Running head: TOURISM IN COSTA RICA

Tourism in Costa Rica

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Tourism in Costa Rica

Introduction

Costa Rica is among the few nations in the world that are fully committed to supporting

tourism. The country greatly emphasizes on ecotourism and sustainability towards approaching

markets for tourism and products that are supported by government-led initiatives and the best-

established certification programs. Costa Rica enjoys a rich biodiversity despite covering only 51

thousand square kilometers (Making tourism more sustainable, nd). In a year, the country receive

not less than one million international tourists. According to The Costa Rica Tourist Board, the

reason for the influx of tourists into their country is the consolidated system of protected areas,

impressive scenic beauty, high levels of education for the locals, efficient services and

infrastructure, and political and social stabilities. These factors have made Costa Rica to be

ranked so high in the world as a major tourist destination, and the numbers of tourists continue to

grow with time. The government has invested heavily in human resources. By so doing, many

people in Costa Rica have received quality education up to higher levels, which makes it easy for

them to interact efficiently with tourists. As a result, economic opportunities have been created.

The paper will discuss in great depth the main issues that have significantly improved

tourism in the country, the challenges that have been encountered, and the solutions to be

implemented or have been implemented and their effectiveness in solving these issues. The

tourism industry in Costa Rica needs to be closely monitored as it a great source of foreign

income, which helps to support other sectors of economy in the country. Without proper

management, the entire tourism industry will be in shambles within a short time, and the

resulting effects would have ripples to other sectors. The situation might be difficult and take

longer to rectify.
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Costa Rican tourism industry

Costa Rica, as a society, took the decision to support sustainable development in the

tourism sector fully. Tourism is an essential contributor to the economy of Costa Rica, and due to

this, the country has awarded the industry the concern and seriousness that it deserves. There are

general policies that govern tourism in the country, which was articulated in the 2000-2012

national tourism development plan (Making tourism more sustainable, nd). In addition to that,

Costa Rica is promoted under the slogan with resonance on green sentiment "Costa Rica – No

Artificial Ingredient."

Finca Rosa Blanca, a top rated country hotel under the CST certification

The primary factor that has promoted ecotourism in the country is the awareness that has

led to sustainability and commitment. The commitment of Costa Rica towards achieving

sustainable tourism was initiated in the realm of ecotourism. This was later followed by an

expected typical pattern of innovation by the private individuals that was strongly backed by the
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government. The government set policies and created an atmosphere that was favorable for the

private sector to also venture into the tourism industry. The private sector helped the government

in a number of ways, which included offering employment, marketing the tourism industry to

other countries, diversification of services, and creating a culture that supports and protects

ecology.

Private nature reserves were the first ecotourism business in the country; they were

established by conservationists and biologists who had studied the diverse flora and fauna in

Costa Rica. It was possible to govern these businesses from their establishment due to the

presence of potent conservation and social ethic. As a result, they have become the models on

which the entire ecosystem industry in Costa Rica has been built for decades now. The business

was successfully right after inception, and due to this factor, a new entrant into the business, the

social and environmental lead set by the original models.

Another factor that made many investors develop the desire to invest in the Costa Rican

tourism industry was the recognition of the market opportunity (Making tourism more

sustainable, nd). The traditional business leaders and the tourist's board came to the realization of

the significance in the determination of the market position of Costa Rica. The visitors to the

country, in most cases, engaged in a variety of series of experiences, which included combined

visits to volcanos, ecotourism, and convectional city and beach activities (Making tourism more

sustainable, nd). The primary motivator for people to visit Costa Rica was the reputation that the

country had to the outside world of the large convectional hotels, experienced tour operators, and

the unique ecosystem. The ability of the country to sustain a broad spectrum of tourism as well

as ecotourism tourism has become complementary. It has created a conducive atmosphere for

business in the country. The country does not seem to relent in its ways to support tourism. In
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fact, the country is collaborating with her neighbors to ensure that the region will turn out to be a

tourist hub in the near future and improve their capacity to accommodate even more tourists on

an annual basis.

Red macaws - wildlife is a primary attraction of Costa Rica

Challenges being encountered in the tourism sector in Costa Rica

The tourism industry in Costa Rica is not immune to problems that other major tourist

destinations in the world face. Tourists bring a lot of fortunes to a country, but they also come

with factors that could have a lasting effect on the destination if measures are not taken in

advance to salvage the situation. Nonetheless, with proper management, it is possible to control

all these challenges and maintain an attractive ecosystem that will bring more visitors for

decades to come. Tourism is the third-largest source of income to the country; this is a good

thing, but at the same time, very risky. Costa Rica might be tempted to invest heavily in the
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tourism industry without taking into consideration its volatility. Tourism is adversely affected by

extreme weather conditions, travel advisories from other nations, and global economic decline.

Under such circumstances, the number of tourists drops drastically, and hotels register

few visitors, the game parks are left with no visitors, and flights into the country start to bring

fewer visitors. The results are massive loss of jobs, hotels closing down, and a drastic dip of the

economy. The country, as a result, is thrown into a crisis.

