Convention Tourism in Panama

©image: Sheng Ping Wu

Martinelli’s government produced a strategic five-year plan which includes a Tourism Development Master Plan by the Panamanian Tourism Authority. The latter includes specific considerations for the convention tourism industry, remarking the country’s potential given its geographic location and flight connectivity with Latin America, through Copa Airlines’ route network.

As most convention visitors will come from the United States, Panama is pondering whether to negotiate a special tax exemption status with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

Capital.com.pa published that “the Panamanian Hotel Association targets 24.000 hotel rooms for 2010, 1.5 million visitors, 180.000 direct jobs and $1.6 billion in revenue”.

Source: Capital.com.pa

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Hotel Occupation Increases due to Conferences

July 2010

Hotel occupation up by 8% in the first five months of the year relative to the same period in 2009.

Sara Pardo, president of the Panamanian hotel association (Apatel), commented that the rise in the number of conferences held in Panama was a crucial contributing factor.

Tropic Inn Hotel inaugurates convention center in El Salvador

October 2008

With an investment of $6.5 million, the City of San Miguel will host the second largest convention center in the country. It will have a capacity of 1500 people.

The building is an extension of the Tropic Inn Hotel which belongs to Sociedad Turísticas de Oriente S.A.
The first four floors of the building - which took two years to construct - will used as a parking space for 250 vehicles.

The Competition for Convention Tourism

May 2012

The countries of the region are compete for organizing events and conferences whose participants spend on average $1,200 per day.

Panama, Colombia and Costa Rica are building new convention centers to be opened in 2014, a major effort that aims to achieve a good slice of the cake that is convention tourism.

Panama to Host Conference on Climate Change

July 2011

More than 5,000 visitors are expected at the two United Nations conferences on climate change which will take place in October.

Between 1st and the 7th of October in Panama City two meetings on the subject will be held by United Nations working groups, these will serve as a prelude to 17th session of the Convention on Climate Change to be held between November and December in South Africa.