Minister for tourism, William Rodrigues Lopez, told TTG@WTM the country was hopeful of matching the international arrivals recorded in 2019, its best year ever, in 2023. 

However, he said the recovery for air passengers was more assured than those entering by land given economic and political challenges facing near neighbours Panama, Guatemala and El Salvador.

Lopez explained that budget would be invested in North American and European markets with the best growth potential, such as the US, for example, where new research by McKinsey shows there’s a potential market of 36 million homeworkers.

“If we can convince even 0.25% of those people to come and work remotely in Costa Rica, then we’ll surpass our targets,” he said.

“The two main advantages we have over other destinations [seeking to attract digital nomads] are our connectivity, which reaches all areas of the country, and our people. You’ll feel like you are living among friends.”

Costa Rica is a global leader for sustainable tourism and Rodrigues Lopez also spoke about the need to change the language around climate change to use climate emergency instead.

He said Costa Rica was using its platform as a newly installed member of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development to call for joined-up thinking between environmental, economic and social factors affecting sustainability. 

“It’s our Costa Rican way of life,” he said. “We don’t need to learn this, but we want to inspire other countries.

“From government action down to individual action, it has to be now, and we will mention this in every tourism event we participate in.”

Costa Rica has promoted its Pura Vida pledge since 2020, which encourages visitors to make responsible choices when visiting the destination, from choosing companies which have sustainable certification to carbon offsetting their flights.