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Costa Rica
Country Reports
March 22, 2003
Capital: San Jose
Population: 3.8 million
Climate: Tropical and subtropical, with dry
season (Dec-Apr) and
wet season (May-Nov)
Languages: Spanish, English, Indian dialects
Total area: 51,100 square kilometres
Ethnic groups: 96% Spanish descent, 2% African descent, 1%
indigenous Indians, 1% Chinese
Religion: 85% Roman Catholic, 14% Protestant
Currency: Costa Rican colon (CRC)
Total arrivals: (2001) 1,131,406
Total receipts: (2001) US$1,277.6 million
GDP: US$16.6 billion
Inflation rate: 12.1%
Unemployment rate: (2000) 5.2%
Airports: Juan Santamaria international airport,
Liberia airport
Ports and harbours: Puerto Limon, Puerto Quepos
Exchange rate: CRC 1 = US$0.0026 as at 20th January 2003
Introduction
Costa Rica was one of the few destinations that managed to achieve arrivals growth during the traumatic year of 2001, thanks to a strong early showing from the crucial North American market and a rallying performance from its Central American neighbours thereafter. Since then, in 2002, Costa Rica has successfully managed to intercept those cautious South American tourists who are usually bound for the USA. The country's bountiful natural treasures encompass rainforests, coral reefs, volcanoes and national parks, a Caribbean and a Pacific coast, and it is increasingly known as an ecotourism and adventure travel destination, but in recent years pure leisure travel has ceded ground to the business market. The incoming market is also characterised by independent, solo, VFR and repeat-visit travellers and it acts as the country's main source of foreign exchange, producing a positive balance in its travel account. Although promotional investment remains minimal, the government has earmarked tourism as a socio-economic priority and set out to invest in a sustainable tourism product which can recover the confidence of the North American and long-haul European markets which were beginning to show strong growth at the start of the new century.
History
Impressed by the natives adorned in gold, Christopher Colombus dubbed this land the Costa Rica, the 'rich coast', in 1502 and in turn its people later named their currency, the colon, after him. However, early post-Columbian history did not yield the wealth promised by his early optimism: the indigenous people were decimated by Spanish aggression and disease, whilst the colonial gold prospectors themselves were severely disappointed. The introduction of coffee in the early 19th century nurtured the settlements of Heredia, San Jose and Alajuela and eventually led to independence with a coffee grower, Juan Rafael Mora, as president. In 1856 Mora sensationally repelled the might of invading US army adventurer William Walker, a feat celebrated since on April 11th's Juan Santamaria's Day. Afterwards conflict became internalised, taking place between powerful, established coffee growers and those seeking to advance democratic electoral reform. This eventually spilled over into outright civil war in the 1940s, resolved with a new constitution and the abandonment of the armed forces in 1949. In the late 20th century, although battered by hurricanes Cesar and Mitch, Costa Rica achieved a relative political calm, with a drive towards foreign investment and privatisation. Allegations of hidden agendas, political deals and corruption have been widespread, however, and new ruling President Abel Pacheco's Social Christian Unity Party administration will be asked to provide more transparency and accountability.
Data sources
Most of the data in this report are drawn from the Area de Empresas y Servicios Turisticos, of the Costa Rica Tourist Board, or the Instituto Costarricense de Turismo (ICT). The National Chamber of Tourism (CANATUR) provides data on tourist expenditure and market characteristics, based upon annual surveys. The national publication The Tico Times has been monitored and sourced for recent developments in Costa Rica's tourism policy and performance.
Attractions
Costa Rica's natural beauty and biodiversity are its greatest attractions and the possibilities for the traveller are numerous. The country is home to 25 national parks, eight biological reserves, 49 wildlife refuges, 11 forest reserves and 31 protected areas. The Pacific and tropical Caribbean coastlines amount to over 700 miles of surfing, sport fishing and diving opportunities.
Costa Rica's Northern Plains are peppered with volcanoes, the highest of which is the 3,432 metre Irazu, whilst Poas has the widest crater at 1,320 metres and Arenal is the most active.
Santa Jose
The Costa Rican capital is also the cultural centre, being home to the Museo Nacional's display of archaeology, costumes and religious artefacts, the Museo del Oro Precolombino's collection of gold, and the equally extensive Museo de Jade.
