News

Surfing is becoming a big business in Panama. The Panama Tourism Authority (ATP) has made luring big-wave hunters a top priority, and it’s starting to pay dividends. 

The recent 2023 Pan American Surfing Games (PASA Games 2023) in the small town of Santa Catalina on the Pacific coast generated more than $2 million in tourism earnings, the ATP said last week. Rooms were 100 percent occupied during the 10-day event, which attracted top surfers from around the world.

The surf community is no longer a group of scruffy, backpacking travelers. The sport has matured through multiple generations, creating a passionate legion of successful men and women who are ready and willing to spend money to pursue their favorite sport.

Events bring fans, participants, and sponsors, but they also create great exposure for Panama. The PASA Games attracted 36 million fans through streaming and broadcasts in Panama, Canada, the United States, and Spain. That doesn’t include all the posts on social media from people attending the event.

Surfers have long known Panama’s best spots and hidden secrets such as Playa Caracol in Chame. But the tourism authority has identified the sport as a key area for growth, La Prensa Latina reports.

Panama has developed a master plan for promoting sustainable tourism and surfing is a top priority, ATP’s general administrator Ivan Eskildsen told EFE.

“Surfing has been identified as something that’s an attractive draw for destinations as part of that adventure tourism because generally, people seek out the beach,” he said.

Panama has invested around $800,000 in promoting three events recently, Eskildsen said.

These events are becoming a regular part of the Panama sports calendar. The next big tournament is in July, the Caribbean Open Master Edition, in Bocas del Toro.