G Adventures: Latin America trends

Like many areas of the world, the prospects for travel to Latin America in 2022 have been looking more positive in recent months as Covid-19 restrictions have been eased around this vast region.

Sarah Miginiac, Latin America general manager for adventure touring specialist G Adventures, says she is “optimistic that 2022 can be a good year”, especially for destinations such as Peru, the Galapagos Islands, Mexico and Costa Rica.

“Everything is open in the countries where we’re operating – there are very few restrictions. Some countries like Costa Rica and Mexico never really had any restrictions,” explains Peru-based Miginiac. “It’s easy to operate in Latin America; we’re getting busy and that’s exciting.”

Miginiac highlights Costa Rica as one of the destinations that has benefited from only being closed to international tourists for a relatively short period during the pandemic.

“We only stopped operating in Costa Rica for eight months – from March 2020 to November 2020,” she explains. “We’ve had an extremely good high season and we’re already looking at getting towards pre-Covid numbers for Costa Rica. They have managed the pandemic well with almost no restrictions.”

It’s been a similar story for Mexico, with G Adventures seeing “high demand” for its tours to the country since resuming trips in summer 2021. Initially, however, these trips had to be Mexico-only itineraries due to border closures with Guatemala and Belize in Central America.

“We restarted our multi-country trips in November 2021 and they have been going very well,” adds Miginiac. “Omicron was a bit of a threat but people continued travelling.

GATHERING MOMENTUM

She admits that South American destinations have seen a “slower” recovery, with G Adventures restarting operations in Peru and its Galapagos trips in June 2021, but reports that momentum is now building.

“We have at least one group entering the Inca Trail every day now. We’re seeing high demand and numbers for Peru with permits for the trail still available for the high season from the end of April to September,” says Miginiac.

“There are still only 500 permits available a day, so that’s not changed. But there are now four different routes to Machu Picchu with different campsites and staggered entrance. You don’t have everybody going in at the same time, so there are fewer people and it feels less crowded.”

MAKING WAVES

G Adventures is also stepping up its operations to the Galapagos with its third ship, the new-build Reina Silvia Voyager, making its long-awaited debut in April 2022, after its launch was delayed by the pandemic. The new ship has capacity for 16 guests and adds to G’s existing two ships, Yolita and Eden.

“The brand-new ship is an upgraded level, and we will be running to the Galapagos Islands every week,” adds Miginiac.

G Adventures has also been seeing “a lot of demand” for Patagonia, although operating in this vast region has been complicated by the closure of the border between Chile and Argentina, which has meant it has had to run separate trips in each country rather than its usual cross-border itineraries.

But Miginiac is hopeful that cross-border trips around Patagonia will be back in time for the region’s high season when it gets under way in October and November.

One of the region’s major destinations that continues to lag other countries in the recovery is Brazil, which is still “not there yet” in terms of demand for G Adventures.

“We’re now going into low season for Brazil – it’s usually popular around carnival in the early part of the year, so we hope to see that demand come back for next year,” adds Miginiac.

Visitors travelling to Latin America this year are also set to receive a warm welcome from local communities after the enforced break for Covid hit the tourism sector hard.

“People are extremely eager to see visitors again,” enthuses Miginiac. “Local communities really appreciate seeing travellers, and it’s a fantastic time to travel as places are not crowded – that all makes for a wonderful experience.

“It’s very easy to find availability on trips and at hotels. We’re also seeing that airlines are little by little increasing their frequencies from Europe. It’s not what it was before Covid but flights are becoming more available.”