Nations in Central America like Costa Rica and Panama are becoming increasingly popular destinations for business and tourism. To cope with the influx of traffic the region's airports are developing fast to attract the new passenger flows
The "backwater" status in which Central America languished for decades now works to the region's advantage. Whole nations and areas that were untouched by tourism, unspoiled by development and left pristine when other areas were being overbuilt are now compelling attractions, precisely because they are unspoiled and untrammelled.
With ecological-awareness having created new categories of travel, such as adventure tourism and eco-tourism, the region is a major attraction. It is also marked by dramatic contrasts from one nation to another in wealth, sophistication and technological adaptation rates. This can be seen in the dramatic contrast between the region's airports, with one or two early adapters. The airports of Costa Rica and Panama particularly stand out, and for two very different reasons.
Transit point
Costa Rica has thrived through diversity of carriers, while Panama has gained a leadership role through its relationship with a single major carrier. Costa Rica has ridden the back of a leisure travel boom, while Panama - as befits a nation that came into being to take advantage of its location and status as a transit point - depends on connecting flights.
Costa Rica has long been an exception to the region's reputation for political turmoil, making it a haven for those North Americans who want a second home or a retirement home in a stable atmosphere. Arturo Gonzales, the business development director for the owner of San Jose's Juan Santamaria International Airport, says: "The migration of retirees has been a source of traffic, but Costa Rica has added some interesting niches. We have seen a growth in eco- and adventure tourism, probably more than other airports in the region, but we have also found new areas, such as medical tourism." This, explains Gonzalez, is the growing trend for North Americans to combine a vacation in Costa Rica with elective medical procedures such as plastic surgery.
But San Jose's airport is not entirely dependent on traffic flows from the north, he adds. About 25% of its annual traffic is from Europe and perhaps 15% is from other Latin American destinations such as Cuba. New low-fare service from two US carriers, Frontier and Spirit Airlines, are welcome additions, he says.
Eco-tourism benefits smaller airports as well as major gateways. For instance, where the international airport depends on tourism for much of its traffic, outlying airports such as Liberia Airport on Costa Rica's Pacific coast benefit from the trend as smaller aircraft link the two. But, says Liberia airport manager S Rosales, it has a growing number of international flights too.
In Panama, the Tocumen International Airport is intimately linked to Copa, the nation's flag carrier. Copa is highly respected and profitable, and has moved beyond dependence on Panama's affluent but small home market to make itself a regional super brand. Panama has also embraced the expatriate trends that have benefited Costa Rica, and large numbers of North Americans and Europeans have made second or retirement homes here.
Tocumen, named after a river that was diverted to make way for the facility when its construction began in 1971, is one of the only airports in Central America with two runways for landing. According to Erick Goldoni, its commercial director, the main terminal was expanded in a $21 million build out that created new boarding gates to allow more flights.
The airport acquired 21 new air bridges that replaced 14 older ones. It also added six remote parking positions. These new installations were opened in 2006. It also has new flight information systems, air conditioning and baggage handling systems. Its cargo terminal, which was built in 1947 and was formerly the airport, is being redesigned and rebuilt for cargo handling. Although Tocumen clearly has allied its future growth with that of Copa, airport officials are not concerned about over-reliance on one carrier, given Copa's strong performance and its increasingly close ties with Continental and the rest of SkyTeam.
Elsewhere in the region, other airports have linked their fate to the future of one or another airline, and the regional multi-national, multi-hub carrier TACA is usually the one. TACA operates hubs in El Salvador, San Jose and Peru. TACA, unlike Copa, is not aligned with any of the global alliances. This has made it and its airports all the more desirable as the major groupings scramble for Latin coverage in the wake of the collapse of Varig and its exit from Star. TACA and United Airlines have increased their codesharing, while TACA and Lufthansa agreed in May to develop a large-scale programme of co-operation.
El Salvador's International airport is in the midst of an ambitious expansion. Airport official Fredy Mayor says: "Our goal is improving the experience for the passengers." He also stresses modernisation of the runway and other infrastructure to meet ICAO standards. In a later stage of the project, conducted with a subsidiary of French airports company ADPI, a second runway will be built, as well as other improvements. By 2015, the airport will have capacity for four million passengers a year, eventually growing to 10 million by 2030.
Meanwhile, in Guatemala, an ambitious modernisation project for the country's international airport, dubbed "The New Aurora", is well underway.
As some Central American nations become better known, a competition arises for "the next big thing". Here, Belize has an advantage: it is hunched between Mexico's southern border and the rest of Central America. Known as British Honduras until full independence in 1973, the nation the size of Wales still boasts English as an official language. But the Belize tourism industry is just taking off and travellers from Europe have to connect in the USA.
Officials at The Philip Goldson Airport hope a runway extension will make it more attractive for direct service. The nation's Prime Minister, Said Musa, has pledged an aggressive travel marketing campaign in Europe.
More information
Mexican carriers fight the threat of US competitors by taking their business north of the border
Network Latin America is a new Airline Business route planning event.
Dates: 2-4 December
Venue: Monterrey, Mexico
Event organiser: Airline Business
Conference manager: Emma Lidefjard
Tel +44 20 8652 8846
Source: Airline Business
