Spotlight on Nicaragua
Nicaraguan Ambassador Francisco Campbell is promoting his homeland to Canadians and has a weighty travel industry ally at his side when doing so.
Campbell told a Toronto audience last week that Lonely Planet – which has a huge international following, particularly among young travellers – has declared that Nicaragua is one of its top four destinations for 2015.
“The tourism industry in Nicaragua is booming,” Campbell said of a country that’s gaining news hotels and resorts. “Todays travellers are looking for a new getaway to vacations that will not only be relaxing but enriching,” he said, adding Nicaragua – which has the largest expanse of jungle north of the Amazon and Spanish colonial cities – is an “authentic” destination.
Nicaragua went through a long civil war, but that conflict ended long ago and tourism officials report that the United Nations has declared that Nicaragua now has the lowest crime rates in the Americas. The country, which borders Costa Rica, has landscapes that include volcanoes, jungle and natural curiosities, including the world’s only freshwater sharks.
Airlines serving Nicaragua include Avianca, which also serves Toronto.
Avianca’s Roberto Yanqui told the gathering that 4:45 p.m. Toronto departures enable people from other points in this country to make it to the Ontario capital in time for the Avianca departures, while 2:30 p.m. arrivals in Toronto enable those living outside that city to continue their journey home the same day.
Pictured with with the Nicaraguan tourism official on the left are Campbell, Ana Carolina Garcia of the Nicaraguan Tourism Institute, Bill Mahoney and Maritza Rivera of partnerconcepts, and Yanqui.