Monteverde
Founded as a Quaker settlement in the 1950s, this now acts as a gateway to the Monteverde Reserve, taking in a butterfly farm and serpentarium en route. The reserve itself is most famous for the newly installed 'Sky Walk' that enables visitors to explore the jungle canopy across a series of intersecting suspension bridges and flying foxes.
Pacific coast
The port of Golfito is a major centre for deep-sea fishing and also acts as an entry point to the spectacular beaches of Playa Cativo, Playa Zancudo and Pavones (the latter being especially popular with surfers). Beyond the city of Puntarenas are dozens of isolated islands as well as the package holiday beach resort of Jaco.
Caribbean coast
Parkland and reserves account for over half of the Caribbean coastline and even the city of Puerto Limon has a tropical park populated by flowers and sloths. Parque Nacional Tortuguero is the main breeding ground for the Green Sea Turtle, whilst the nearby national park at Cahuita has a coral reef and rainforest.
Peninsula de Nicoya
This isolated area of the north west Pacific coast boasts spectacular beaches, such as Playa Samara and Playa Montezuma, and numerous turtle-breeding beaches at the Refugio Nacional de Fauna Silvestre Ostional and Parque Nacional Marino las Baulas de Guanacaste. Off the northern coast, the Reserva Biologica, which is part of the Parque Nacional Isla del Coco, is Costa Rica's prime snorkelling and diving site.
National parks
In the north west, at Parque Nacional Volcan Arenal, visitors are able to witness lava flow from the almost perfectly conical and highly active Arenal, whilst on the Peninsula Santa Elena the Parque Nacional Santa Rosa boasts Central America's largest expanse of dry forest and turtle-nesting grounds. Rincon de la Vieja, to the north east of Liberia, offers further volcanic features including hot sulphur springs, mud pools and bathing pools, whilst Parque Nacional Corcovado in the southern Peninsula Osa is an area of lowland rainforest. The most popular areas for bird-watching are Parque Nacional Tapanti, Parque Nacional Palo Verde and Refugio Nacional de Vida Silvestre Carlo Negro, whilst turtle watchers flock to Parque Nacional Toruguero to view nesting sites.
Tourism and the Economy
In Costa Rica tourism is the main source of foreign exchange and employment. According to CANATUR, the industry generates 140,000 jobs, 15% of exports and 72% of foreign reserves. The ICT estimates that tourism has accounted for 44% of all new jobs created in the country during the past decade. In 2001 the 1.1 million arrivals in Costa Rica generated US$1.2 billion in revenue. Tourism has grown to be Costa Rica's top generator of foreign currency, rising by over 85% between 1996 and 2001 to reach US$1,277.6 million.
Costa Rica's travel account achieved an increasingly healthy credit in the late 1990s, reaching US$810 million in 2001. Since 1992, Costa Rican expenditure abroad has grown by 109.1%, but receipts from foreign tourists in the country have risen by 196.3% to US$1,277.6. In the troubled year of 2001, although Costa Rican expenditure declined, incoming receipts managed a healthy growth of 3.9%.
The daily expenditure of visitors to Costa Rica can be quite high, with almost a quarter spending between US$50 and US$85. The majority, almost a third, spend less, somewhere between US$15 and US$50.
Arrivals
The North American market has expanded considerably and a resilient performance in 2001 meant that the arrivals it generated had grown by over 10% since 1999. Meanwhile the number of tourists from neighbouring Central American countries declined heavily in 2000, before rallying in the newly intra-regional climate of 2001 with a growth of almost 12%. The largest gain here in real terms was a 19.9% increase in Nicaraguan arrivals. Arrivals from South America have grown by a massive 41.6% since 1999, most impressively from Colombia which has been targeted by the ICT as a priority market, and a resilient Argentina. The progression in arrivals from Europe was halted by the long-haul crisis in late 2001, but the UK and France continued to grow and close the gap on Spain and Germany.
