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Enrique Ponce de León: ‘Galapagos must be the anchor to promote Ecuador.’
Posted On 12 Sep 2017
Ecuadornews:
Excerpt of the interview with Minister of Tourism Enrique Ponce de León.
Q: The DSH (Deutsch Spanische Handelgesellschaft) firm was interested in investing in the country. In what projects?
A: After a trip to Spain, we got three attractive investment opportunities, and one of them is DSH, an investment group that has contact with many banking and financial institutions in Europe. They showed their interest with an investment of at least USD 500 million aimed at tourism, requesting the Government the places that need investment, guaranteeing a profitability.
Q: What is DSH’s proposal?
A: DSH studies the possibility of a circuit that links cities with rurality, similar to what happens in Spain with the parador circuits, that transform buildings that have particular historical characteristics into tourist destinations. In Ecuador, we have emblematic buildings such as the former Garcia Moreno prison, which can be a great starting point.
Q: How can Galapagos continue to be an attractive destination to the world through sustainable tourism?
A: Galapagos is the anchor of tourism in Ecuador, and we must know how to use it. It is a destination that is sold without the need for promotion. We must use this promotion to serve as an anchor. We must care for quality, more than quantity. It is a sensitive issue because it is our crown jewel and we must work on its sustainability and quality tourism. We must learn from Catalonia and the Basque Country in Spain, not only in how they did to take more tourists but in what mistakes not to commit that generate a rejection to the tourist as happens in those places. (I)
Source: http://www.elcomercio.com/
