Belize Pushes Regional Partnerships for Tourism Future

How does Belize fit into the bigger picture of Central America’s growing tourism network? Leading Belize’s delegation is the Belize Tourism Industry Association looking at the importance of collaboration in strengthening the region’s collective tourism brand. But while private sector participation remains at the heart of CATM, Belize’s government presence underscores a broader national vision centered on visibility, regional partnerships, and long-term growth. With Belize positioned to host CATM in 2027, CEO of the Ministry of Tourism, Nicole Solano, spoke to News Five about what the country’s participation this year means for its tourism future.

 

Nicole Solano, C.E.O., Ministry of Tourism

“It’s interesting because Belize is actually a part of three regional tourism organizations. We’re a part of the Caribbean tourism organization, the Central American Tourism Integration System, and also the Mundo Maya organization. So there’s a lot of overlap. So, we look at what we have in common with the Mundo Maya Region, what we have in common with Central America and the Caribbean and if you think about it, all of the tourism entities are kind of interested in some other part of that. So Belize, like we always say, is in the middle and sometimes we consider ourselves to be a bridge. So are we really a bridge from the Caribbean to Central America and vice versa in tourism? We think so to a certain extent. Specifically for this year, Belize has to look at what its opportunities are for regional marketing and regional integration. So you have the opportunities where you have Mexicans, well they’re not at this event, but the Central American region being able to come to Belize to enjoy what Belize has to offer. So you have actual residents of the region who want to travel to other countries within the region, intra regional tourism. But more importantly, you have international travelers that want to do more than one destination. So that’s what we call multi-destination travel. They want to come to Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, for example. They’re coming far. They’re coming to this part of the world and they want to see more than just one country. So how do we make it easy for them? How do we put packages together that say you could spend two or three nights here, two or three nights there if you have two weeks vacation. You could break it up and see different countries and have very different experiences. While there’s a lot of similarities, each of our countries have a unique product; we have unique things to offer. Like if you come to Belize, all of our marine attractions and the Barrier Reef and all of our archeological sites, it is still very different than if you’re coming to Guatemala and you’re enjoying archeology in Guatemala or the cultural experiences there.”

 

Over the next few days, attendees will engage in business-to-business meetings, product showcases, and networking events, highlighting everything from eco-adventures and cultural tours to sustainable tourism initiatives.