Peru to host next ITB’s opening ceremony

Peru is scheduled to host the opening ceremony of the upcoming Berlin International Tourism Marketplace that will stretch from March 12 to 16 next year, a spokesperson for the world’s largest tourism fair said.

“We want to contribute to Peru’s promotion as an attractive, interesting and many-sided destination,” said Peter Koeppen, a spokesman for the ITB who also referred to the meetings on this matter held between event planners and Peruvian representatives.

This year’s Berlin Marketplace gathered over 10,000 exhibitors from 181 countries and drew in more than 130,000 visitors –experts and public combined.

“Our goal is to put Peru back in the world tourism market, especially in Germany which is by far one of the biggest tourist senders under the sun,” said Leticia Gonzalez, general manageress of PromPeru, the official organization charged with handling the South American nation’s promotional efforts overseas.

In the past couple of years, Peru has welcomed nearly 1.2 million sunbathers broken down in 340,000 trekkers from South America and an equal share from the United States. Annual growth numbers have been hovering around 3 to 6 percent and authorities are determined to score a double-digit percentage by the end of this decade.

To pull this goal off, Peruvian officials have homed in their tourist advertisement efforts on painting a country teeming with cultural, historical and archeological attractions, let alone a great geographical and natural variety, top-rated cuisine and other elements.