“Jale al puerto”, the new campaign to project Puntarenas as a tourist destination

• The initiative is being led by ICT in collaboration with the Office of the First Lady and the participation of INCOP, the Tourism Promotion Board and the Puntarenas Chamber of Tourism.
• “We are looking to inspire people from every generation to return to the Port”, said the Minister of Tourism, Maria Amalia Revelo.

At Plaza del Pacífico, in downtown Puntarenas, the First Lady of Costa Rica, Claudia Dobles, and the Minister of Tourism, Maria Amalia Revelo, announced the “Jale al Puerto” (“Head to the Port”) tourism campaign, which will be kicked off in August at the national level.

This initiative is being led by ICT in collaboration with the Office of the First Lady and the participation of the Costa Rican Institute of Pacific Ports (INCOP), the Tourism Promotion Board and the Puntarenas Chamber of Tourism.

The focus of “Jale al Puerto” will be the culture and cuisine of the port city, and it will be held for four months. An investment of $90,000.00 (51 million colones) will be made, of which the Costa Rican Tourism Board (ICT) will contribute some $45,000 and the rest will come from INCOP, via the Tourism Promotion Board for the City of Puntarenas.

“This stimulus seeks to inspire people of all generations to return to the Port and encounter reminders of the past and the many attractions of the present”, said Minister Revelo.

Meanwhile, First Lady Claudia Dobles indicated that the main objective of the campaign was to showcase Puntarenas as a location with natural beauty and human warmth, which can be an option for a vacation destination. In this context, she announced a City Tour of specific tourist destinations, which would include historic, culinary and cultural routes through the city.

She emphasized “Puntarenas is a tourist destination that offers a large number of attractions for visitors, a great variety of culinary offerings, adventure activities, dolphin spotting, the arrival of cruise ships, visits to the islands of the Gulf of Nicoya and many other alternatives that we would like for Costa Ricans to discover”.

In the course of the activity, the First Lady announced a project to reactivate the Marine Park, with a focus on tourism, which would bring together elements of the marine environment with cultural, scientific and iconic elements of Puntarenas.

The action plan also calls for the physical rebuilding of the location.

Among the inter-institutional efforts, the National Institute of Learning (INA) announced that it would contribute ₡100 million to the Marine Park Foundation for professional training and capacity building in the province.  RECOPE will install solar panels and an energy efficiency system in the facilities, while the Mixed Institute of Social Assistance will contribute ₡93 for scientific research on improvements in fisheries production in the area.