Published on Friday, November 22, 2024

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

The Tourism Institute's representatives attended the IBTM World Fair held this week in Barcelona, Spain.

According to the institute, the fair is the premier trade show for meetings, incentives, conferences, events, and business vacations. More than 3,000 tourist industry professionals from 100 countries attended the event.

The Costa Rica booth was represented by 15 tourism companies such as Mangroove Autograph Collection, Amstar DMC, Dynamic DMC, Costa Rica Convention Bureau, Costa Rica Convention Center, Costa Rica Top Tours, Travel Excellence,  Parador Nature Resort & Spa Hotel,  Arenal Manoa Hotel, Marriott Hotels Costa Rica, CAST Central América,  San Bada Manuel Antonio Hotel, The Westin Reserva Conchal, W Costa Rica y Green World Adventures.

Costa Rica is a member of the United States Professional Convention Management Association to continue promoting Costa Rica as a destination for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (or MICE tourism), in which large groups frequently plan their conference destination ahead of time.

The conference industry accounts for 22% of total tourism globally. The institute noted in its statement that conference attendees have a high income and spend three to four times more than regular tourists.

Costa Rica's participation in the IBTM World Fair is yet another approach to increasing tourism revenue. Recently, the institute's representatives attended the IMEX America tourist show that was held in Las Vegas, U.S.

Tourism is one of the most important economic sectors in Costa Rica. As of July, over 1.7 million tourists arrived via air, representing a 13.5% increase over the same period in 2023.

The country reported a new tourism record reached in 2023, with more than 2,4 million travelers.

The Tourism Institute (ICT) is the government agency responsible for promoting tourism in Costa Rica.

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What other strategies could Costa Rica try to boost tourism? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com