Tourism diversifies into adventure and culture

Adventure, experience and culture are the focus for tourism promotion, as Panama and Nicaragua follow a trend already established by Costa Rica.

Panama is looking to lure people who want adventure and cultural experiences, including a recent international campaign by the Chicago-based ad agency VML, which says that Panama is “not a country for tourists” - people who spend all their time in the beach and at swim-up bars.

Meanwhile, Nicaragua’s tourism minister, Anasha Campbell, speaking recently in Madrid, said that the leading attractions of her country are its diversity and multi-ethnicity.

“Ours is a country of lakes and volcanoes; it is the country of the great poet Rubén Darío”, said Campbell.

The point is well taken.

As flights from Europe to Central America grow in number, the region has to attract visitors already familiar with the attractions of the beaches of the Costa del Sol and the Greek Islands, and who want something different.

It is a message that Costa Rica has long conveyed in promoting adventure tourism, while Panama has been a leader in business conventions.

Tourism in Central America’s Northern Triangle for its part remains largely limited to such safe enclaves as Honduras’ island of Roatán and the colonial city of Antigua in Guatemala, as concerns persist over public safety.