MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina hosted 5.7m tourists in 2011; iconic names play a significant role

Argentina has become the most visited country in South America with arrivals in 2011 reaching almost six million tourists, said Leonardo Boto head of the country’s National Tourism Promotion Institute, Improtur.

Boto said that the excellent performance can be attributed to several factors among which, Argentina’s natural attractions which cover the whole arch from the tropics to Patagonia and its glaciers; from the Atlantic beaches to the Andes mountains, but also the favourable economic situation of the region particularly since 2003 and regional expansion since the “largest number of arriving tourists in Argentina come from the region and continent”.

The official also pointed out to the legal and institutional framework supported by the new Tourism bill, the creation of the Tourism promotion institute which has helped promote Argentina overseas and particularly in Latin America.

He also mentioned some brands and icons identified with Argentina such as Evita (Peron); tango, beef, Malbec wine, Che Guevara, Maradona, Messi, “names that have a magic attraction for many tourists”, said Boto based on opinion polls.

“Of the 5.76 million arrivals, almost a million and a half are from Brazil” said Boto and “Evita, tango, beef, Malbec, Che Guevara, Maradona are very strong intangibles, almost mythical and a magnet for them”.

Boto also mentioned Argentina has a huge extraordinary access door as Buenos Aires, a classical continental European city with all its majestic avenues, buildings and green spaces. “Then you have the glaciers, the falls, gastronomy that goes beyond the traditional barbecue, such as the Patagonian organic lamb, fish from the deep Atlantic, Antarctica and the mighty rivers from the heart of South America, plus all the aboriginal foods, flavours and spices from the northeast of Argentina”.