One of the events that most attracted the attention of the Holy Week in Colombia was the situation of Saint Andrew, one of the tourist destinations par excellence in the country.
And it is that the authorities of the archipelago assured that Easter 2023 it was the worst ever.
(See: The causes that led to the tourist debacle at Easter).
Juan Enrique Archbold Dau, Departmental Secretary of Tourism, he didn’t even compare it with which we lived during the first year of the covid-19 pandemic, back in 2020, since at that time they had support from the National Government.
“The truth is, it went quite badly for us, speaking with businessmen and hoteliers, everyone says that it is the worst Easter Week or one of the worst in the entire history of the island. Even in the pandemic, it did not hit that much, due to the series of bank aid and relief that was presented”, described the official.
(See: The complaint from San Andrés: “It was the worst Holy Week in history”).
Likewise, according to figures from Cotelco, in those eight days when the Colombians were on vacation 60,000 million pesos in tourism were lost and there was only a hotel occupancy of less than 30%. These figures are worrying since they compare with those of previous years, when the arrival of 62,000 passengers was registered, while this year 17,000 arrived.
The government’s response
This Tuesday, April 11, days after the end of Holy Week, the National Government, at the head of the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, Germán Umaña Mendoza; and that of Transport, Guillermo Francisco Reyes, They presented a balance on the behavior of tourism in those days.
(See: Bogotá, in the ‘top’ of sustainable tourism in Latin America).
As they assured, the number of national trips increased by 4.95% compared to the Greater Week of 2022, although they clarified that “Some destinations were affected, especially San Andrés. In recent days, flight frequencies have increased. Small tourist destinations report 35% occupancy and large hotels, 75%”, detailed Umaña.
With respect to heace Cotelco figures, Minister Reyes indicated: “I do want to distort part of that information (referring to the fact that San Andrés experienced one of the worst Holy Week in its history) because I was in San Andrés on Good Friday from noon, I met with hoteliers and I stayed in a hotel quite a bit. large, with more than 10 floors“.
Saint Andrew.
(See: In Colombia, more than 90% of visa applications are approved).
“First, during the pandemic there were no flights to San Andrés, so there were no hotels either, so how can they say that it is the worst (Easter Week) since the pandemic so far. What is going to be compared? Second, in the hotel where I stayed I toured the beaches and shops, and I’m not going to tell lies, San Andrés was not full, but pensions and hostels don’t count either. The hotel where I stayed had more than 60% occupancy. I can get the figures for you, because they are certified. Not all the hotels had the same luck, when they are computed, they give lower figures, but it is not that there was no tourism“Reyes added.
BRIEFCASE
