Usa Tourist Boom In Argentina.

[fifs2]

I work in tourism in Argentina. The high season for tourism doesn't really get going until October/November and runs through March, so even though it's up 18% so far this year the overall number is relatively low compared to the number of tourists during the high season which is probably why you don't see droves of Americans currently. Hopefully the growth continues during the high season!

The government is starting a promotion to discount the IVA tax for hotels for foreigners and eliminating the reciprocity fee helps. The major issue I hear from tourists is the surprisingly high cost of the city. Another personal opinion is that the local tourism industry is quite stagnant in its offerings and hasn't kept up with international travel trends. Mega tango shows, bus tours, mediocre parrillas, non-descript hotels, unpersonalized and bad service are the norm. Big opportunity if you are good at marketing a tourism business.

The lack of internal budget flights is always a big shocker for my friends who plan to visit multiple sights and then get spooked by the price and the fact they can´t fly from one major attraction to another without passing through BsAs again in the process. Just hand holding one of them at the moment so your comments on the stagnant offerings feels very real...

 

[milanesas]

Another area I think the tourism board and tourism agencies should market to promote Buenos Aires is the cuisine, design, outdoors, real local experiences, wine, architecture, cultural scene etc. It seems like about 90% of the descriptions of Buenos Aires only talk about nostalgia for the past, Evita/Peron, tango and meat. Seem quite disconnected from the current day reality and interesting culture and events of the country.

Obviously a lot of people travel to learn about history, but especially the big markets of young professionals that are more likely to visit South America than other demographics want more innovative and authentic experiences, and the baby boomers that have money to spend are the first generation to have had the opportunity to easily travel the world and are put off by overly touristy/cheesy attractions like Camanito and the San Telmo fair.