News

A focused effort is underway to increase tourism in Panama, which many regard as an underdeveloped resource. While Panama consistently ranks as one of the most popular destinations in the Americas, there is still a lot of room for growth.

As we noted a few months ago, Panama’s tourism agency is ready to launch a new $20 million campaign, in part to respond to complaints the government has not been doing enough to promote Panama’s attractions. Even without the effort, Panama was ranked one of the fastest growing destinations in the world in 2015 by the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

Here is a roundup of the latest Panama tourism news:

-New Domestic Tourism Campaign: The Tourism Authority of Panama (ATP) has announced a new campaign for the next year to promote tourism within Panama. The campaign will be divided into two parts, one with the slogan, “Your Panama, Do You Know Her?” and another around, “Tourism Starts with You.” The interior and cultural attractions of Panama will be highlighted, including traditional attractions such as Bocas del Toro, and the Pacific beaches. Surfing star Gary Saavedra, singer Karen Peralta, jazz musician and composer Danilo Pérez, and actor Robin Durán are among the celebrities who will be featured in the campaign, Tourism-Review reports.

-U.S. Leads Visitors: Visitors from the United States accounted for 52.7 percent of visitors to Panama in the first nine months of the year. While the fact that the U.S. is the top market might not surprise too many people, the percentage is interesting and certainly illustrates the close ties between the two countries. It also spotlights the ability to grow the market in other countries. The U.S. is followed by Venezuela, Colombia, Brazil, Spain, Argentina and Mexico. In the first three quarters of the year 1.8 million visitors entered the country, including 252,000 from the U.S.

-Cruise Company to Debut in Panama: German cruise company TUI will make its first stop In Panama with a Nov. 21 connection in Colón. One of the largest tourism operators in the world, TUI is including 10 stops in Panama this year from tours that begin in Jamaica, La Prensa reports. Other stops include Mexico and Honduras. TUI’s first ship in Panama will be the 99,700-ton Mein Schiff 4, which has a capacity of 2,500 passengers.

While cruise ships can be controversial, they bring a tremendous amount of exposure to Panama. The companies promote Panama and their passengers ultimately return as visitors, rents and, for some, home buyers.  For the 2016-2017 season, there are 175 confirmed cruise ship visits planned for Panama, La Prensa reports.