MINISTRY OF TOURISM BUILDS ON HONDURAS' STRENGTHS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TEGUCIGALPA 000131

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

GUATEMALA FOR COMATT: DTHOMPSON
STATE FOR WHA/CEN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EINV ECON HO
SUBJECT: MINISTRY OF TOURISM BUILDS ON HONDURAS' STRENGTHS


1. (U) Summary. President Maduro came into office intent on
nurturing the fledgling tourism industry in Honduras. By
tapping successful businessman (and Maduro cousin) Thierry
de Pierrefeu to serve as Tourism Ministry, he assured that
there would be a no-nonsense business approach to this
priority sector. Pierrefeu has, in fact, focused on the key
problems highlighted in Embassy's previous reporting on the
tourism sector, at the end of the Flores administration (see
reftels). He is focusing on marketing by advertising
integrated tourism products (Caribbean vacations, Mayan
ruins, and eco-tourism),opening tourism promotion offices
in the U.S and a website, and seeking strategic partners.
Juridical and personal security are being addressed with
land titling projects and tourism police units.
Infrastructure projects include plans for an airport in
Copan, enhancements to attract the cruise ship trade in
Roatan, and tourist information centers in inland tourist
destinations. A new Honduran airline, Sol Air, has helped
bring down airfares from the U.S. and Central America, and
Pierrefeu is urging new routes by U.S. airlines as well.
Honduras still faces stiff competition for the tourism
trade, but the GOH does appear to be on the right track.
End Summary.


2. (U) The Ministry of Tourism has an annual budget of 156.6
million dollars. It has designated 194 million lempira
(11.5 million dollars) for projects already approved. By
moving more towards environmentally friendly tourism
projects, exploiting Honduras' natural resources, flora and
fauna, and concentrating on "High End Luxury Tours," the
Ministry hopes to increase visitors by 20 percent yearly,
and introduce an anticipated increase to Honduras' economy
of 350 million dollars.


3. (U) President Maduro and his cabinet have designated
tourism as one of a small number of priority sectors likely
to create a substantial number of jobs and economic growth.
The Ministry of Tourism's strategies to increase tourism
include
-- Developing tourism products for high end visitors
(quality vacations versus quantity of visitors)
-- Creating a national cadaster with an actual folio real
to improve the investment climate for foreign investment,
building on the only experience gained in surveying the Bay
Islands
-- Drafting a convention between Honduras and Guatemala
(and other central American countries) to allow for a more
free flow of visitors to the various Maya ruins sites to
meet the demands of tourists
-- Increasing the number of cruise ship docks on the
Atlantic coast; the inauguration of an expected dock on the
island of Roatan is already resulting in a large increase in
the number of tourists
-- Constructing a new airstrip near the Copan ruins to
allow for day-trips for cruise line passengers from Roatan
-- Implementing a new tourist police force, this has
already been accomplished in the cities of Tela and La Ceiba
-- Opening Honduran markets internationally via the
internet (www.letsgohonduras.com)
-- Reforming the Tourism Incentives Law which allows for
the approval of 43 hotel projects, various restaurants,
recreation centers and car rental centers
-- Building municipal tourist centers in the western,
southern and central parts of Honduras, to complement the
existing tourist attractions on the north coast
-- Developing alternate sources of income for rural areas
with high ecotourism potential


4. (U) Pierrefeu, (a businessman, cousin of the President
and organizer of the inauguration) has directed his staff to
focus on three clear project goals. Each of these projects,
referred to as "tourism products" contains several smaller
clusters of projects. These products are titled "A
Caribbean Creation", "Maya Renaissance", and "Tropical
Nature Adventure." None of the projects will be marketed for
high-density tourism. The GOH is trying to promote what
Pierrefeu calls high quality, sustainable tourism.

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A Carribean Creation
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5. (U) The Caribbean Creation project involves encouraging
tourism development in the Bay Islands and the northern
coast of Honduras, focusing on beaches and reefs. There are
plans to build two thousand hotel rooms in Tela Bay and to
promote La Ceiba as an ecotourism center with the already
strong infrastructure of airports, hotels and national
parks. For the Tela and La Ceiba areas, the goal is a mid to
low-density crowd based on eco-tourism as well as the north
coast beaches.


6. (U) The goal for the Bay Islands is to develop very high-
end (costly) low-density tourism with new resorts that have
a more intimate ambiance such as the proposed Caribe Point
Rosewood and Ritz Carlton projects set for Roatan. The
Caribe Point Rosewood will require an estimated investment
of over USD 47 million. The Ritz Carlton is looking to
develop a private resort with personalized bungalows set
along a winding river so that each cabin has a private deck
and swimming area. A German chain is planning a similar
exclusive resort called Iguana Bay on Guanaja Island.

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Maya Renaissance
--------------


7. (U) This project is about Honduras' wealth of archaeology
and consists of a complete Mayan Route from Copan to other
lesser known ruins and archaeological sites. It will be
geared towards a mid-density eco-tourism crowd. A primary
improvement in the infrastructure of the area is a new,
(unpaved) runway near the Copan ruins that will allow local
commuter airlines to transport tourists from Guatemala and
Roatan (targeted at the cruise ship tourists) for visits to
the ruins at Copan. The Ministry has plans to eventually
construct an airport nearby to replace the airport that was
closed due to its damaging proximity to the ancient ruins.


