After the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, travelers from Latin America have realized the importance of outdoor tourism and the connection with nature.
As a result, ecotourism has become a highly desirable option for travelers who are now actively seeking eco-friendly experiences when planning their trips.
This trend has led many travel agencies and tour operators in the region to increase their service offering by focusing on plans that include trips to natural areas rich in diversity of flora and fauna, in addition to promoting contact with the communities established in them. area with the idea of supporting conservation, low environmental impact as well as economic benefit of localities.
Although the indicators say that the growth of this travel segment is increasing in Latin America, it is still in a process of consolidation, as Francisco Madrid, who is Director of the Center for Research and Competitiveness in Tourism (CICOTUR) of Anahuac University. in Mexico, TravelPulse.com reports.
“We’ve learned from the results we’re seeing in Mexico that the tourism of the future looks a lot like the tourism of the past,” Madrid said. “Some segments, such as nature tourism, seem to be activating, but overall, it makes a marginal contribution. The most important is in stronger segments such as conventional sun and beach tourism or cultural tourism in Mexico. We know that there a lot of interest, we know there are many travelers who want to meet in the nature space, but overall they are still quite a small part.”
Among the countries that stand out in the development of ecotourism in Latin America are Panama and Costa Rica, nations with great biodiversity and many ecotourism programs. It should be noted that others such as Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Ecuador, Argentina and Colombia, to name a few, have established protected areas for wild flora and fauna, as well as initiatives to significantly reduce their carbon footprint. the operation of hotels by fulfilling the standards in favor of preserving nature, as well as respecting the tradition of original cultures.
This trend has resulted in an increase in the number of eco-friendly accommodations that offer guests gastronomy based on local organic products and furniture made with local textiles, for example.
In addition to various areas of Panama and Costa Rica, the leaders in the segment in Latin America, the Galapagos Islands, in Ecuador, are another excellent example of ecotourism efforts, as well as the Sacred Valley of Peru, which invites visitors to use the services of guides of the city to know the ruins of the ancient Inca Empire.
Chile has also established important mechanisms to save the ecosystem from the important destination of Easter Island.
In Brazil, the Amazon and Iguazu Falls are increasingly offering ecotourism options to their visitors, as is Venezuela, which boasts the attraction of the world’s tallest waterfall, Angel Falls, in Canaima National Park.
Colombia, thanks to its diverse microclimates, excels in generating outdoor experiences for its visitors, and Mexico offers a wide mosaic of activities, not only in its sun and beach destinations, but also in the cities located in the highlands and the so-called. Magic Cities, villages where the offer focuses on supporting communities.
With travel rebounding after the pandemic, undoubtedly the flourishing of Latin America’s privileged natural environment and its cultural wealth is a major boost for the consolidation of ecotourism in the region in the coming years.
