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Administration focuses on creating “Marca Argentina,” a defining
moment in Argentina’s tourism market
Argentina in Latin means “country of silver,” so named for the Indians that brought silver objects to Spanish explorers who landed on their shores. This name is also reflected in Argentina’s Rio de la Plata, meaning the river of silver, one of Latin America’s largest rivers. Now Argentina is sparkling with new treasures, those of a developing tourist market. Because of a military dictatorship that lasted almost 50 years, the war over the Falkland/Malvinas islands, subsequent economic crises and little investment in tourism infrastructure, Argentina’s tourism market has only begun to bear fruit over the last 10 years. According to sector statistics from 1990 to 1999, the number of tourists to the country has increased significantly. In 1990, $1.9 million tourists spent just more than $1 billion. In 1999, almost $3 million tourists spent almost $3 billion. About 25 percent of those visitors came for business purposes. The majority of the tourists came from neighboring countries. Since the Argentine peso is pegged to the dollar, many more Argentines have traveled outside the country. According to Engineer Hernan Lombardi, secretary of Tourism for Argentina and former secretary of Tourism for the City of Buenos Aires, new hotels are being built throughout the country and, just in the last year alone, the number of airline seats has grown 18.3 percent.
Lombardi and his team came with President Fernando de la Rua from the government of the city of Buenos Aires. They are continuing the work that they started in the city, and working on several new projects. “We are developing a national tourist plan highlighting the diversity of our country and encouraging tourists to get to know more than just Buenos Aires,” said Lombardi. He noted 70 percent of visitors only visit Buenos Aires. “We are building a center where we are going to put all the tourism products that we have to offer, dividing them into sections, adventure tourism, fly fishing, tango, etc. We are going to be making several trips promoting our new products.” He indicated that the marketing would focus directly on North Americans in the coming years, noting that Americans feel at home because they do not have to change money and because those living in the eastern part of the United States and Canada do not experience jet lag from the time zone. Highlighting the diversity of immigration to Argentina, “Shalom Buenos Aires” is a new program designed to showcase the Jewish immigration to Argentina’s capital city. “Shalom Buenos Aires” is a tour around the Jewish history of the city, inviting visitors to synagogues, schools, cemeteries, neighborhoods and other institutions where Jewish immigrants have left their mark. “We have the third largest Jewish immigrant population in the world,” said Lombardi. “‘Shalom Buenos Aires” is a valuable testimony of the cultural and religious diversity hosted by Buenos Aires,” he added. To try to increase tourism outside of Buenos Aires, Lombardi and his team are promoting several projects oriented toward adventure tourism. One of the most important of these is an effort to direct tourists to Argentina’s 32 national parks. “We are hoping to work with the National Parks Service in the United States to extensively develop our national park system, learning from their successes and their mistakes, and receiving technical assistance from them,” Lombardi said. The World Bank has recently granted credit to help in this venture. In the center of Argentina, in the provinces of Cordoba, San Luis and Mendoza, projects are planned to promote Argentina’s cultural history of Estancias, the extensive, elegant farms for which Argentina is famous. There also will be a move to promote Argentine wines. On a recent trip to Mendoza with the managers and presidents of several leading airlines, Lombardi, the governor of Mendoza, Engineer D. Enrique Iglesias, and the wine producers encouraged the airlines to promote Argentine wines on all flights. The project was billed a success as many of the managers and presidents left saying that they would lobby their main offices to carry the wines. In the northwest of the country, projects are planned to show visitors the subtropical jungle areas and the high mountain ranges in the provinces of Catamarca, Santiago del Estero, Salta, Jujuy and Tucuman. Salta has become famous for its “Train to the Clouds” and the excellent native pottery and woven goods it offers. In the northeastern part of the country in the provinces of Misiones, Corrientes, Entre Rios, the eastern Atlantic coast and the river Parana region of Formosa, Chaco and Santa Fe projects highlighting the Jesuit Missions and various cultural manifestations are being planned. The region has diverse topography from tropical jungles to beautiful beaches. Probably the most well known attraction in the area is the Iguazu Waterfalls in Misiones, which UNESCO declared a human patrimony site in November 1984. Finally in the region of the Patagonia, the provinces of Neuquen, Rio Negro, La Pampa, Chubut and Santa Cruz offer large mountain ranges, lakes, glaciers and wonderful alpine-like skiing conditions in the winter. Also, in this region, is the grand island of Tierra del Fuego with the southernmost capital in the world, Ushuaia. On the Malvinas Islands, adjacent to the province of Santa Cruz, nature lovers can see penguins, seals, sea lions and other marine life that call the Malvinas home. There are 969,500 square kilometers of the Antarctic that belong to Argentina as well. In the summer, visitors can expect to see rare scenery. During the summer, the area has 24 hours of daylight. “Argentina is a unique and privileged destination in the world,” said Lombardi. “We need to sell what Argentina has to offer to people outside the country, especially in the United States. We have to show them the possibilities that there are for eco-tourism, national parks, protected areas, cultural activities, specially designed interest tours, Estancias, basically, ecological tourism,” he said. Possibilities for investors Lombardi would like to see more foreign investment in the sector. “Tourism generates jobs and distributes wealth throughout the country and it promotes infrastructure investments that better the quality of life for our citizens,” said Lombardi. According to statistics, travel and tourism in 1999 accounted for 7.2 percent of Argentina’s gross domestic product, and this is expected to grow to 7.6 percent in the next 10 years. “What we need are more quality hotels to be built throughout the country and more training in the tourism sector,” noted Lombardi. He also indicated that there is enormous potential for the development of restaurants, bars, clubs, theme parks, cultural centers, shopping centers, ski lodges, camping lodges, transportation for tourism related activities, and rental services for cars, yachts and planes. The sector is offering up to $10 million per loan to PyMEs (small and medium-size businesses) in the country, to afford them the opportunity to participate in the growth. The Law 21.382.93 allows foreign investors to participate in the sector and to be treated the same way that national investors are treated. Foreign investors even have the same access to internal credit options. Investors are expected to comply with environmental laws. “Our biggest challenge is to penetrate the North American market with ‘Marca Argentina’ and to attract new tourists to Argentina,” stated Lombardi smiling. He noted that Argentina would participate in all of the big trade fairs in the coming year. With its diversity of tourism products, Argentina will surely be a leader in Latin America’s tourism market.