Tourist arrivals had been expected to increase by 6-8% in 2001, but the final outcome was slightly more modest. In September air arrivals to Costa Rica fell to 20,000, but recovered towards the end of the year and reached 80,000 in December, the highest monthly level since June. As a result, total arrivals grew by 4% over the year as a whole to 1,131,406. The growth that was achieved was due to the heightened intra-regional flows from Central and Latin American countries and a resilient showing from the US market which managed to generate 429,093 arrivals. As travel to the US dried up in the final quarter, Costa Rica prospered, with many high-spending, Latin American Miami-bound tourists opting for destinations closer to home.
2002
In the first quarter of 2002, international arrivals fell by 6% to 14,300 and losses in revenue amounted to US$19 million. However, Costa Rica is managing to intercept tourists who are cautious about travelling to the USA and, according to the ICT, in the first quarter of 2002, some 50,000 South American arrivals represented a growth of 20.5% against 2001.
USA
From Atlanta or Miami it is quicker to fly to San Jose, Costa Rica than San Jose California. In 2001 the ICT's TravelStyles survey, conducted by Menlo Consulting, was mailed to 50,000 US households selected from a pre-qualified pool of respondents and found that over half expressed an interest in visiting Costa Rica. California, Florida, Texas and New York have been identified as the regional markets offering the greatest potential, whilst in socio-economic terms, college graduates (over a third of whom have incomes exceeding US$100,000) account for 67.8% of Costa Rica's best prospects. The survey also showed a high rate of Internet usage with over half of the prospects organising their previous trip online. A similar proportion stated a likelihood to use a travel agent on their next trip, down from 65% in 1999.
Market Characteristics
Costa Rica's status as a pure holiday destination is diminishing fast and since 1997 the leisure market has ceded ground to business travel. In 2000 business generated 21.7% of international arrivals and holiday travel 61.5%. The VFR market is also growing in importance, closing in on the 100,000 arrivals mark, whilst study visits (usually Spanish-language courses) are an important component, accounting for over 40,000 arrivals in 2000.
The high incidence of independent and solo travel is another feature of the Costa Rican incoming market. Almost 40% of arrivals travelled alone in 2000. The growing importance of the VFR and business markets ensures a high proportion of repeat visits.
Seasonality
The dry season running between December and April is the most pleasant climatic period and therefore the most popular and consequently the most expensive time of year. The first three months of the year attract most arrivals from the North American market, but elsewhere the dispersal is more even.
Duration of stay
According to CANATUR, the average international visitor to Costa Rica spends 11.1 nights in the country. In spite of an encroaching business segment, this reasonably long duration of stay says something about the broad palate of attractions and opportunities available to the international visitor. This is borne out the multiple participation of visitors in the activities outlined in Figure 10.
Activities
Costa Rica is beginning to shed its earlier incarnation as being predominantly a sun and sea destination, and participation in this area 2000 was down to 43.4%. The large proportions of people involved in the activities below are testament to the fact that arrivals travel around the country, investigate different aspects and spend time doing so. There have been notable increases in the proportion of visitors who are making business visits and participation in marine activities appears to have diversified.
Independent travel has grown in stature since 1997, when it accounted for little more than a third of trips, and in 2000 its market share is far in excess of two thirds of trips. Standard packages have diminished in popularity, from a market share of over a quarter in 1997 to less than 10% in 2000, whilst group packages have fared the same. Individually tailored specialist packages appear to have acquired a small share of this fragmentation.
Accommodation
Almost 30% of Guatemala's hotel capacity is located in San Jose, but Guanacaste and Limon, with slightly below a quarter of capacity each, are almost equally important. The market is dominated by mid-range, three-star properties which account for over 30% of total capacity, with the four-star segment (23.6%) holding the second-greatest share. Despite the predominance of mid-range establishments, in 2001 it was the higher grade four- and five-star hotels that enjoyed the superior occupancy rates 53.5% and 59.3% respectively. The first three months of the year prove to be the most popular with guests and this period scored the highest occupancy rates across all sectors in 2001.
Figure 14 presents Costa Rica's monthly performance across all hotel sectors in 2001 and 2002. Whilst February and March are confirmed as peak months for occupancy, the recovery post-September 11th in 2002 is yet to materialise, despite a significant drop in average room rate during the early peak season.
