Q & A with Daniel MooneyHead of the Guatemala Tourism Institute (INGUAT)

by Jose Carlos de Santiago

Guatemala has set out to conquer new heights this year. The Central American nation wants to reach the 1.4-million-tourist milestone and rake in as many as $900 million worth of revenues. To pull those new deeds off, the country is relying on an amazing array of incredible and vast natural beauties that capture the hearts of each and every visitor.

In the same breath, Guatemala is also working harder to improve its tourism-oriented infrastructure and has taken to heart the idea of getting media hype in international markets, either on its own or helped by CATA. About this and other issues, Caribbean News Digital talked exclusively with Guatemala´s Tourism Minister at the latest ITB Fair in Berlin.

Q.- What´s Guatemala putting in the pipeline in order to target the European market and what´s it doing as far as CATA is concerned?

A.- For the Guatemala Tourism Institute –the entity I run- the European market really bears watching. And I must say the whole Central American region feels the same way. As many as 1,315,000 tourists arrived in Guatemala last year, with one fifth of the total coming from Europe.

The BBC also labeled Guatemala the world´s number-one cultural destination of the world, and it´s true we have plenty of things to offer: the Mayan civilization, the colonial history, the republican history, the modern Guatemala and a whole lot more. Through CATA we´re promoting Central America as a multi-destination choice in which each and every country has something of its own to contribute. There´s no doubt we´re bending over backwards to highlight the cultural values of our travel industry.

Q.- What markets made the largest contributions to Guatemala´s tourism in terms of arrivals?

A.- We received large quantities of American tourists, plus fellow Central Americans and some Europeans. In 2005, those arrivals jumped by 12 percent, and in general terms our evolution has been tremendous over the past couple of years or so. We´re also working harder on our attendance to some of the world´s major fairs and tradeshows, like Spain´s FITUR, Berlin´s ITB and Italy´s Milan. We know we have what it takes to bring in larger troves of European sunbathers who, as a matter of fact, are high-class tourists willing to learn and live wonderful experiences. And that´s exactly what Guatemala has to offer, what the country cherishes the most.

We´re also looking for ways to protect and preserve our natural heritage with the help of tourism. At the same time, I believe we could also help preserve out cultural heritage, and that´s why we´re working hand in hand with the country´s ministries of culture and environmental protection.

Q.- Another major snag in your way toward the advance of tourism is the need to improve airline connections. What European airlines are working with Guatemala right now?

A.- We have an Iberia´s nonstop flight from Madrid to the La Aurora International Airport. This flights comes around thrice a week. We´re also holding talks with Air Europa and other carries, like Air Madrid, in an effort to count them in.

We´ve also worked with Blue Panorama. We know all along that the best way to reel in far more tourists to Guatemala is through airlines. They are the keys to success. We know the flows are out there, the destinations are ready and the private sector is willing to shell out funds –and so is the government of Guatemala- to foster tourism.

Q.- How´re tourist safety and security faring in Guatemala?

A.- As far as tourist security is concerned –as stacked up against 2004- crimes and misdemeanors against tourists have plummeted 33 percent. We´ve made tremendous progress in that respect and we´ve set up ASISTUR, a company made up of people with motor vehicles who tour the country´s top travel destinations and keep close working ties with the Ministry of the Interior, the National Police Department and the Army. We´ve been able to set up a tight communication network and that´s in the part the reason why we´ve achieved so much lately.

Q.- How many cruise passengers are traveling to Guatemala every year?

A.- We welcomed 60 cruise liners in 2005, with an average of 1,500 passengers each. This time around, we expect to be in the neighborhood of 120 cruises. You know, this is a segment that makes major contributions to the national economy and the local travel industry. The benefits are huge for the cities, the travel destinations and the seaports. Everybody gets a piece of the pie.

Q.- Do most of these cruise passengers come from America?

A.- We get a little bit of everywhere, but it´s true that most of them are Americans. Many of them come from the U.S., approximately 50 percent of the total. However, we come in for good deals of Europeans as well.

Q.- What´s the total budget the Guatemalan government will earmark for travel and tourism this year? Can you give us a region-by-region breakdown?

A.- Well, in the case of the European market we´re working in coordination with CATA. As to the North American and South American markets, we´re equally doing out best, as well as in Asia.

We´re also drawing a bead on golf. The country played host to the European Challengers´ Tournament and the Hooter´s Tour –the latter is the third largest golf competition in the U.S.- and golfers came and teed off in the five PGA-rated courses in the country.

These tournaments brought an enormous coverage on ESPN and FOX Sports, two of America´s biggest television networks. This media hype, combined with a number of promotional and advertisement actions Guatemala has been bringing off lately have helped put Guatemala in the limelight as a world-class travel destination.

Q.- Is there anything else you´d like to add?

A.- I´d like to invite your readers to visit Guatemala, to learn about the Mayan civilization, the colonial part of Guatemala, to go for a fishing trip to what has been penciled in as one of the world´s best destinations for anglers, especially those who want to catch sailfish in the Pacific Ocean´s shores. They may also go there to play golf, to climb volcanoes, to learn about our culture. As far as natural reserves are concerned, Guatemala is blessed with unique flora and wildlife. However, the most important asset is the hospitality of the Guatemalan people. Those are the main strengths Guatemala has as a travel destination.