Costa Rica was designated, days ago, as the best tourist destination in Mexico and Central America. An airport, a destination management company and the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) were also highlighted as the best in the area. This was announced from London by the organization of the World Travel Awards (WTA), awards that were established in 1993.
The WTAs “recognize, reward and celebrate excellence in all sectors of the tourism industry around the world,” it states on its website. These annual awards are recognized as the most prestigious in the industry in the world.
The recognitions
This is the second year that Costa Rica has earned this recognition. The first was in 2019. In this way, the country surpassed Cancun, Mexico, which has won the award seven times. Belize has received it three times, Mazatlán (Mexico) in one as well as this nation as a whole in 2020.
The nominees for this 2021 edition were: Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama and Mexico. Nicaragua was not included. The ICT won the award as the best institution or tourist entity in the region.
The nominees in this category were:
Belize Ministry of Tourism
Guatemalan Tourism Institute
Honduran Institute of Tourism
Secretariat of Tourism of Mexico
Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism
Panamanian Tourism Authority
Salvadoran Tourism Corporation
Juan Santamaría International Airport won the award as the best in Mexico and Central America.
“This is a country achievement that confirms the good results of public-private management. At Aeris, as administrators of the main airport in the country, we strive daily to improve the passenger experience, taking into account that it may be the first or last impression that can be taken from Costa Rica”, highlighted Erick Barboza, Director of Business Development by Aeris.
The nominated terminals were:
Benito Juárez International Airport, Mexico City, Mexico
Cancun International Airport, Mexico
General Juan N. Álvarez International Airport, Acapulco, Mexico
La Aurora International Airport, Guatemala City, Guatemala
Monseñor Óscar Arnulfo Romero International Airport, El Salvador
Tocumen International Airport, Panama City, Panama
In the category of hotels, the recognized ones were:
The Westin Reserva Conchal in the category of Best Family Resort. The other is Gaia Hotel & Reserva as Best Green Hotel. In the section for the best tourism management company, the winner was the Costa Rican DMC.
Its website states: “Costa Rica DMC designs unique programs with an extraordinary combination of group activities, adventure tours, off-site events and exclusive productions. Our original and unique programs guarantee an exceptional experience for each participant”.
