This was announced by the president of the Instituto Salvadoreño de Turismo, Eny Aguiñada, who said that this result explains the positive start of 2023, since these figures are higher than those of 2022.

According to the institution, they have a higher average of international visitors in january and february than last year and before the pandemic.

The official reiterated that 2022 was also a very satisfactory year, since it closed with 2.5 million travelers, of which 76% were tourists and the remaining 24%, excursionists; that is, people who visited the country, but left the same day.

Another very important fact about the increase in tourism that El Salvador is registering after the pandemic is that the historic center of San Salvador has become the most visited place by nationals and foreigners.

According to the ISTU representative, only in 2022, the capital's historic center was visited by more than 422,000 international tourists, while in each of the art and culture festivals held last year, it received around 100,000 visits from salvadorans.

Additionally, she explained that for this year the goal is to receive 2.7 million international tourists, who will leave the country an average of US$2,700 million in foreign exchange, which will exceed last year's US$2,649 million.

The head of the ISTU also highlighted that in the first two months of this year, 1.6 million domestic and foreign tourists have already visited all the country's tourist sites, including the institution's recreational parks, archeological and cultural sites, and other destinations managed by the Ministerio de Medio Ambiente and Corporación Salvadoreña de Turismo.

Translated by: A.M