The accommodation platform Airbnb launched the “Costa Rica por Tierra” (Costa Rica by Land) campaign with the aim of boosting the reactivation of local and international tourism and promoting safer, responsible and sustainable travel within the country.
The initiative, which will begin with two routes (surf and volcanoes and valleys) for people to travel by road, was carried out in partnership with the WWF Mesoamerica company, the Costa Rican Chamber of Restaurants (Cacore) and the National Chef Association. In total there will be five routes according to the announcement made this August 10.
“These alliances are essential to continue promoting tourism in a responsible and sustainable way. We believe that it is everyone’s job to continue contributing to the tourism economy, and a safe way to do so is through land travel and promoting local consumption, which in turn supports various communities,” said Carlos Muñoz, Campaigns director. and Public Policies in the Caribbean and Central America from Airbnb.
Likewise, the campaign, in addition to being launched locally, will be promoted in the United States, since the country is among the top five destinations that will be promoted internationally. Airbnb has already had the opportunity to apply this initiative in Mexico.
In March 2021, 2.5 million searches were made for the destination Costa Rica from the United States, which represented 15% more than the searches carried out in the same period in 2019.
The routes designed for this campaign cover different locations in Costa Rica that generate interest in its biodiversity. In addition, the tours are expected to be an alternative to mass and traditional tourism.
“Even though the campaign is posted on an Airbnb page, it itself is not promoting Airbnb accommodation and it is important to highlight this. There will be no ads for apartments or houses. The campaign is designed to promote Costa Rica as a destination. The routes what they do is facilitate the trip, and the person does not have to plan where to go, but can download a pdf from the website as a guide to prepare their trip,” said Muñoz.
According to a survey conducted by Airbnb, 56.8% of hosts made recommendations to their guests about local businesses such as restaurants, cafes, shops, museums and places of interest. While 42.1% recommended parks, natural areas and sites less known to tourists. This data indicates the positive impact on nearby communities that guests make when using an Airbnb listing.
Alliances
Airbnb’s alliance with the WWF Mesoamerica company aims to stimulate sustainable travel ―maintaining security protocols― to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in places with high biodiversity, which at the same time are in balance with the communities local and with the environment.
“For WWF Mesoamerica, promoting sustainable, responsible and inclusive tourism is a way for everyone: nature, people and the economy, to prosper again. The initiative makes it possible to create awareness about the need for patterns or habits of sustainable and responsible consumption on the part of travelers and encourage them to value the natural and cultural wealth of each place they visit”, indicated María Amalia Porta, director of Conservation of WWF Mesoamerica.
On the other hand, the union with Cacore and the National Chef Association seeks to boost the economy of local restaurants and small gastronomic companies that pass through the routes, thus promoting the interaction of restaurants in solidarity and local consumption. .
“We want to invite people to go out complying with all health protocols, support the hospitality industry in all corners of the country and rebuild sources of employment for families,” said Jorge Figueroa, President of Cacore.
“With this alliance we have the objective of inviting both national and international tourism to be enthusiastic about trying the local gastronomy. The idea is to continue encouraging travelers to visit Costa Rica in a responsible way so that they can get to know the cultural and culinary diversity that we have to offer,” said Carlos Rodríguez, President of the National Chef Association.
The routes
Airbnb wants its travelers to be able to travel the country in a safer way, while learning a little more about the local communities and contributing to the economic recovery of the country.
The first two routes of “Costa Rica by Land” cover the following destinations:
Surf route: Las Baulas National Marine Park, Naranjo Beach, Tamarindo, Avellanas and Junquillal.
Route of the volcanoes and valleys: Río Celeste, La Fortuna, Poás Volcano, Sarchí, San Gerardo de Dota.
On this website created by Airbnb, travelers will be able to find the first two routes with each of their destinations and points of interest.
In addition, they have a sustainable tourism approach; they have cultural recommendations, close to nature and from people who are part of local economies; and show visitors the diversity of the natural wealth found in Costa Rica.
Airbnb was born in 2007 and currently has 4 million hosts globally, and they have received more than 900 million guests.
