Mitur expects more than 70,000 international tourists during the August holiday period

The government plans to produce new annual estimates for international tourism in 2024. /Francisco Valle

The Ministry of Tourism (Mitur) expects more than 70,000 international tourists to visit El Salvador during the August holiday season. Mitur estimates tourism growth between 15 and 20 percent each holiday season.

“We expect to receive tourists during this seven-day holiday because now our holiday is different from last year, when we had about 70,000 more tourists in terms of the number of days.”

Morena Valdez, Minister of Tourism.

There are three important holidays in El Salvador. The first is Holy Week, which takes place during a week in March or April. Next is early August, when the Patron Saint’s Day is celebrated in honor of the Holy Savior of the World. Then there are the holidays, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve.

The forecast for the festival period is similar to 2023, when 75,000 international tourists are expected to arrive. 88,000 visitors This left $80 million for the Salvadoran economy.

Valdez noted that most visitors during this holiday season came from the United States, Guatemala, Honduras and Canada.

During the August holidays, the beaches, the historic center of San Salvador, the lake, the volcanoes and the tourist towns are the places of greatest interest to tourists.

International Tourism

Valdez recalled that in the first half of 2024, 2 million international tourists were received.

The government confirmed this month that international tourism had left more than Revenue: $1.8 billion First six months of 2024.

The government recalled that the United Nations Tourism Agency ranked El Salvador among the five countries with the fastest growth in the post-pandemic period. The UN agency confirmed an increase of one 90% of international tourism Compared with the same period in 2019.

The authorities expect more than 3.8 million people to enter by the end of the year, but they assured that new estimates will be made because of an increase in tourism, which they hope will exceed the initial forecast.