Tourism Falls For 6th Consecutive Month – INDEC

International tourism fell in March, declining 19.4% from the same month a year ago, making this the sixth consecutive annual decline since October.

The number of visitors fell to 180,649 in March, compared with 224,166 a year ago. The amount of money they spent while here also fell, plunging 25.8% to $235 million, the national statistics agency, INDEC, reported Friday.

In March the average tourist spent $82.4 a day, or almost 12% less than a year ago. Brazilians again spent the most ($120), followed by Chileans ($110), Americans and Canadians ($97.8) and. Europeans spent the least at $74.8 a day.

Tourism rose on the month, climbing 19.8% from February. This was a seaonal increase which typically occurs every March.

But while the 19.4% decline may seem pretty bad, it shows that Argentina continues to be attractive to many tourists. After all, a 19% decline is rather small considering that the world is in the midst of its worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. The country has retained around 80% of its incoming tourists despite the global collapse. That’s not bad at all.

Tourism brings in about $4 billion annually to the Argentine economy, according to official estimates.

INDEC’s measurement is based on the number of visitors who arrive to the country via Ezeiza, or EZE, the airport located outside Buenos Aires. About half of the country’s tourists arrive through EZE.

Popularity: 4% [?]