Tourism officials from Guyana report that the South American country set a new tourism record in 2018. As of December 31st, 2018, Guyana recorded a total number of visitor arrivals of 286,732 passengers, a 15.93 percent increase from the 247,330 visitors Guyana welcomed in 2017.
Over the past years, the Guyana Tourism Authority has worked on raising the profile of Destination Guyana through increased product development, awareness raising activities and niche marketing. This includes attendance at trade shows such as American Birding Expo, ITB, and World Travel Market. The year 2018 saw big changes in GTA’s marketing efforts. A new destination website and social media strategy were launched; market representation was secured in the core source markets of the U.S., Canada, UK and Germany; and the Guyana Tourism Authority hosted several trade, media and influencer FAM trips – all with the aim of increasing awareness of Guyana and driving demand among travelers seeking out authentic, nature, adventure and cultural experiences.
For the first time, Guyana has seen a significant increase in some of its core source markets such as the U.S. (8.28% increase), Europe (11.82% increase) and other Caribbean nations (28% increase).
Travelers come to Guyana to enjoy its pristine rainforest and the golden savannahs of the Rupununi, its unique indigenous community-owned eco-lodges and its nature resorts on the Essequibo and Demerara Rivers, Guyanese events such as Bartica Regatta and Guyana Carnival, and the most popular attraction of them all, majestic Kaieteur Falls. Kaieteur National Park recorded a total of 8,195 visitors to the tourist attraction in 2018, which is a 10 percent increase from the previous year.
Guyana also hosted the OAS CITUR Conference in March 2018 and the ICAO Air Transport Meeting in November 2018, which saw scores of international officials, all of whom experienced Guyana’s tourism product.
With a more targeted marketing approach, ongoing development of the tourism product and increased airlift (LIAT Airlines added a new route in July 2018, and American Airlines recently started serving the destination in November 2018), officials said that Guyana is expected to see growth in its visitor arrivals and the improvement of the overall visitor experience in the coming years.
Source: Guyana Tourism Authority
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