More than 22 thousand bathers visited the beaches of Santa Marta

Santa Marta in a weekend went from receiving eight thousand bathers to more than 22 thousand on the 16 beaches enabled.

The balance of the past festive bridge filled with optimism the guilds of the tourism sector, facing a new economic reactivation that begins with the easing of measures within the framework of the covid-19 pandemic.

(Also: 18m strike: Indigenous prepare to march today in Medellín)

The manager of the tourist promoter Pro-Rodadero, Ivan Calderón, ensures that the figures, although they are not yet normal, if compared to the previous weekend, highlighted the increase in more than 50% in bathers.

“The same period last week only 8,780 people arrived. This results in a reactivation of shops, restaurants, hotels, and transportation,” Calderon said

(You may be interested: Barranquilla lends oxygen equipment to hospital de San Andrés)

Pro-Rodadero reported that this panorama also benefited tourism service providers such as carperos, silleteros, vendors who managed to obtain an income that allows them to alleviate these difficult months of pandemic.

Weekend beach El Rodadero with 7,900 people, it was the most visited followed by Bello Horizonte with 2800 and Playa Blanca with 1210 bathers.

40% hotel occupancy

For its part, the Hotel Association, Cotelco, Magdalena chapter reported a 40 percent occupancy, with visitors from Barranquilla and Valledupar, Bogotá, Medellin, Pereira and Bucaramanga.

Omar García, executive president of the association, believes that the easing of measures by the mayor’s office opens the possibility of reactivating the tourism industry.

(Read: complaint about theft in works to contain erosion in Salamina)

“The hotels in the southern corridor (Pozos Colotado, Bello Horizonte and Don Jaca) were occupied by over 50 percent and the Rodadero by 42 percent. The good records were also shown by Taganga, Minca, Buritaca and Don Diego,” he said.

In the district of Taganga, the manager of the Bahía Taganga Hotel, Jorge Londoño Arregocés, states that the reopening of the city, gives them the possibility of providing jobs again to serve a greater number of guests who will surely arrive.

Curfew

On the other hand, the representatives of the tourism guilds, spoke through a press release to express their support for the request for mayor Virna Johnson and Governor Carlos Caicedo to the Interior Ministry in the sense of extending the time of the beginning of the curfew until 11: 00 at night.

They said that the determination demonstrates the support and accompaniment of the administration to the commercial and tourism sector.

“This initiative will lead to greater dynamics of the trade economy of Santa Marta and Magdalenasaid the guilds.

They also said that since the beginning of the pandemic they have been hit hard, so that once the petition is approved they commit to continue complying fully with the biosafety protocols.

Roger Urieles
For Weather Santa Marta
@rogeruv