In this context, Travel2latam spoke with Ricardo Romero, Director of Promperú London.
What were your expectations and objectives when you arrived at the double WTM in London?
We have been coming to this fair for more than 20 years, but this year's focus is, in essence, sustainable, community and gastronomic tourism. These are three major areas that we are prioritizing this year, but also the idea of diversifying Peru's destinations, because as we know, people immediately identify the country with Machu Pichu. So we want there to be greater diversification, with the promotion of other destinations in line with sustainability.
We are obviously looking at destinations within the Amazon in the Sierra areas, also in different communities, in Cusco, Puno, Arequipa and Choquequirao, which are new destinations that are part of this strategy that we are working on.
How did these days of meetings go for you and what kind of feedback did you get?
We have had a visit from our Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism, Úrsula Desilú León, who was here for the inauguration on Tuesday and has had many meetings afterwards, including with British Airways. We are obviously looking to resume the idea of a direct flight between London and Lima. It is a very interesting and productive conversion. Part of our strategy is to improve connectivity. We are also working with Latam, which had the flight suspended for a regulatory issue and could not continue after 2 months, but the effort continues to explore the possibility of Latam returning to the market with a direct flight.
Regarding the meetings and conversations we have had with exhibitors, there has been a larger flow of people than last year. We have also grown in terms of exhibition space. This year we have come with 350 square meters versus 300 last year and we have also changed the format of our presentation a little. We wanted to give it greater dynamism through gastronomy, with tastings and presentations by experts on the destination of Peru.