Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ing $1.2 billion. According to the World Tourism Organization, between 2003 and 2004
Guatemala had the largest increase of international arrivals of any country in the Amer-
icas,withagrowthof34.3percent.Guatemala'stouristarrivalsdoubledbetween2003and
2007. In Central America, only Costa Rica receives more visitors.
About30percentofGuatemala'svisitorarrivalscomefromNorthAmerica,withanother
34 percent coming from Central America, particularly El Salvador. U.S. visitors may be
closing the gap, however, as statistics from the peak Easter travel season of 2006 show
more Americans arriving in Guatemala than Salvadorans. Approximately 18 percent of
Guatemala's tourists come from Europe and another 18 percent come from various other
countries.
Much of the money generated by tourism stays in local hands, as many communities
have been able to capitalize on their proximity to area attractions by catering to the de-
mands ofan increasing number ofvisitors. Foreign tourism investment is limited mostly to
main tourist areas, and local entrepreneurs have done an excellent job of filling in the void
created by the lack of foreign investment.
The government, meanwhile, is actively promoting tourism abroad via ad campaigns
sponsored by the state tourism agency, INGUAT (Instituto Guatemalteco de Turismo), and
investing in much-needed infrastructural improvements to the country's airports. The in-
dustry also got a boost from the filming of the CBS television series
Survivor
in the rain-
forests of Petén, which aired in 2005.
The main obstacle to the continued growth of Guatemala's tourism industry is security,
and the Guatemalan government is actively working to make travel safer for visitors to
Guatemala.Amongtheimprovementsinvisitorsecurityistheestablishmentoftourismpo-
lice (Politur) in the main tourist destinations. In many places, their presence has resulted in
fewer occurrences of robbery and assault.
Guatemalans are a complex breed. First, there are the city-dwellers, who are as cosmo-
politan as the residents of any North American city of comparable size. Social stratifica-
tion, racism, and classicism also figure prominently into the makeup of many middle- and
upper-class Guatemalans, inparticular those living inurbanareas. Youmayfindsome urb-
an Guatemalans downright rude, though they are careful to put on their best appearances
for foreigners.
Then there are Guatemala's rural poor and middle class. Most of them are warm and
friendly; you may even be the object of their gracious hospitality. Howver, you may have
togetpastsomeculturalisolationism,asruralGuatemalansarenaturallysuspiciousofout-
siders once you are past the informal, superficial relationships of a passing traveler. This is
