Nicaragua’s Colonial City of Granada is Easier on the Eyes than San Jose.

Just over a month ago, Costa Rica’s Minister of Tourism, Carlos Ricardo Benavides, met with his Panamanian counterpart, Ruben Blades, to discuss a joint tourism effort. In a project similar to the Panama-Costa Rica concept, Nicaragua and Costa Rica Tourism companies recently announced their plan to join forces, promoting inter-country tourism.

San Juan del Sur, located 138 kilometers (86 miles) south of Managua, lies just north of Costa Rica’s popular Guanacaste region. This Thursday and Friday (August 21 and 22), representatives from both countries will meet in the small coastal town to discuss joint goals and initiatives. Important representatives from the tourism industry will be present, as well as politicos from southern Nicaragua and Costa Rica’s La Cruz and Liberia.

Nicaraguan congressmen Carlos Noguera, member of the Parliament’s Tourism commission, explained that the meeting will help to plan for “a binational tourism without borders.” Those involved hope that a Costa Rican representative will also attend the event. “We want to benefit from the experiences of several Costa Rican companies, to repeat them in Nicaragua and see how to integrate them as much in our southern zone as Costa Rica has in the north[west],” explained Noguera.

Costa Rica’s northern neighbor is home to cultural and ecological riches, with incredible blue skies almost constantly painting the scenery. Like Costa Rica, Nicaragua is home to volcanoes, lakes, and tropical forests, in addition to a rich culture that counts gallo pinto (rice and beans), folkloric dance, hospitality among its national riches. Despite these similarities, however, Nicaragua made just $280 million from tourism in 2007, compared to Costa Rica’s $1.9 billion.

Clearly, a link is missing between Nicaragua’s tourism potential and current income, a problem that its Ministry of Tourism hopes to address. Mario Salinas, director for the Nicaraguan Tourism Institute, has asked to integrate Central American tourism, “to erase boundaries and present [the region] as one touristic destination.” Salinas continued, adding that “we have to complement the archeological beauty of Guatemala with that of El Salvador, the landscapes of Honduras with the natural attractions of Nicaragua, and all with the ecological tourism of Costa Rica and Panama.”

There is a thin line, however, between cooperation a self-sabotage: Costa Rica, and all countries of Central America, are in charge of their own economic futures, and must protect their income. In the Costa Rica-Panama partnership, both countries decided to pool efforts to promote the region to European tourists, but drew the line at North Americans.

With fewer vacation days lending to the attraction of faster flight times, North Americans are Costa Rica’s most frequent visitors. Indeed, Americans account for 54 percent of annual tourism, or about 1.03 million visitors. Sharing these revenues is not desirable for Costa Rica, or any other nation, and so a Costa Rica-Nicaraguan partnership will proceed with caution.

A joint tourism effort between Costa Rica and Nicaragua would allow for smoother inter-country tourism, a big plus for travelers interested in both country’s offerings. It would also mean increased traffic over the border, hopefully leading to improved immigration services and speed. Achieving this goal is a tightrope walk, though, and Costa Rica’s Ministry of Tourism will doubtlessly strive to protect the nation’s tourism income in the process.

This post's rating:

Related Stories

Filed under: Travel on August 20th, 2008