The summer season 2024 It did not get off to a good start after the presidential inauguration, the devaluation and deregulation of the economy. Between December 15 and January 31, Tourism fell 16.8% compared to the same period of the 2023 season.
A total of 17 million tourists traveled through Argentina and spent $2.8 billion between food, transportation, accommodation, recreation and various purchases.
Summer 2024: tourism fell but spending rose thanks to international visitors
Despite the economic indicator of the people who traveled, real total spending grew 6.4%since the Daily spending per tourist averaged $40,823. In this way, it was 31.4% higher than last year, at real prices, due to the strong influx of international visitors.
According to the Ministry of Tourism of the Nation, only in the first two weeks of January, 460,000 foreign tourists entered the country, 33.5% more than in the same period of 2023.. It is estimated that they would have spent about US$312 million in that first fortnight.
In addition, the average stay for the season was 4 days compared to 4.3 days in the 2023 season. This decrease is due to the fact that the local resident reduced their time spent in the destination chosen for reduce expenses.
Although the second half of January was better than the first for most destinations, it was not enough to recover what was lost in December and the initial half of the first month of the year..
To improve the numbers, businessmen brought out different promotions. Many accommodation providers They launched attractive discounts about the second half of January to fill their places, but, even so, the cost of vacationing for a family was high depending on their income.
Summer: foreign tourism saved the 2024 season
What saved the sector from a greater decline was the international tourism that populated the country’s cities.. One of the most popular places for international visitors was Patagonia, which stood out with longer stays and many cities with occupancy above 90%.
On the other hand, for the north of the country tourism was lesswhere the climate, the costs of permanence and the increase in transportation prices discouraged national tourists.
In the Central region there were many ups and downs, with shorter stays than last year. In that sense, trips were made close, lasting a few days and very expensive due to the increase in transportation costs. The Argentine coast and Córdoba stood out, and to a lesser extent the cities on the coast of the Uruguay River.
Summer: sharp drop in consumption on the Coast
In the Buenos Aires provincethe destination most chosen by national tourists was Coast Party: which had 70% occupancy while in 2023 it had been almost full. Added to this was the drop in consumption, since the tourist took care of his pocketby choosing shorter stays, homemade lunches and fewer outings.
In Mar del Plata, the gastronomic sector consulted indicated that the decrease in tourist consumption was notable compared to previous seasons.
After a record 2023 in terms of tourism, the City of Buenos Aires also had its ups and downs in the summer. With few national visitors and many international ones, occupancy averaged 70%.
During the second half of January, a rebound in tourism was seen in many towns in Cordova, The first balance of the season left a drop of 20% compared to last yearas indicated by the Argentine Confederation of Medium Enterprises (CAME).
In it Sur, San Martín de los Andes and Villa La Angostura had 90% occupancy and Bariloche 80%.
Source: Ambito