According to the National Hotel Chamber, in September 2001 foreign arrivals dropped by 24.7%, but by October this had receded to a loss of 15.2%. Total year-end losses were estimated at US$70.4 million.
Construction and investment
The year 2000 saw a flurry of hotel investment, amounting to some US$173 million. Projects included a US$105 million Four Seasons hotel near Guanacaste, Grupo Real's three-star hotel, Comfort Santa Ana and two Allegro Group establishments.
Transport
Air
Juan Santamaria International Airport, just outside San Jose, is served by 17 international airlines. Costa Rica is connected to the USA by the carriers American, Delta, United, Continental and Grupo Taca Airlines. Sansa is Costa Rica's largest domestic airline, operating daily services from San Jose to 15 internal destinations. Operational since 1980, Sansa's fleet now numbers 43 aircraft. Nature Air is another domestic carrier, serving 16 destinations from San Jose's Paras airport.
In 2001, arrivals by air accounted for almost 72% of the total international visitors, compared with 73.5% in 2000, however, they still managed a 1.4% increase during the troublesome course of the year. Those losses incurred were mostly from the minor regional markets, where road travel is predominant. North America (effectively the USA) sustained its 59% share of the air arrivals market during 2001 and also managed to expand by 2.3%. South American air arrivals still only account for 11% of the total, but their numbers have grown by 43.6% since 1999 to mark them as an emerging and expanding market.
Road
In 2001, arrivals by road grew by 16.6% to almost 380,000 and a market share of 27.2%, up from 24.2% a year earlier. Arrivals from the major North American market grew enormously, possibly in response to a fall-off in air arrivals at the close of the year. The greatest increases, both in terms of volume and proportion, were from neighbouring Central American countries.
Cruise
Costa Rica's incoming cruise market has been in strong decline since 1999, when capacity was slashed and arrivals fell by almost 20%.
Organisation
Promotion
According to a survey by Camara Nacional de Turismo, over half of international arrivals in 2000 had decided to visit Costa Pica upon the recommendation of friends or relatives who had done so themselves. The next greatest influencing factor was work or college (16% of responses), followed by newspaper articles (10.3%). This rightly suggests that the impact of government promotion is minimal. In 2002, the tourism promotion budget rose to US$9 million, thanks to a US$1.8 million injection as part of a recovery plan. This was put into perspective by the fact that in the USA, Florida alone spent US$44 million on promotion. Cost-effective online promotion presents cause for optimism and in the first three weeks of 2002, the Costa Rican Tourism Institute's website received in excess of 70,000 hits, up from 24,000 the previous September.
USA
Costa Rica's promotional efforts are largely focused on the US market. Following September 11th, efforts were intensified with a new advertising campaign, '100% Costa Rican', aimed at high-to-medium income American travellers. These newspaper advertisements, which appeared 43 times in the nation's top ten publications, celebrated Costa Rica's natural beauty and biodiversity and emphasised the opportunities for golf, scuba diving, fishing, adventure and hiking tourism.
Colombia
Colombia is another source market which has been targeted as part of a regional drive to attract more South Americans and in early 2002 the Foreign Minister and Costa Rican tourism business representatives visited the country in a bid to stimulate interest. So far this has yielded the incentives of fare reductions on Avianca Airlines routes from Colombia and added reductions for members of the Colombian National Golf Federation. West Caribbean Airlines have also increased Colombian services from Cartagena and San Andres and plan to add another flight from Medellin.
The future
After the fall-out of September 11th compromised Costa Rica's tourism industry, the new administration of President Abel Pacheco issued a decree deeming tourism to be 'a socio-economic activity of high priority'. This followed on from US$210 billion worth of government investment in tourism projects in 2000, compared with a mere US$23 million in 1999. The decree seeks to ally the tourism ministry with the private sector, represented by the Chamber of Tourism (CANATUR) and also create a National Tourism Promotion Board (Protur). The Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) has contributed US$17.5 million towards this, drawn from its 3% tax on hotel rooms and 5% tax on airfares. CANATUR has also called for the construction of an international convention centre and the completion of road construction projects at Lake Arenal, Playa Tamarindo and bridges between Partita and Quepos. Financially, the aim is to generate an additional US$400 million in revenue by 2005.
