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Santiago A good place to do business |
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By Paul Harris
Conventions are big business giving a city a chance to show itself off to the thousands of delegates that may not otherwise have visited. With a stable political and economic climate, Santiago is rapidly positioning itself as Latin America´s leading business capital and one that is hosting an increasing number of international conferences.
The conference sector has grown rapidly since it professionalized in 2002 through the creation of the Chile Convention Bureau (CCB) whose mission is to promote Santiago as a conference destination and capture international events, says product manager Alejandra Zúñiga.
Convention organizers look for good infrastructure such as convention centres, quality hotels with sufficient capacity, and a location that appeals to business travelers, and increasingly importantly, their traveling companions. “Chile is seen as a leader in Latin America with security, political and economic stability, and good infrastructure, and yet it is still an exclusive destination and event organizers are looking for unusual destinations,” she says.
CCB´s efforts have seen Santiago become one of the best regional convention destinations, beating Saó Paulo (Brazil) and Buenos Aires (Argentina) and second only to Rio de Janeiro in the number of events held, according to the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA), an organization that represents 10,000 international conferences worldwide.
Growth is sought because international conventions are more profitable than traditional tourism. While conference delegates represent a mere 15 percent of the foreign visitors Santiago receives, they spend three or four times a day the amount that traditional recreational tourists. “Traditional tourists spend US$80/day while conference delegates spend US$437/day,” Zúñiga notes.
Santiago received 33,000 delegates in 2005 with an average spend of US$1,200, making the sector worth US$39.6 million. That is the tip of the iceberg, according to CCB which aims to increase the number of events 30 percent in 2006 to 46. That would make the sector worth close to $50 million (see table).
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