Located in the heart of the Americas, Panama wishes to become a gateway to Latin America for Chinese tourism.
The country’s Tourism Minister Gustavo Him said,”Due to its strategic location, Panama automatically becomes a gateway to the entire region.”
This week, the Central American country will be holding its first promotional event in China to attract more travelers from there. Air China, a major Chinese airline, is expected to begin operating direct flights to Panama twice a week, with a stopover in Houston from March.
Him further said, “The future of tourism in Panama is going to be its opening up, not just to visit Panama, but to visit different countries. We really like the multi-destination aspect, and are in fact initiating discussions with different places to see how we can create this destination and offer different products.”
Potential tourism routes could be established in conjunction with nearby countries such as Mexico, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Cuba and Colombia, Him said.
“The possibility of (combining Panama with) Cuba sounds very attractive to us, because it gives you this combination of Cuba’s history with Panama’s wildlife and modern Panama City,” said Him.
Panama will feature as a guest country at the International Tourism Fair from March 1-3 in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province in southern China.
With a growing number of Chinese travelling abroad each year, China has become a sought after tourism market for destinations around the world.
Him said that Panama has a lot to offer visitors, from eco-tourism to the unique Panama Canal and “shopping, given the excellent availability of brands in Panama at competitive prices.”
As a small country located on the other side of the world, Panama is largely unfamiliar to the Chinese, the minister acknowledged.
However, “there is a point of reference, and it’s that there is a very large Chinese community in Panama, so we know what their tastes are,” said Him. “And I am also a Chinese descendent and know what they like and what their idiosyncrasies are.”