Ruben Pacheco is faced with the task of restructuring and renovating the Costa q Tourism Institute (ICT) through a ten-year plan which seeks to work in conjunction with the Ministry of Finance and Public Works, the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) and the Water and Sewage Department. The ICT is sympathetic towards the demands of CANATUR, particularly the need for a second airport. The ICT has also spoken of the need to increase direct flights and seat capacities to Costa Rica, particularly through targeting airlines in Europe. The country's ports, including Limon and Puntarenas, have also been earmarked for development in order to welcome cruise ships and stimulate interest in yachting and sport fishing. Costa Rica's coasts are home to its poorest citizens and the ICT is seeking to raise tourism income in these areas through training programmes to improve the product for visitors.
Sustainable tourism
The government has been actively protecting its parks and reserves since the 1960s and today around a third of Costa Rica's territory is currently under some form of protection. The authorities are determined that the country's most saleable asset--its natural beauty--should not be undermined.
Costa Rica's Sustainable Tourism Certificate (CST) programme was developed by the tourist board and has been adopted by the World Tourism Organization's Sustainable Tourism Commission as the model to be implemented in destinations worldwide. The CST programme ascertains the sustainability of those businesses and hotels that voluntarily put themselves forward for an evaluation of their physical interaction with the surrounding environment, their management policies and operational systems, their interaction with external clients and their interaction with local communities. Participants are then awarded 'leaves' in a score system running from zero to a possible total of five.
In 2000 the WTO commission, the UN and US representatives gathered in Heredia to formulate a global strategy for sustainable tourism and grant Costa Rica a two-year presidency. The Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) and the Japanese Agency for International Cooperation (JICA) have investigated how systematic planning can secure sustainable growth, in particular at the Pacific peninsulas of Osa and Nicoya. The benefit of ecotourism is that the financial benefits go to the local community as opposed to private business as is often the case with all-inclusive beach compounds.
Outlook
Ruben Pacheco has lamented that private industry,
government and local communities all remain unaware of tourism's
importance and its ultimate potential for the country. He has also
called for the implementation of a national tourism training plan.
Costa Rica currently thrives on its reputation as a paradise of
flora and fauna and its tourism product is diversifying further
and further beyond the 'unspoilt beach resort' image of some years
ago. Once this has been safeguarded and secured with a sustainable
ecotourism product, it will seek to supplement this with secondary
'complementary' experiences such as golf courses, beach resorts,