Buenos Aires, the Paris of Latin America
Buenos Aires has long been known as the Paris of Latin America. With its majestic colonial architecture mixed in with stately skyscrapers, it exudes culture and art. It has refined dining, fashion and entertainment and defines sophisticated, modern, urban living. It's typical for business dinners to begin late and last long, with customers savoring numerous bottles of fine Argentine wine and the luscious cuts of beef for which the country has become famous. Afterwards, it's out for dancing or drinks until at least 2 a.m. or 3 a.m. Oh, and on the weekends, if you want to go out to a club, don't get there before 2 a.m. or 2:30 a.m., or you will be the only one there.
Dr. Narciso J Muniz, tourism secretary for the city of Buenos Aires, a medical doctor who has long been involved in the tourism industry, noted that the city government is trying to attract business visitors to participate in more city activities while on their trips. "Few cities in the world have the quantity of cultural activities that Buenos Aires does" he said. He noted that Buenos Aires has the Colon Theatre, where some of the world's most famous artists in dance, opera and theater have performed; it has civic centers where world-class performers share their arts; it has 80 museums and more than 100 art galleries and exposition halls that exhibit some of the world's most famous artists and sculptors; it has a well-developed film industry that has received numerous international awards; it has an architectural patrimony, rarely seen anywhere. It also has many sports activities such as soccer, polo and horse racing; it also has the dance that makes it famous: the tango. "Buenos Aires has something for everyone," he added. Muniz noted that significant investments have been made in designing specific city tours and in improving parts of the city that have been popular tourist staples. La Boca, a famous neighborhood, with its painted corrugated tin houses, was once the place where Italian immigrants lived, many of Genovese origin. It has become a popular place to buy original artworks and to savor a bit of local culture. Muniz noted that the city has worked with historical experts to repaint parts of La Boca their original brilliant colors. San Telmo, one of Buenos Aires oldest neighborhoods, is the quintessential home of the world-famous tango. It is currently undergoing construction to re-brick the streets the way they originally were "paved". The tango can be seen performed daily on the street by numerous couples and, in the evening, special tango dinner shows are a popular tourist attraction. San Telmo is also home to numerous antique stores where collectors can find everything from the unusual to the unique.
"In the last decade, we have seen a transformation of the city," stated Muniz. Buenos Aires is attracting attention and luring more tourists through Puerto Madero, the investments of the international hotel chains, the building of new office complexes and upscale apartment homes, the investments in the southern part of the city in La Boca and San Telmo, the preservation of historical buildings and the creation of green space. So, rest up, pack your dancing shoes and be prepared to experience all that this magnificent city has to offer.
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From the mountains to the beaches and the frozen tundra to
the tropical rain forest, from the big city to the natural parks,
Argentina has appealing destinations for the most discerning tourist.
Lombardi
explained that the new administration is taking a different approach
to attracting tourists. “Tourism is an important economic sector
and could become one of the principal economic activities for Argentina.
We are creating ‘Marca Argentina,’ or introducing products that
can be clearly associated with Argentina. We are promoting tourism
circuits, targeting segments of markets that would have the most
interest in coming to Argentina and experiencing our country.”
It's midnight on Friday night at Puerto Madero, the new chic
urban office and restaurant development, located along the shore
of Rio de la Plata River. Sigue La Vaca, a popular restaurant, has
a long line of customers waiting to be seated for dinner. Dinner
at midnight, you ask? Yes, dinner at midnight! Welcome to Buenos
Aires, where the phrase "the city that never sleeps" takes on a
whole new meaning.
Because
of such late nights, don't expect business people to get to the
office promptly at 8 a.m.; they usually meander in sometime after
9:00 but stay in the office until quite late. It is not unusual
to receive phone calls after 7 p.m. and to set appointments for
the next day with, "how about 11 a.m.?"
According
to Muniz, the city of Buenos Aires, along with the federal government
is currently working hard to reduce crime. Unemployment and successive
financial crises are taking a toll on the city and residents have
expressed concern. "We are taking steps to better our security;
we will be adding 900 more federal police to the city, but overall,
compared to other cities our size, we really have a safe city,"
he said.