| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 07/08/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 38 |
| Copyright: Other |
LATIN AMERICA
LATIN AMERICA
LATIN AMERICA
Interest in Central and South America has soared to such an extent that the UK-based Latin American Travel Association is growing at the rate of one new member every week.Almost every UK operator that sells holidays to the region is already a member of the association, which also lists travel agents, media, overseas hotels, airlines and tourist offices among its membership.
New LATA chairman Edward Paine, managing director of UK operator Last Frontiers, said he anticipated membership numbers reaching at least 100 by the end of this year.
“Membership of LATA is growing very rapidly at the moment because of a general interest in travel to Latin America,” said Paine.
Any company expressing an interest can join the marketing organisation, which organises networking events, press lunches and keeps people up to date with the latest news from Latin America. It does not have any involvement in financial regulation.
“We are a bit of a forum,” said Paine. “Membership of LATA is brilliant for networking and I think this is probably one of the main reasons why people join.”
LATA has recently jazzed up its Web site (www.lata.org), which now includes a new private members area where views are exchanged. The site also provides consumers with details of its members.
Paine, whose chairmanship is for two years, said LATA has plans to improve the Web site and offer a better level of services to its members. “We can’t say too much about what we are planning at the moment, but we will be putting a lot of new ideas into place over the next six months,” he said.
However, LATA does not have a large budget and Paine said the association could only finance some improvements by increasing its membership. Membership for tour operators costs £220 a year.
Paine is keen to see more tourist boards join the association, but as Mexico and Brazil are the only countries in Latin America with tourist offices in the UK, membership is currently restricted to just two.
Brazil is tipped by operators to sell well over the next few years, following the opening of a new tourist resort on the northeast coast (see page 40). The launch of Airtours charters to Salvador next May (Travel Weekly July 10) should also help to raise the destination’s profile.
Peru remains the most sought after destination in Latin America and its popularity is expected to increase with the opening of new, mid to upmarket hotels across the country.
Hot on the heels of Orient Express’ joint ownership contracts on hotels in Cusco and Machu Picchu, the upmarket hotel chain Wyndham Hotels and Resorts has announced it is planning to enter Peru next year. It is thought to be looking for a management contract or a franchise agreement for a property in the capital, Lima.
The recent launch of daily flights between Brazil and Peru should also increase the popularity of both destinations.
Varig’s night-time service between Lima and Sao Paulo, where it will connect to domestic and international flights, should make it easier for overseas visitors to include both countries in a single holiday.
Costa Rica has made a comeback over the past couple of months, prompting operators to add new packages for 2001, and Mexico is also selling well. Abercrombie and Kent will be featuring Mexico for the first time next year, and other operators, including JMC, have expanded their programmes to the popular resort of Cancun.
Buenos Aires: known as the Paris of South America, the Argentine capital is a very cosmopolitan city where modern buildings are complemented by colonial architecture
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