museums and casinos.
FIGURE 1: MAJOR GENERATORS OF CURRENCY, 1996-2001
(US$ mn)
Micro- Tourism Coffee Bananas
electronics
1996 - 688.6 385.4 631.1
1997 - 719.3 402.3 577.3
1998 987.2 883.5 409.5 667.5
1999 2,558.6 1,036.1 288.7 629.0
2000 1,653.5 1,229.2 273.7 546.1
2001 810.1 1,278.6 161.8 515.9
Source: Banco Central de Costa Rica
FIGURE 2: BALANCE OF TOURISM ACCOUNT, 1992-2001
(US$ mn)
Receipts Expenditure Balance
1992 431.1 223.3 207.8
1993 577.4 266.5 310.9
1994 625.7 299.8 325.9
1995 659.6 320.6 339.0
1996 688.6 334.9 353.7
1997 719.3 357.7 361.6
1998 883.5 408.0 475.5
1999 1,036.1 445.9 590.2
2000 1,229.2 482.2 747.0
2001 1,277.6 467.0 810.6
Source: Banco Central de Costa Rica
FIGURE 3: AVERAGE DAILY EXPENDITURE, 1997-2000
1997 1998 1999 2000
Under 15 11.9 12.5 13.8 7.7
15-50 32.1 35.3 30.4 32.9
50-85 21.7 23.3 20.3 23.2
85-120 12.9 9.4 10.7 11.9
120-155 8.9 7.2 8.4 7.6
155-190 4.0 3.5 3.9 4.9
190-225 3.4 2.5 3.6 3.5
Over 225 51.1 6.3 8.9 8.3
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Source: Camara Nacional de Turismo
FIGURE 4: INTERNATIONAL ARRIVALS, BY SOURCE, 1999-2001
Country 1999 2000 2001 % change
Canada 45,565 52,696 52,661 -0.1
USA 392,556 429,725 429,093 -0.1
Mexico 31,875 33,432 36,841 10.2
North America 469,996 515,853 518,595 0.5
Guatemala 33,677 33,191 32,574 -1.9
El Salvador 28,572 31,149 35,054 12.5
Honduras 26,400 24,338 27,174 11.7
Nicaragua 168,447 143,142 171,583 19.9
Panama 53,565 54,646 53,892 -1.4
Central America 310,661 285,466 320,277 11.8
Cuba 3,585 3,570 3,578 0.2
Dominican Republic 3,921 3,906 3,668 -6.1
Jamaica 785 802 894 11.5
Trinidad & Tobago 445 456 501 9.9
Caribbean 9,327 9,450 9,298 -1.6
Argentina 10,805 15,823 16,098 1.7
Brazil 4,806 5,560 5,847 5.2
Chile 6,252 7,624 7,333 -3.8
Colombia 26,704 40,458 47,547 17.5
Ecuador 6,749 5,435 5,539 1.9
Peru 6,173 6,883 6,718 -2.4
Venezuela 8,372 10,142 10,782 6.3
South America 73,340 95,612 103,917 8.7
Germany 24,622 26,475 23,995 -9.4
Spain 27,031 26,877 26,916 0.1
France 11,531 12,797 15,558 21.6
Netherlands 15,612 18,994 18,119 -4.6
UK 17,215 18,256 18,922 3.6
Italy 17,215 18,736 16,479 -1.5
Sweden 2,616 2,998 2,814 -6.1
Switzerland 9,149 10,061 9,898 -1.6
Europe 141,331 151,393 150,796 -0.4
Asia 20,140 21,162 20,423 -3.5
Africa 897 789 837 6.1
Total 1,031,585 1,088,075 1,131,406 4.0
Source: Area de Empresas y Servicios Turisticos, Departmento
de Fomento Instituto Costarricense de Turismo
FIGURE 5: ARRIVALS, BY PURPOSE OF VISIT, 1997-2000
1997 1998 1999 2000
Holiday 73.7 64.8 65.4 61.5
VFR 3.8 6.7 4.5 8.4
Business 13.7 18.3 22.7 21.7
Study 4.0 3.8 3.3 3.8
Other 4.8 6.4 4.1 4.6
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Source: Camara Nacional de Turismo
FIGURE 6: SINGLE AND GROUP ARRIVALS, 1997-2000
(%)
Travelling 1997 1998 1999 2000
Solo 27.9 30.2 38.2 39.9
With family 34.8 26.4 20.7 11.3
With friends 24.3 26.5 18.7 19.5
With friends & family 5.9 3.4 2.8 2.3
As a couple - - - 21.3
Other 7.1 13.5 19.6 5.7
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Source: Camara Nacional de Turismo
FIGURE 7: FREQUENCY OF VISITS, 1997-2001
(%)
Frequency 1997 1998 1999 2000
First time visit 70.3 63.1 61.0 58.5
Repeat visit 29.7 36.9 39.0 41.5
