Colombia is only 72,000 travelers away from exceeding the numbers of travelers from abroad that it received in 2022, since it reached 4,646,044 non-resident visitors between January and October 2023.
This number is 27.4% above that registered during the same period in 2022, when 3,646,694 people entered; as stated in the most recent report from the Economic Studies Office of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism.
Said report indicates that of the total number of non-resident visitors who arrived in the country in the first ten months of this year, 3,133,659 were foreigners (without adding Venezuelan citizens); A total of 1,077,856 correspond to Colombians residing abroad; 189,326 were Venezuelans for rest and recreation and another 245,203 were passengers from international cruises.
“This result excites us, as we project to receive more than 1 million travelers this year-end season, which would exceed the goal set by the Government of Change in 2023, of achieving 5.7 million non-resident visitors. If we take into account that the December figures are still pending, we are very close to reaching that objective and that fills us with optimism,” said the Vice Minister of Tourism, Arturo Bravo.
According to projections from the Directorate of Sectoral Analysis and Promotion of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, the number of visitors on cruise ships would increase around 120% by the end of 2023, while foreign visitors would increase by 23% and Colombians residents abroad who return to the country for their vacations, 8%.
The majority of foreign visitors who arrived in the country between January and October originate from the United States, which contributes 26.6% of the total non-resident visitors, with 885,062 travelers. Likewise, the demand to experience The Country of Beauty has increased among citizens of Costa Rica, Ecuador and Brazil.
by air, of which 2.3 million people did so on regular domestic flights and 1.6 million on regular international flights.
This figure adds up to a total of 35.3 million people who moved by air in the first 9 months of the year.
For its part, hotel occupancy remains above 52% for the ninth month of the year and visitors to National Natural Parks reached 1.3 million in October.
According to the data available from the Bank of the Republic, in the first half of 2023, USD 4,119.7 million in foreign currency were registered for passengers and trips, increasing 28.8% compared to what was registered in the same period of 2022.
Also in 2022, spending on inbound tourism generated USD 9,441 million, participating with 73.1% of the total expenditure of USD 12,912 million, according to ProColombia.
Given that the arrival of tourists to the country is expected to continue increasing, there is a growth projection for the last two quarters of the year, which would result in an increase in service exports of 17%, representing 57% of the total. of exports of services from the country.
