In the past years tourism has consolidated as an important sector in Colombian economy, in fact there has been a constant increase of foreign nonresident visitors in the country. In 2015- 2019 the compound average growth rate reached 6.1%, which is highly above the global growth which was only 4% in the same period.
After the pandemic, 2021 was key for the tourism reactivation in the country. Colombia reached 2.1 M foreign nonresident visitors, mainly from United States, Mexico, Peru, and Ecuador. Dynamization has prevailed in 2022, in the first semester more than 1.9 M foreign nonresident visitors have been registered already (1.955.539), this represents a growth of 218% with respect to the same period in 2021.
The importance of tourism is also reaffirmed by recovering its place as the 1st generator of foreign exchange in the non-mining energy sector in Colombia. In the first quarter of 2022, this industry registered USD 1.46 B, 210.2% greater compared to the same period in 2021, surpassing products such as coffee, bananas, and flowers.
Colombia has been an example in terms of recovery of the tourism industry, in April 2022 Forward Keys highlighted Colombia as one of the 10 countries in the world with the best recovery of international tourism, based on the number of reserves and air capacity. Likewise, in the most recent update of the Resilience Ranking of the Bloomberg economic consultancy, Colombia ranks 2nd in America and 12th in the world, with air capacity being one of the indicators considered for the classification.
Air connectivity has been key to the recovery and revitalization of tourism in the country. As of July 2022, Colombia has more than 1.200 direct weekly frequencies that connect with 26 countries offering more than 213.000 weekly seats. This being the result of rigorous work that has been carried out to recover and even increase the country's air connectivity, which is evidenced by the opening of 35 new international routes that began operation in 2021, and the 24 new international routes that have been announced in this year's run, with Colombia being the 3rd country in Latin America with the largest air capacity, thus demonstrating its resilience and response to the challenges generated after the pandemic.
Colombia and each of its tourist destinations are being recognized worldwide for their diversity, variety of climates, cultural richness, and the warmth of its people, which provide unique experiences. In the 2022 edition of the World Travel Awards, Colombia has been nominated in 13 categories at the South American level related to nature, adventure, culture, gastronomy, among others.
The new Tourism Law integrates the Sustainable Tourism Policy, designed to generate projects for the conservation and protection of natural tourist attractions, Colombia being one of the few countries in the world to have such a policy.
Given the diversity of regions and climates, there is great potential to invest in segments such as ecotourism, urban hotels, all- inclusive resorts, cultural destinations, theme parks, and entertainment and tourism infrastructure. In the context of the new normal, opportunities related to ecotourism, the nature segment, glamping, and spa and wellness centers are being consolidated as one of the most attractive.
Regarding incentives, the General Tourism Law (Law 2068 of December 31, 2020) incorporates tax benefits for the promotion of tourist activities in the country and expands the terms of incentives for foreign investment in the sector, offering an income tax preferential for hotels, theme parks, agrotourism, ecotourism, and new docks. In municipalities with less than 200.000 inhabitants, the income tax rate will be 9% for 20 years, accessible until 2030. For cities with more than 200.000 inhabitants, this benefit will apply for ten years, with an Income tax rate of 9%, accessible until 2026.
Colombia has demonstrated its potential to become a leading nature and adventure tourism destination, as it is the 2nd most biodiverse country in the world and the 1st to have the largest number of bird species.