8. (U) As for the south coast of Honduras, the Ministry has
plans for improvements in Ampala, Cedeo, Punta Raton and
Choluteca. Choluteca will be part of a "Colonial Route"
consisting of Gracias, Santa Rosa de Copan, Comayaqua,
Tegucigalpa and Choluteca.

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Tropical Nature Adventure
--------------


9. (U) Tropical Nature Adventure includes the marketing and
developing of eco-tourism on the north shore, in the
national parks and in the Copan ruins area. The Ministry is
also exploring an extension of eco-tourism towards high-end
clients who wish to participate in scientific exploration.
On a recent trip to New York, Ministry representatives met
with people from the World Wildlife Federation, the
Smithsonian, the Audubon, and Conservancy International and
Counterpart International (the last two work together in
unified projects) and National Geographic. All responded
favorably to the idea of participating in field studies in
Honduras which will certify the quality of Honduras' natural
attractions.

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Honduras' Crown of Five Ecotourism Jewels
--------------


10. (U) The five ecotourism attractions in Honduras include
the dolphin zone, the coral zone, the Quetzal zone, the
Liquid mbar zone (Liquid mbar refers to a tree resin),and
the Pipante (a small native canoe) zone. Each of these five
fits into one of the Ministry's aforementioned three main
projects.


11. (U) The dolphin zone includes the north coast from the
city of Trujillo westward to Puerto Cortes. The principal
tourist attractions include the national park "Janet Kawas"
and the botanical gardens in Tela; the wilderness reserves
around the Cuero and Salado rivers and the national park
"Pico Bonito" in La Ceiba.


12. (U) The coral zone is also associated with the Carribean
Creation, consisting of the three main islands of Utila,
Roatan and Guanaja in Honduras' Bay Islands. The islands
contain the second largest coral reef in the world, second
only to the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia.
Main attractions include the Marine Reserve at Sandy Bay,
the Institute of Marine Science and the Roatan Museum, along
with the marine reserves in West End and Turtle Harbor.


13. (U) The Quetzal zone relates to archaeology - Maya Route
project and covers the western part of Honduras. It
encompasses the Copan ruins, and sites from Lake Yojoa to
Omoa. The zone includes the key economic city of San Pedro
Sula and Honduras' principal port city, Puerto Cortes. Main
attractions include the nightlife of San Pedro Sula, the
national park "El Cusco", Pulhapanzak waterfalls, the ruins
of Copan and Lake Yojoa, Honduras' largest freshwater lake.


14. (U) Within the context of the Tropical Nature Adventure
project, the Liquidambar zone encompasses the central region
of Honduras, including the principal areas of Tegucigalpa,
San Lorenzo and the Gulf of Fonseca. The Gulf area includes
several small volcanic islands stretching up into well known
mountain peaks such as the cloud forest called "La Tigra"
near Tegucigalpa and the well known mountainous coastal area
of "Zacate Grande" near Choluteca in the south.


15. (U) The last "jewel", definitely for the dedicated
nature adventure lover, is the Pipante zone. Named after
the small canoe typically used by the locals, the areas of
Olancho and Gracias a Dios are known as the most bio-diverse
regions in the country. Here, the largest and most
developed protected areas such as the biosphere of the Rio
Platano are the main attraction. This is where the most
adventurous tourists will seek to vacation.

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Encouraging Foreign Investment
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16. (U) In order to better attract foreign investment, the
Tourism Ministry has pushed for a new land titling
initiative. As part of an IDB (Inter-American Development
Bank) project on sustainable development, three
international companies worked with the GOH to complete
surveys of the Bay Islands via satellite, airplanes, and
global positioning system (GPS) technologies. They made
topographical maps and a computerized registry of every
piece of property in the islands. The GOH believes this
will simplify future land purchases, ensure future
undisputed ownership rights to land (an important
consideration for foreign investors such as hotel and resort
entrepreneurs),and fortify the municipalities' ability to
collect local taxes.

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Protecting Honduras' Visitors
--------------


17. (U) In an attempt to better ensure the safety of
Honduras' visitors, the development of a tourism police
force is underway. The first unit was created in the city
of Tela. Within the next six months, the Ministry intends
to activate units in the Bay Islands, La Ceiba and La Tigra
National Park in Tegucigalpa. Units in Copan and the Copan-
San Pedro Sula route will follow shortly thereafter.


18. (U) Comment: Pierrefeu brings a fresh business
perspective into the arena of tourism planning which gives
him a different perspective on investments than former
tourism heads. Pierrefeu reports that the number of
tourists is at its highest level ever with thirty six
percent of the tourists coming from the U.S. In order to
increase that number to fifty percent, Pierrefeu's staff is
working to build alliances with US travel agencies such as
Conde Nast and American Express. They are also opening new
tourism promotion offices in Washington, Houston, San
Francisco and Chicago to compliment the office already
servicing Miami. The Minister has found his job to be more
challenging than expected, but is determined to continue
finding new, innovative ways to attract additional tourism
to Honduras. End comment.

PALMER