Another challenge that is more specific to the situation in Costa Rica is the process of

bidding to be granted the rights by the government to be in charge of visitor centers, souvenir

shops, and parking. The opportunity to be in charge of these sectors in protected areas such as

national parks has, for an extended period, led to heated debates with the local communities

complaining that such opportunities are given to people from other areas, including foreigners,

and they are being overlooked. When the government is sharing such opportunities in any part of

the world, there are always groups of people who think that they have been denied the

opportunity. What they fail to understand is that when resources are few, not everyone can get a

share, and those with the potential to make the most out of these opportunities are the ones

preferred since they can also create employment for others and even have the capacity to exploit

other opportunities too.

The other major challenge that the Costa Rican tourism industry faces is some of the

protected areas, which include forest reserves and wildlife refuges, which have mixed private

and public ownership. This makes it difficult for the public and the private sector to agree to

what of the protected areas each group is supposed to take care of. As a result, there have been

conflicts between the private sector and the local community, thus calling for the government to

deliberate on the issue and offer clear guidelines to be followed by both the private sector and the
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local community. Failure to do this, the two groups might abandon their duties, and the protected

areas might fail to be maintained, which will make them unattractive for tourists.

Solutions to the problems facing the tourism industry in Costa Rica

The issue of over-dependency on tourism leading to investing heavily can be mitigated by

investing in other sectors of the economy that cannot be fully paralyzed if tourism was to be hit

hard by unforeseen occurrences in the future. Some of these sectors might include agriculture.

Agriculture will ensure that the country has food security, and the surplus can be exported to its

neighboring countries. Although this was not an actual problem in the country, but there is a

great likelihood for it to happen if the country decides that it will rely entirely on tourism.

Therefore precautions need to be taken even when the country invests in expanding tourism and

faculties to hold more visitors.

The government should bring more elaborate strategies in the provision of opportunities

and regions that people can use to benefit themselves in the protected areas. The bidding process

that has been in place creates room for people to manipulate the system and get opportunities

unfairly at the expense of others. Tourism is a national heritage and should benefit all people

equally. People who have the capacity to utilize these resource such as parking spaces and

souvenir shops should be granted the opportunity to do business with these spaces in the

protected areas, rather than having the private sector and the government dominate the entire

private sector without leaving any opportunity for the locals with potential to benefit also. When

the local community also gets to benefit from the protected areas, they develop the need to

protect them rather than destroying them. The local community will also work in harmony with

the private sector in ensuring that the ecosystem is well preserved since they also have a share of

the benefits that come along with tourism.

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Due to the growing number of tourists in Costa Rica every year, there are high demands

for facilities such as hotels and the expansion of roads. These activities are useful as they will

improve the capacity of the country to accommodate more visitors. Good roads will make it easy

to access inner regions with scenic features opening them for tourism and benefits that come

with it. However, there is a glaring danger to this, more land to build more hotels means

deforestation has to take place. Biodiversity will be lost as a result. Flora and fauna that used to

attract tourists will be destroyed. As a result, the government should control the establishment of

hotels and other related facilities since if they are done with no good plan, there will be

significant harm that will befall the environment. Everything comes with its merits and demerits;

however, learning how to manage the challenges is a crucial thing so that the overall effect will

be positive. Tourism has a lot of benefits to a country, and the income from this industry should

be used to improve other sectors such as healthcare, education, transport, and hospitality. By so

doing, the value of people would improve.

Conclusion

Costa Rica, as a country, has greatly benefitted from being a significant tourist

destination. The significant tourists' attractions in the country are beaches, ecotourism, wildlife,

volcanic mountains, and the culture cultural heritage of the people of the region. Other

industries, such as hospitality, transport, education, and commerce, have also immensely

benefited from tourism. A lot of people have been employed in tourism associated organizations

and industries. Due to the fact that tourism is greatly connected to many industries, the

government should do all it takes to ensure that tourism is maintained and more visitors are

coming into the country.

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Recommendations

The tourism industry is booming in Costa Rica. However, there are few measures that the

country can take to make the situation even better, these measures include the following;

1. Creating awareness, there are still many potential tourists that would love to visit Costa

Rica, but lack of awareness of what to find hinders them from coming. Costa Rica needs

to improve on advertising their tourists' attraction sites to all countries in the world

(Olivia, nd). By so doing, more people would be interested in trying out Costa Rica, and

they might come along with their families or friends, and this will make the country to

have an excellent wallet share of the global tourism industry.

2. Developing an alliance between the national police and ICT; Costa Rican towns such as

Santa Teresa, Guanacaste, Puntarenas, and Tamarindo, have experienced significant

growth in tourism in recent years. As a result, there is a great need for national police

units to ensure that these towns are under guard so that terrorists and other criminals are

deterred from getting into the area. Security is significant for the growth of tourism in an

a, and this is one thing that the government cannot afford to spoil due to lack of security.

3. Increasing the number of lifeguards on the beaches, beaches such as Bellana and Manuel

Antonio beach in Puntarenas province, and the Cocles-Manzanillo beach located in

Limon need more lifeguards (Olivia, nd). The tides in these regions, at times, get rough,

and tourists who are not experienced swimmers can easily be carried away. To prevent

such an occurrence, the government should train and employ more lifeguards on these

beaches so that the safety of the swimmers can always be guaranteed. The Red Cross

organization should also be alert at all times so that whenever there is an emergency, they
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are ready to respond in the shortest time possible. In addition to that, the Red Cross

organization should have all the necessary equipment to respond to an emergency.

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References

Making tourism more sustainable pdf

Olivia Leake, Tourism Effect on Costa Rica retrieved from https://www.smore.com/50ncb-

Tourism-effect-on-costa-rica