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Source: Camara Nacional de Turismo
FIGURE 8: SEASONALITY OF ARRIVALS BY SOURCE, 2001
Month North Central Caribbean South Europe Total
America America America
Jan 57,997 42,505 948 12,321 16,200 132,715
Feb 58,477 26,973 629 9,003 16,814 114,217
Mar 66,170 23,426 823 8,198 13,314 114,640
Apr 44,333 27,689 890 8,249 11,011 94,441
May 35,204 19,553 752 8,050 8,507 74,318
Jun 44,803 23,107 867 8,420 8,881 88,357
Jul 47,086 30,384 911 9,849 14,128 105,089
Aug 35,553 25,924 814 8,996 13,808 87,774
Sep 18,140 20,864 646 7,176 9,290 58,341
Oct 24,580 23,182 593 6,834 10,307 67,205
Nov 36,592 26,439 753 7,471 14,048 87,320
Dec 49,660 30,231 672 9,350 14,488 106,989
Total 518,595 320,277 9,298 103,917 150,796 1,131,406
Source: Area de Empresas y Servicios Turisticos,
Departmento de Fomento Instituto Costarricense de Turismo
FIGURE 9: DURATION OF STAY, 1997-2000
Number of nights 1997 1998 1999 2000
1-3 7.4 12.8 17.9 14.3
4-6 11.9 17.9 15.1 17.7
7-9 23.4 21.4 22.5 19.0
10-12 12.4 10.5 9.5 10.0
13-15 23.0 13.9 13.4 15.4
16-18 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.2
19-21 7.0 6.0 5.6 5.4
22+ 12.3 14.8 13.2 16.0
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Source: Camara Nacional de Turismo
FIGURE 10: PROPORTION OF ARRIVALS
PARTICIPATING IN ACTIVITIES, 1997-2000
Activity 1997 1998 1999 2000
Sun and beach 64.7 63.4 54.1 43.4
Sport fishing 6.0 6.7 3.9 5.1
Surfing 7.4 8.8 10.3 8.9
Diving/snorkelling 15.6 13.7 12.0 11.0
Rafting/canoeing 12.8 9.1 7.8 8.5
Other marine activities 2.1 2.0 5.1 7.1
Other sport activities 2.5 4.2 2.9 3.6
Walking 42.4 44.4 37.1 42.7
Bird-watching 40.6 33.4 26.8 27.2
Observing flora and fauna 58.2 47.6 38.1 37.4
Visiting friends & relatives (VFR) 14.4 19.3 15.2 18.0
Seminar or congress attendance 8.5 13.7 14.4 9.6
Business/client visit 9.6 11.0 13.2 20.1
Language study 9.3 6.7 5.3 5.2
Other 10.4 13.5 15.1 1.6
Source: Camara Nacional de Turismo
FIGURE 11: INTERNATIONAL ARRIVALS,
BY ORGANISATION OF TRAVEL, 1997-2000
Type of trip 1997 1998 1999 2000
Organised group package 17.6 13.1 12.6 6.0
Individually tailored package 11.9 15.3 6.5 13.0
Standard package 26.2 12.0 5.5 9.3
Independent 37.2 36.3 53.6 71.7
Other 7.1 23.3 22.4 -
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Source: Camara Nacional de Turismo
FIGURE 12: HOTEL CAPACITY, BY CATEGORY AND PROVINCE, 2001
Hotels star rating
Province 0-star 1-star 2-star 3-star
San Jose 199 325 275 1,694
Alajuela 18 195 240 546
Cartago 0 18 24 0
Heredia 12 49 137 143
Guanacaste 68 329 709 927
Puntarenas 111 414 537 963
Limon 13 191 131 281
Total 421 1,521 2,053 4,554
% share 2.8 10.1 13.7 30.4
Hotels star rating
Province 4-star 5-star No cat. Total
San Jose 989 621 313 4,416
Alajuela 234 34 100 1,367
Cartago 16 0 0 58
Heredia 664 344 20 1,369
Guanacaste 742 506 300 3,581
Puntarenas 833 603 27 3,488
Limon 55 0 40 711
Total 3,533 2,108 800 14,990
% share 23.6 14.1 5.3 100.0
Source: Area de Empresas y Servicios Turisticos, Departmento de Fomento
FIGURE 13: HOTEL OCCUPANCIES, BY CATEGORY AND MONTH, 2001
Hotels star rating
Month 1-star 2-star 3-star 4-star 5-star
Jan 52.0 44.8 65.7 61.9 66.8
