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Source: LinkedIn
By: Aldo Leporati

While winter saw increases of 20% in some destinations – with ski resorts such as Cerro Catedral at almost full capacity, receiving 10,000 skiers daily, there’s some more good news out of the travel sector. Forecasts show this figure should increase up to 7 million in receptive tourism in 2018, representing a growth rate close to 5%. Moreover, the reimbursement of the 21% VAT paid by foreigners to stay in hotels has made traveling to Argentina even more affordable.

With 21 million tourists staying in hotels and 13 million passengers traveling on domestic flights, it reached the highest historical record. This could be due to greater air connectivity and the development of more destinations, as well as the implementation of a digital promotion strategy that did not exist before. 70% of travel decisions are made in the digital space, although the rest are made through the purchase of packages in physical agencies.

Regarding how much foreign spending contributes to the country’s economy, it currently sits in 4th place; after soybeans, cereals, and cars. Last year the tourism sector was responsible for the injection of us$5.4 billion into the country; however, this figure is a lot less than the capital outflow, as Argentines spent us$11 billion on traveling abroad. Competitive pricing between hotels should see prices staying relatively stable in the future; but also, with the construction of new hotels and development in the tourism sector, there should be increased levels of employment throughout the country which will also help the economy.

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