Our experience in South America
Tourism is an important source of income for many countries. According to UN Tourism, the industry reached pre-pandemic levels last year with 1.4 billion tourists. With a turnover of over 1.9 trillion US dollars, 10% of the world’s population works for and around tourism.
South America also makes a lot of money from tourism. The state and many families suffer when tourists stay away due to unrest. But not all tourism is the same. There are different ways of travelling. One interesting point is how profit is made from nature tourism. Even more so since the pandemic, as many more people are being drawn to nature for ‘unique’ experiences.
Two weeks’ holiday and a lot of money
This is often difficult for us because we would like to visit beautiful projects, but the prices are often immensely high and disproportionate to the cost of living. Simple tourism is a luxury, especially for the locals.
We feel the influence of ‘fast tourism’ the most. Many people have 2 weeks holiday a year and want to experience as much as possible, no matter the cost. It doesn’t matter that a snake tour with 3 nights in low-budget mode costs a whole 750 dollars per person. A monthly wage in Ecuador is around 470 dollars. A similar offer in Colombia cost 300 dollars for 4 nights – but that was 2 years ago.
Self-organised: Cheaper and more authentic
We try to organise it ourselves, as in Ecuador – luckily we have the luxury of time – and were surprised when we found out the final price at one of the (very likely) lodging places: 65 dollars per night with guide and food. Makes you wonder where all the money goes. Mind you, it wasn’t a luxury tour that we had enquired about.
In comparison, the offer for a resort in the Amazon in Brazil for 250 dollars a night was downright cheap. The same on a farm, where we first enquired with a provider but didn’t book. When we were there, the prices were much lower; and we were very lucky because the invited us to stay for free just before Christmas.
High prices, little service
Our biggest advantage compared to other travellers is time. We can also check for ourselves whether the prices are fair. We talk to locals about this. If the offers are much higher than the minimum wage in the country, you have to ask yourself why.
But if you book from abroad and don’t know the region, it’s difficult to judge and you also want to enjoy your holiday.
Another good example was Colombia. There was an offer for three days in La Macarena National Park for 500 US dollars per person, without doing anything out of the ordinary because the river was not coloured red (wrong season).
Apparently, the price was calculated without VAT as it was still before the season and the municipality had not yet activated the platform where they have to register the information. The only thing that somewhat explained the high price was the payments to the guerrilla, which is present throughout the area. In the end, we drove around the area ourselves and helped the guerrilleros out of the mud.
Two worlds: Tourists and locals
As already mentioned, the realities of the locals and the tourism companies are far apart. The minimum wage in Colombia is 340 dollars.
We have spoken to some new acquaintances about this, they can’t even come close to being able to afford it despite their normal work (nurse in hospital, member of the army). They hardly know their region either. At these places we only meet Europeans or North Americans.
Nature parks: between conservation and commerce
Another important factor in South America are the national parks, most of which charge an entrance fee. Or they are privately owned and can therefore charge a lot of money.
It’s great to see how the locals want to protect nature through such projects, so it’s understandable that it costs something.
But even state parks, which are free in Europe, cost something; even a short hiking trail can quickly cost 4 dollars per person.
We are used to things being different and really appreciate the fact that we in Europe have the privilege of not having to pay for every step we take in nature.
Lots of content, little info
Another interesting phenomenon is the enquiries themselves. Unfortunately, it is often the case that US-led agencies don’t show their prices on the website. That means it will be expensive.
That’s actually not a problem, but when we enquire and explain exactly what we have in mind, it would be nice if they’d give us a price upfront.
Unfortunately, the price only comes after a long back and forth, if at all. This is very annoying and time-consuming. Because if you knew what it would cost from the start, you wouldn’t write 40 emails back and forth when it’s far outside the budget.
We’ve now got to the point where we stop writing when things get complicated.
When tourism changes places
Tourism drives up prices and lowers quality. We generally avoid the tourist hotspots.
True, they are often beautiful places (or were), but they are ruined by a lack of planning. Unfortunately.
In Ecuador, at Lago Quilotoa, we find a small jumble of restaurants and shops by a volcanic crater. The crater is beautiful, but 6 dollars for the same menu, which otherwise costs 3 (and is worse), is out of all proportion.
The many tasteless, quickly built shops, all selling the same thing, also destroy what was once certainly a pretty little village.
Tourism and price logic: the example of Cotopaxi
We also experienced this in Cotopaxi National Park in Ecuador. There, the daily menu in the hut cost 3.5 dollars. In the tourist restaurant it was 21 dollars.
To be fair, the quality was better and one had three courses, the other only two. Our favourite reason for the high price though was that they were so far away and had no electricity.
Well, the hut next door doesn’t have electricity either. And we don’t think that an hour’s drive to Quito, the capital, is remote. We’ve eaten better and cheaper in really remote villages, 8 hours away from the nearest petrol station.
This is tourism
Of course we understand that you want to treat yourself to something when you go on holiday, especially that far away.
Unfortunately, this also means that the price reality is drifting further and further apart. The providers can charge whatever they want – most people pay.
We are also privileged because we have time and can reach many places ourselves – we know that.