In order to have access to the vaccine against Covid-19, the number of people traveling abroad by air has increased in Guatemala in the last months, being the United States the main destination to which Guatemalans travel.
Data from the Guatemalan Institute of Migration (IGM) show that in the fifth month of the year there was an increase in the number of people who decided to travel abroad, most of them in search of access to the vaccine against the coronavirus.
Using big data management techniques, it is possible to know, with greater precision than with traditional methods, the socio-demographic characteristics, tastes, preferences and interests of consumers living in a specific area of a city or of groups of people who visit particular stores.
Nowadays, with the large volumes of data that exist, it is possible to examine absolute and relative numbers of potential customers of a shopping center or business that are in any other location.
In Guatemala, the Pacific beaches located in the stretch that goes from the Iztapa bridge to the Los Esclavos river bar, attract millionaire investments in hotels and vacation home complexes.
Oceana Resort & Conventions, which began receiving visitors in November 2019 and other more recent developments such as La Mar, Villas Cariló, El Muelle, Blanc Monterrico, among others, are some of the investments located on these beaches.
Arguing that there is a risk due to the Covid-19 outbreak and that in some areas precautions should be taken due to criminal acts, the US advised its citizens to reconsider travel to El Salvador and not to travel to the other countries of the region.
In the case of El Salvador, the alert level is 3, which recommends its citizens to reconsider their travel.
Starting next April 15, the low cost airline will begin operating flights between La Aurora International Airport and the US city of New York.
In January 2020 Jet Blue announced that it had planned to start operating that route as of June 1 of that year, however, due to the health crisis the plans had to be delayed.
In order to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, the authorities issued a Ministerial Agreement regulating tourist activities during Holy Week.
On March 25, the Ministerial Agreement 73-2021 of the Ministry of Public Health was published in the Diario de Centroamerica. This document specifies the restrictions to be applied during Easter Week.
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.
In the last months of 2020 and in January 2021, interest in travel agency services and other tourism-related services began to increase, a rise that was most evident in Costa Rica and Guatemala.
Through a system that monitors in real time changes in the interests and preferences of consumers in Central American countries, developed by CentralAmericaData, it is possible to project demand trends in the short and long term, for the different products, sectors and markets operating in the region.
The amount of visitors arrivals to Central America and the Dominican Republic shows a downward trend since 2016, which was consolidated in 2019 and worsened in 2020, a phenomenon that is explained by the events recorded in the extra-regional market.
Between 2015 and 2019, the countries of the SICA region, the average growth rate of visitor arrivals was 4.9%, where only in 2019 there was a negative rate of -0.2%, highlights a document of the Secretariat for Central American Tourism Integration (SITCA) published in January 2021.
Due to the alert that health authorities have issued for the appearance of a new SARS-CoV-2 strain and in line with the decision made by El Salvador, the governments of Panama and Guatemala will also ban the entry of people from the United Kingdom and South Africa.
Due to the new variant of Covid-19, the National Operation Center decided to temporarily suspend as of 11:59 p.m.
According to estimates, hotel occupancy for the December 27, 2020 to January 1, 2021 period will be 100% in the Pacific beaches and in the destinations located in Lake Atitlan. This dynamism is explained by the trips made by local tourists.
For the last days of the year, the sector's union predicts that hotel occupancy will rise to 70% in Antigua Guatemala, 50% in Peten and barely 20% in Izabal and the Verapaces.
In order to reduce travel costs, the Guatemalan Airline Association asked Ministry of Health authorities to no longer require passengers to take a negative covid-19 test to enter the country.
According to the Ministry of Health document called "National Guidelines for the Prevention of COVID-19 for International Travel to and from Guatemala" prepared on September 15, 2020, all travelers arriving in the country must present a negative test for covid-19.
When the pandemic began, interest among Central Americans in travel agency and other tourism-related services dropped significantly, and although it rebounded in mid-May, in recent weeks it has again reported a downward trend.
Through a system that monitors in real time changes in consumer interests and preferences in Central American countries, developed by CentralAmericaData, it is possible to project short and long term demand trends for different products, sectors and markets operating in the region.
In Central American countries, nearly 8 million people are looking for travel packages online, and of this consumer segment, about 5% explore options for travel to destinations in North America.
CentralAmericaData's interactive information system monitors in real time the changes in consumer habits in all markets of the region, with fundamental information to understand the current commercial environment in which companies of all industries must operate.
In the context of the economic reopening, it was announced that as of October 15, Costa Rican air terminals will begin to receive flights carrying citizens from Central America and Panama.
Due to the covid-19 outbreak, air transport between Costa Rica and the other countries in the region has been interrupted since March. Seven months later, authorities removed the restriction and airlines will be able to begin operating these flights.