In this context, Travel2latam spoke with Anayansy Rodríguez, General Director of INGUAT.
I wanted you to tell me about your participation in this very important event. What is your expectation?
Well, first, thank you very much for the space. I think it is very important, because we are aiming to recover a European market that visited Guatemala for a long time. And now what we want is for them to return to our country, to be encouraged to discover all the cultural, natural and heritage wealth that Guatemala as such possesses. Furthermore, we hope that the businessmen who join us in this edition of the WDTM go with very specific businesses. We know that people plan their trips well in advance, so regarding what we are doing now we are not going to see the results or fruits of this promotion right away, but in the coming months we would hope to be able to serve many more European tourists, specifically from the region of the United Kingdom, Spain and Germany, which are our target markets, so that they can visit Guatemala.
At this moment, what is the connectivity situation specifically with Europe?
To connect with Europe we have flights with Iberia that connect directly from Madrid. However, obviously our most direct connectivity is via the United States. We have many connections with different cities, with the most important airports in the United States, which allows us to have that direct connection if you want to see it like that with the different European cities. Obviously another of our important centers is Panama at the regional level, at the Central American level and specifically with the issue of connection to the countries of Europe.
And in this particular event, what are the news that they are spreading?
Well, we recently launched our COUNTRY brand, “Amazing Unstoppable Guatemala.” That was in August of last year and at last year's stand at WTM we already presented our new image. Now we are reinforcing it with a much stronger positioning. Not only are we participating with a stand at the fair, but we also have different outdoor digital promotions throughout the city of London. There are some taxis with wonderful images of Guatemala, with this new campaign that is “Explore Guatemala Closer”, which seeks to bring you closer to tourist destinations, but not only to all of nature, but what is in each one. of the destinations. So I think that is part of the news that we now bring, always accompanied by a delicious Guatemalan coffee that cannot be missed, which you can also taste here at our stand on this occasion.
You talk about coffee and experiences that can be had, I would like you to tell our audience why it can always surprise them. What are your recommendations for what you can't miss in Guatemala?
Well, the must-sees for me, we have recently declared two new world heritage sites. One, intangible heritage that is Holy Week Guatemala, which is obviously known internationally, not for the religious part that is obviously the center of this week's commemoration, but for everything that revolves around the traditions and customs in our country. We have beautiful processions with carpets that are part of ephemeral art made with colored sawdust. The gastronomy that revolves around this holiday is also very important to us. We have dishes exclusively for that season with a lot of Mayan influence from Mayan gastronomy that is still current and that is now mixed with these contemporary flavors and we want to see it that way. And the other cultural heritage of humanity is Tacalicabaj. This is an archaeological site located in the south of the country, in the Pacific, where the Olmec culture converges and the Mayan culture emerges. It is a site where one of the oldest burial sites of humanity is located, dating back more than 3,000 years, that is where our history dates back and is part of what we are now inviting you to discover in Guatemala. They have always been there, they have always belonged to Guatemalans and now they belong to the world, so we invite you so you can discover it.
It is important then that it is a detail of how you get to that place, to that place.
Perfect. Justo Tacalicaba is located in the department of Retaluleo, in the municipality of Cintal. This is located on the Pacific coast. In addition, our sands are very close, our black sand beaches, volcanic sand, so you can have a spectacular experience. Weather, Guatemala is known for perfect weather all year round. We do not have marked seasons, but we do have more than 300 microclimates, which means that we can have very pleasant places to be all year round. And it is part of what this site recently named as World Heritage of Humanity also offers. Retalulevo is also known because it has tourist parks, let's say, recreational ones. It is known as the Disney of Central America, and also in southern Mexico they visit us a lot in those places that are very close, so it is part of what they can now also discover in Guatemala.
We are in November, it would be good to review how they have experienced this season and especially the most important thing taking into account the new administration that is ahead. How do you see 2024? What do you think is going to happen?
I see it as very hopeful. Just for the month of September, Guatemala reached a 103% recovery compared to 2019. We have already surpassed the pre-pandemic data, so that for us gives us very good hope that the future is promising for our country. The World Tourism Organization established that complete recovery would occur in 2024, we have shortened it in time. And I think that the biggest challenge that the incoming authorities have now is to be able to continue this promotion that we have carried out in the country, not only at the national level, because domestic tourism is also important, but above all at the international level, improving the image that we have in our country, being able to demystify some ideas that we have about security... Guatemala is a wonderful country that is worth knowing, it is worth visiting Central America and specifically this beautiful destination that is Guatemala.