Fernando tacked up the horses – with sheepskin saddles. So much for the tough gaucho life. The heat of the day had started to dissipate and we were heading out from El Charabon, a 2,000-acre estancia – or ranch – in the department of Rocha, southern Uruguay.
Chile dropped six places in the World Economic Forum’s latest travel and tourism ranking for the most competitive and attractive countries for travel and tourism.
Chile is now in 57th place out of the 133 countries included in the study – beating out nearby countries like Peru (74th place) and Argentina (65th).
The United Nations World Tourism Organization said Wednesday that international vacation travel could drop 2% this year as the global crisis worsens. This will be particularly evident following the bullish years, 2004/07 when growth averaged 7%.
The 2009 summer season attracted 780.000 foreign tourists to Chile which represents an increase of 6% over the same period a year ago, according to the latest figures released by the country Tourism Service office.
Revenues from Brazil's tourism sector grew 20% in the first two months of the year boosted by domestic travellers announced the Tourism Ministry. However the estimate includes a number of sectors like hotels, air flights, car rentals and travel agencies, which makes it difficult to give an exact sum of money spent by tourists.
Tourists arriving in Uruguay during January spent 40% more than a year ago although the number remained almost similar, 315.000, according to the latest figures released by the Ministry of Tourism.
Samba school Salgueiro was crowned champion of Rio's fiercely competitive Carnival parades on Wednesday, knocking off a powerhouse rival and overcoming a shooting that left three dead outside its headquarters just months ago.
The Italian flagged cruise Costa Romantica with 1.400 passengers remained on Thursday midday anchored seven miles off the Uruguayan sea resort of Punta del Este after having suffered last night a brief blackout caused by a fire in the generators room.
The Italian flagged cruise vessel Costa Romantica with 1.400 passengers that was anchored seven miles southwest of the Uruguayan coast after suffering a power blackout was heading Thursday evening for Punta del Este to disembark travellers who will continue their trip to Argentina by land and ferry.
The Chilean government confirmed this week that Chile and Argentina will again be co-hosting the 2010 edition of the Dakar Rally which for the first time took place this summer in both South American countries including the crossing of the mighty Andes cordillera.