The Central American Tourism Promotion Agency and the presidency of Belize want to promote the responsible multidestination in the Spanish market.
CATA seeks to attract digital nomads to Central America and the Dominican Republic thanks to the connectivity and quality of life of the eight countries.
Europe consolidates its position as the second most important tourism market, with 14.8% of total inbound travelers
Madrid, January 19, 2023 – Central America and the Dominican Republic have reinforced their commitment to sustainability at FITUR 2023. The conservation of protected areas, their privileged natural beaches, the preservation of traditions and popular culture harmonize with the vision of today’s responsible tourists, who want to visit sustainable destinations.
This was shared by the Central American Tourism Promotion Agency (CATA) at the presentation of the Pro Tempore Presidency of the Central American Tourism Council that Belize will hold for the next six months, highlighting that this region is home to 12% of the planet’s biodiversity and is home to an average of*65 different indigenous peoples, which occupy almost 40% of the Isthmus’ land and marine surface.
The event, held at Belize’s stand in Pavilion 3 at FITUR, included the transfer of the flag of the Pro Tempore Presidency by Aníbal de Castro, ambassador of the Dominican Republic in Spain, to Anthony Mahler, Belize’s Minister of Tourism and Diaspora Relations and new President Pro Tempore.
Also in attendance were Yadira Gómez, Minister of Tourism of Honduras; Anasha Campbell, Minister of Tourism of Nicaragua; William Rodríguez, Minister of Tourism of Costa Rica; Mauricio Peñate, Ambassador of El Salvador in Spain; Allen Sellers, Ambassador of Panama in Spain; and Nicole Solano, Vice Minister of Tourism of Belize.
Also present were Rolando Schweikert, president of the Federation of Central American Chambers of Tourism (FEDECATUR), Ana Carolina Briones Pereyra, secretary general of the Central American Tourism Promotion Agency, and Ligia Miranda Ponce, executive secretary of the Secretariat for Central American Tourism Integration (SITCA). They were accompanied by José María Liu, Taiwan’s ambassador to Spain.
Responsible and sustainable multidestination
CATA and the Pro Tempore Presidency of Belize will work together to promote this responsible and sustainable multi-destination in the Spanish and European markets. Along these lines, Europe has positioned itself as the second region in the issuance of tourists to Central America and the Dominican Republic. Data for 2021 placed the number of tourists from Europe arriving in the region at 1.2 million, 14.8% of passengers, figures that are sure to grow in 2023, as a result of the relaxation of post-pandemic measures in the international tourism sector.
Along the same lines, the six priority countries in Europe, where they will focus their meetings at FITUR, are, first and foremost, Spain, with more than 227,000 tourists in 2021, followed by Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
To increase sustainable multi-destination visits, CATA unveiled at FITUR its ‘Digital Nomads’ campaign, with which it aims to attract European travelers for extended stays thanks to the installed capacity needed for connectivity and the quality of tourism infrastructure. Under the slogan ‘Live, travel and connect’, CATA offers visitors the opportunity to be surrounded by cultural and natural environments, with the guarantee of always being connected to the world.
The pandemic has strengthened teleworking, while people have realized the importance of living day to day in a natural environment with quality of life. Therefore, the Central American Tourism Promotion Agency encourages travelers who are characterized by combining their work time with their tourism interests to move their office to spaces full of magic, thanks to the digitization of the tourism industry in Central America and the Dominican Republic. Because it is clear that everyone is motivated to work in destinations where the environment is given prominence, with an ideal climate all year round, beaches, rivers and totally comfortable environments.
The Origin of the Good Life
According to the World Tourism Organization, nature-based products and community-based tourism will be the crown jewels of travel seekers by 2023. CATA understands this tourism not as a trend, but as a social and environmental commitment, which is why at FITUR it has continued with the campaign created in mid-2022 and called ‘The Origin’.
With this concept, it wants travelers to delve into the archeology, culture and nature of the region, showing millenary civilizations, ancestral gastronomy and scenarios with history in its purest state that remain in force today. Currently, the region is home to an average of*65 different indigenous peoples, which occupy almost 40% of the land and marine surface of the Isthmus, true guardians that keep intact the millenary customs of conservation, offering tourists the possibility of living an experience in contact with the living culture in natural spaces.
Likewise, Central America and the Dominican Republic are home to 12% of the planet’s biodiversity, with natural formations that have been the origin of the most representative ecotourism in the world, for example, with the second largest coral reef on the planet.
The Central American Tourism Promotion Agency and the Pro Tempore Presidency of the Central American Tourism Council of Belize are detecting at FITUR the interest of wholesalers and other industry professionals in the region’s sustainable multidestination, ideal for today’s responsible tourists.
Source: Forbes.es
