Peru Draws the Trendy and the Adventurous
By Ray Remington
They are between 35 to 60 years old, not necessarily millionaires, but generally they hold upper management positions in their companies. They spend more than $500 a day in Peru, love to do risky sports, travel to distant places with their family, enjoy gourmet food and prefer to travel in private planes. They are the cream of the tourist trade, numbering in the millions, and Peru is beginning to be the destination of choice for many in this group according to local travel agencies.
Not on the Map
Twenty years ago, Peru was not on the map for this group. Now industry observers estimate that the leading agency in Peru, Lima Tours, drew more than 5,000 of these customers in 2005. It is estimated that this number could triple in the near future. As a response to this trend, Lima Tours now offers a luxury package, aimed at this segment of tourists, costing between $500-$1000 a day and featuring visits to seven sites in 10 days. While that amount seems expensive, it is a bargain compared to the luxury travel offered in other parts of the world where $2,000 a day is not unusual.
Tourists doubled
As far as Peru is concerned, in the past three years, the number of visitors for tourism from other countries has doubled. In 2005 this came to one million five hundred thousand visitors earning approximately one billion five hundred million dollars for Peru. It is estimated that these visitors spent, on the average, about $100 per day. Actually this average is quite a bit less than the luxury traveler which leads some in the travel industry to advocate more effort to attract the upper end visitor.
Trend
There is definitely a trend toward greater expenditure on the part of tourists as we have seen a forty per-cent increase in average spending. If there is value for the money, the tourists will come and they will spend. Quality control is definitely of great importance. There must be unique attractions, comfortable accommodations, efficient transport, and well trained staff. The results of these factors, if they are done well, will be to increase the number of tourists as well as elevating the average spending.
Much to Offer
Peru has much to offer the tourist from eco-tourism to mountaineering. In fact, as awareness develops, it is clear that Peru can become one of the prime destinations of tourists. This offers perhaps a better opportunity for job growth and the development of rural areas than any other enterprise. However, competition is fierce, other countries are much better organized and tourism does depend on political and economic stability. It is also important for continual monitoring of the trade to assure quality and satisfaction of the customer.
Nevertheless this is a great opportunity for Peru, and one that can be of great benefit to future economic development.
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