New health and hygiene protocols in the establishments and the commitment to attract national tourists in an environment where short trips will be preferred, are some of the trends predicted in the new "normality" that will come after the quarantine period.
Given the quarantines decreed by most governments worldwide, it is anticipated that the habits of tourists will change dramatically in the short and medium term, as the crisis of covid-19 will leave consequences among consumers.
From May 9 to 10 in Costa Rica Expotur 2019 will be held at the National Convention Center, which will bring together 230 international buyers from the tourism sector from 35 countries.
Erasmo Rojas, president of the Costa Rican Association of Tourism Professionals (Acoprot), explained to Nacion.com that "... The activity consists of two days of negotiations and alliances that allow revitalize the tourist offer each year and generate millions of dollars in tourist currency for accommodations, food and transportation."
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.
The international tourism sector meeting scheduled for the end of April, is expected to be attended by 166 buyers from 44 countries.
The Expotur 2018 tourist fair, organized by the Costa Rican Association of Tourism Professionals (Acoprot), will take place in the new Congress and Convention Center, from April 25 to 27 of this year.
Tailor made tourist packages, modifications in hotels, and learning the Mandarin language, are just some of the aspects that companies must work on in order to receive tourists from China.
The bilateral tourism promotion agreement signed between the governments of China and Panama, after they reestablished diplomatic relations in June 2017, involves much more than a simple framework to promote the arrival of tourists, but also contemplates the requirements that Panama must meet in order to be categorized as a country authorized to be visited by the citizens of China.
An initiative put forward by the Executive Power proposes to create a registry of tourism companies and include more businesses in the tax incentive programs.
The bill presented by the Executive Branch also includes the creation of a new entity, which would be called the National Tourism Council (CNT), and would consist of public and private sectors.
The average european tourist plans trips less than a year in advance and searches and books tour packages via the internet, without using intermediaries.
A study by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute to identify best prospectsfound that"... generally Europeans decide on their holiday destination less than a year in advance and in most cases organize their trips independently i.e., without using intermediaries. It was also found that the most used methods of finding information include recommendations from friends, search engines and online travel agencies and websites promoting the destinations.
5,000 tourists have taken advantage of the tourism promotion program known as Stop Over', which allows air passengers with connections of between 5 and 48 hours to go out of the airport without incurring any additional fees.
The Tourism Ministry said that since the program began in March 2015, 5,000 people left the Monsignor Oscar Arnulfo Romero airport to do tourism activities while waiting for their next flight.
The Ministry of Tourism has announced plans to publish this month a tender to develop an international tourism promotion campaign, worth $2 million.
The tourism minister, Jose Napoleon Duarte, said that the contract for the international advertising campaign will be for $1.9 million and the request for proposals will be published before the end of February, on the state procurement website.
From June 19 to 23 companies working in convention tourism will be meeting in Antigua with international buyers and suppliers in order to develop business opportunities.
From a statement issued by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute:
Guatemala January 26, 2017.The Guatemalan Tourism Institute, INGUAT together with the Convention Bureau of Guatemala, announced that the City of Antigua Guatemala will host the Latin America Meetings and Incentives Travel Exchange, Lamite, from June 19 to 23.
From October 6 to 8 San Salvador will be hosting a regional tourism promotion fair, in which it is expected that 80 wholesalers from Europe, the US and South America will take part.
The eleventh edition of the event will be organized by the Ministry of Tourism of El Salvador and the Federation of Chambers of Tourism of Central America.
On June 21 and 22 local and foreign tourist companies will be meeting to discuss issues such as using technology as a tool for promotion and hearing about successful experiences from other countries.
From a statement issued by the Tourism Authority of Panama:
The Tourism Authority of Panama (ATP) and the Panamanian Chamber of Tourism (CAMTUR) will be holding from June 21 to 22 the first National Tourism Convention "Juntos por Panama" (CONATUR), to establish a strategy with all stakeholders in the sector, which will strengthen the country's tourism supply.
Participating for the first time are Nicaragua and the United Arab Emirates as exhibitors, and buyers will be coming from Germany, Argentina, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Italy, Colombia and Sweden, and other places.
From a statement issued by the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture (CCIAP):
International Tourism Expo, in its seventh version, will feature more than 150 exhibition booths, which will be displaying to national and international companies, working in different areas of tourism, in 3,000 m2 of the Atlapa Convention Center in the exhibition which will be held on Friday 27 and Saturday 28 May.
From May 31 to June 1 representatives from chambers of tourism in Central America will be gathering together in León to share experiences and explore business opportunities.
Jose Benito Rodriguez, president of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Services in Leon told Elnuevodiario.com.ni that the First Central American Congress of Chambers of Commerce and Tourism will be attended by representatives of chambers of tourism in Costa Rica , El Salvador and Guatemala, "... plus delegates from two Chambers of Commerce in Honduras, including the Chamber of Commerce of Choluteca."
Viajes El Corte Ingles will be selling tourism products in El Salvador in its sales network in Spain and carrying out a promotional campaign from March 15 to October 31.
The agreement aims to increase the number of Spanish tourists visiting the country, which in 2015 was around 20,000. The promotion will be done through the marketing channels of the agency and will be reinforced by a campaign that will run until October 31, 2015.