very different destinations than those offered by Central America.
In a region which for many years has specialized in serving North American tourists and more recently Europeans, preparing to provide the attention demanded by tourists from China will be a challenge, according to the Panamanian tourism entrepreneurs themselves.
Between 2010 and 2016, the number of tourism companies grew by 47%, and in the same period, the number of transport companies and travel operators increased by 320% and 160%, respectively.
In 2010 the Nicaraguan Tourism Institute counted 62 businesses dedicated to providing travel organization services, and last year, this figure reached 161, thanks to the growth experienced in tourism in the country.
For the period 2017/18 81 cruise ships are expected to arrive in the country, which represents a 14% increase over the previous season.
The increase in arrivals of cruise ships is combined with greater availability of infrastructure and reduction in landing times, since, according to the National Port Company have "...new docks allow tourists arriving in San Juan del Sur on a cruise to disembark in an hour and a half, which is half the time it took before ...".
In the past 12 months, 78 environmental impact studies were submitted to develop hotels, marinas, clubs and beach residences in Central American countries.
Data from the interactive platform "Construction in Central America", compiled by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData:
In the second quarter of the year, incoming tourism recorded an average stay of 10.3 days, reflecting a year-on-year change of 7.1% and 3.5% compared to the first quarter of 2017.
From a report by the Central Bank:
On August 23, 2017, the Central Bank of Nicaragua (BCN) published the Tourism Survey Report for the second quarter of 2017.
A delegation of tourism entrepreneurs led by the owner of Air Europa are in Managua to explore business opportunities with the government and local companies.
The entrepreneurs who make up the group represent companies linked to the tourism sector, such as the airline Air Europa, tour operators and others. Representatives from the government explained to Elnuevodiario.com.ni that the businessmen "... are going to meet with the Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism, aeronautical authorities and ProNicaragua."
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.