
Chile's Patagonian region is home to one of the most incredibly vast expanses of virtually untouched ecosystems on the planet. Within this ecological haven lies a region known as the Aisén Region, a sprawling epicentre of glacial waterways and biodiversity, soon to be subject of a new ecotourism operation run by the Centre for Ecosystem Research in Patagonia (CIEP).

A United Kingdom independent online travel company specializing in wilderness adventures is expecting at least a 10% rise in sales in the next year after adding extra destinations to its portfolio, including the Falkland Islands.

TOURISM in the Falklands is looking up, with visitor projections far higher than anticipated just three months ago.

The Queen has officially named Cunard's new Queen Elizabeth cruise ship in the port of Southampton. The ship will leave on her maiden voyage to the Canary Islands on Tuesday - a trip that was fully booked less than 30 minutes after going on sale.

Dutch Caribbean dependency the Netherlands Antilles has ceased to exist with a change of the five islands' constitutional status. Curacao and St Maarten have become autonomous countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, joining Aruba, which gained the status in 1986.

With a 14th growth in tourist arrivals in the first half of the year Asia doubled the Americas (7.3%) in the industry’s rhythm of recovery and became the region’s main competitor for the European market, according to the latest data from the World Tourism Organization.

Due to the on-going land disputes by indigenous Rapa Nui groups, tourism activity has decreased on Chile’s Easter Island, said Edgar Hereveri, vice president of the island’s chamber of tourism.

An estimated 140 cruise vessels will be calling in Buenos Aires this coming 2010/2011 season and on arrival visitors will be greeted at a refurbished terminal which should be ready for inauguration in December.

*Exclusive Report for MercoPress by Peter Lowy.
International tourism is rebounding across Latin America this year, and to help ensure that the upward trend continues, 10 nations across the region participated in the inauguration last week of FITA, the International Tourism Fair of the Americas, in Mexico City.

Uruguay’s world soccer star Diego Forlan will become next November the visible face of the official campaign to promote the country’s tourism attractions.