Competitiveness and sustainability of Latin America's travel and tourism industry

Abstract

Latin America is a prosperous and competitive region based on the activity of its travel and tourism industry. This is one of the first sectors to implement actions to ensure its sustainability. In this framework, the analysis of this industry is carried out from the point of view of competitiveness and sustainability and, in a special way, in the Latin American region, which stands out for its tourism activity and destinations in areas rich in natural and cultural resources, among others. According to the WTTR 2019, 21 Latin American countries have been positioned by their TTCI. Of this index, pillars 9, 13 and 14 related to Sustainable Development, Natural Resources and Cultural and Travel Business Resources, respectively, are related to Sustainable Tourism, using 20 indicators, 80% of which are based on quantitative variables. A new way of positioning the countries of the region is presented according to the scores obtained in these pillars. It is concluded that Mexico holds the first place worldwide in Natural Resources and that the gap between the countries of Costa Rica and Brazil, with respect to the first placed worldwide, is 1.1 and 1.6 points, in the pillars Sustainable Development and Cultural and Business Resources of the T&T industry.