Feb 48.6 48.5 68.5 69.5 68.2
Mar 42.8 38.7 68.4 70.7 70.1
Apr 38.3 38.4 54.9 56.1 57.5
May 36.7 25.1 43.5 47.3 48.4
Jun 40.3 38.4 45.5 50.7 46.8
Jul 16.6 14.1 50.7 52.0 59.0
Aug 17.0 14.7 48.5 52.7 61.0
Sep 15.6 15.6 35.6 39.6 59.0
Oct 18.3 14.2 40.2 42.7 54.0
Nov 15.6 14.9 44.6 51.5 68.0
Dec 22.2 15.1 47.5 47.7 53.0
Annual 30.3 26.9 51.1 53.5 59.3
Source: Area de Empresas y Servicios Turisticos, Departmento de Fomento
FIGURE 14: HOTEL PERFORMANCE IN SAN JOSE, 2001 AND 2002
2001
Month Occupancy Average RevPar US$
% room rate
US$
Jan 63.8 122.56 78.22
Feb 78.9 120.7 95.28
Mar 78.5 116.99 91.82
Apr 65.2 107.69 70.17
May 70.0 94.49 66.11
Jun 67.0 97.01 65.04
Jul 70.4 94.63 66.61
Aug 64.8 94.06 60.94
Sep 54.0 92.19 49.80
Oct 55.6 93.19 51.84
Nov 71.4 93.61 66.84
Dec 56.0 97.8 54.81
Year-to-date 66.2 102.59 67.94
2002
Month Occupancy Average RevPar US$
% room rate
US$
Jan 61.7 105.47 65.03
Feb 73.9 116.86 86.36
Mar 72.1 101.03 72.84
Apr 69.5 109.17 75.90
May 64.5 97.25 62.69
Jun 58.3 94.32 54.95
Jul 63.6 92.95 59.14
Aug 62.8 93.77 58.84
Sep 62.2 87.56 54.46
Oct - - -
Nov - - -
Dec - - -
Year-to-date 65.3 100.12 65.37
Source: Deloitte & Touche HotelBenchmark Survey
FIGURE 15: AIR ARRIVALS, BY SOURCE, 1999-2001
Country 1999 2000 2001 % change
2000-01
Canada 41,677 47,166 47,947 1.6
USA 368,644 396,909 403,775 1.7
Mexico 30,427 31,694 35,276 11.3
North America 440,748 475,769 486,998 2.3
Guatemala 22,746 22,171 19,102 -13.8
El Salvador 13,026 14,803 14,385 -2.8
Honduras 8,058 9,402 9,226 -1.8
Nicaragua 10,791 10,729 9,155 -14.6
Panama 15,641 14,572 14,665 0.6
Caribbean 8,907 8,724 8,710 -0.1
South America 66,291 87,608 95,221 8.6
Europe 124,533 131,879 129,872 -1.5
Total 734,158 800,795 812,022 1.4
Source: Area de Empresas y Servicios Turisticos, Departmento
de Fomento Instituto Costarricense de Turismo
FIGURE 16: ROAD ARRIVALS, BY SOURCE, 1999-2001
Country 1999 2000 2001 % change
2000-01
Canada 3,660 3,599 3,489 -3.0
USA 16,585 14,101 16,667 18.2
Mexico 1,266 1,453 1,475 1.5
North America 21,511 19,153 21,631 12.9
Guatemala 10,914 11,006 13,453 22.2
El Salvador 15,530 16,318 20,629 26.4
Honduras 18,271 14,908 17,905 20.1
Nicaragua 157,573 132,362 162,390 22.6
Panama 37,802 40,019 39,160 -2.1
Caribbean 389 672 541 -19.5
South America 6,579 7,749 8,485 9.5
Europe 15,773 17,916 20,023 11.7
Total 287,476 263,831 307,831 16.6
Source: Area de Empresas y Servicios Turisticos, Departmento
de Fomento Instituto Costarricense de Turismo
FIGURE 17: CRUISE VESSELS, ARRIVALS AND RECEIPTS, 1996-2001
Vessels % change Arrivals % change Receipts % change
(US$ mn)
1996 168 2.4 158,742 13.9 14.9 -
1997 202 20.2 201,386 26.9 18.3 22.8
1998 220 8.9 224,405 11.4 21.4 16.9
1999 253 15.0 235,039 4.7 21.5 0.4
2000 199 -21.3 189,814 -19.2 18.7 -13.0
2001 195 -2.0 188,596 -0.6 - -
Source: Area de Empresas y Servicios Turisticos, Departmento
de Fomento Instituto Costarricense de Turismo
Richard Cope is a Research Analyst at Mintel's Travel & Tourism Intelligence.
Copyright 2003 Central European Business Ltd.
Note: The above information is not to be used for any other purpose other than private study, research, criticism or review. Thank you.
