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.
The adaptations for tourist use at the port of Puerto El Triunfo and construction of an ecotourism park are some of the projects which will be developed with IDB funds.
The Ministry of Tourism in El Salvador has signed an agreement with the Inter - American Development Bank to allocate part of the $25 million loan formalized in 2015 to improving tourism infrastructure in the municipalities of Usulutan, Puerto El Triunfo, Berlin, Alegria, Jiquilisco and San Dionisio.
In order to achieve maximum growth potential and position themselves as a major destination in the region, it is imperative to update the Master Plan for Tourism, developed in 2007.
In the view of tourism enterprises, some of the factors that need to be strengthened are related to the creation of a plan to boost tourism products, work with indigenous regions to boost tourism in these areas, update sector priorities and above all to create the concept of clusters, "... conglomerates which form a more integrated tourist circuit."
At the end of 2014 110 hotels were operating in the main tourist city of Nicaragua, where three new establishments plan to open to the public during the year.
Tax incentives granted by the Nicaraguan government have allowed employers in the hotel sector to increase their investment in Granada, which in 2014 received 521,000 tourists, according to figures from the Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism.
The government announced that it will construct the stations at 80 kilometer intervals along the Pan American Highway and they will feature restaurants, parking and small stores.
From a statement issued by the Tourism Authority of Panama (ATP):
PANAMA September 25 (ATP) - The Tourism Authority of Panama (ATP) has developed a series of initiatives such as tourist resorts along the Pan American Highway, informed the Administrator of the institution, Jesus Sierra Victoria during the XIV International Tourism Forum PANAMCHAM, which took place at the Sheraton hotel.
In the first half of the year $218 million came into the country, 10.3% more than the $197.5 million generated in the same period in 2013.
Details from the Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism (Intur) show that "... Between January and June Nicaragua received 650,008 foreign visitors, representing a growth of 7.1% compared to the same period in 2013, when the country received 607.155 tourists. "
The largest and wildest of the Panamanian provinces holds promise for the development of ecotourism and attracting investor interest.
Well known as a jungle barrier which makes the border between Panama and Colombia virtually impassable, Darien is a protected area and a national park that was globally recognized as a World Heritage site in 1981.
UNESCO declared the park a Biosphere Reserve for Humanity and in 1983, it was named in the reserve category of biodiversity due to its extraordinary biodiversity and genetic value and because it is home to indigenous tribes that still live there and practice their ancestral customs.
In 2011 $405 million was invested in projects in the tourism sector, and 2012’s investment is estimated at $842 million.
From a press release from the Tourism Authority of Panama (ATP):
There is no doubt that tourism in Panama is taking giant leaps when beach projects are attracting thousands of visitors from around the world who choose to come to the isthmus to have their best vacation ever.