Our insight on online tourism experiences and activities market in major online platforms points out opportunities to diversify the experiences offerings across Latin America and the Caribbean, and to build country-based specialisation strategies.
Peru and Mexico account for more than half of all experiences marketed through major online activity platforms in Latin America and the Caribbean, positioning them as the region’s leading powerhouses in the tourism experiences, according to new data analysis released by Mabrian by Data Appeal. However, while cultural and active tourism dominate the current offer, significant opportunities remain for destinations across the region to diversify, specialise, and strengthen their competitive positioning in the fast-growing global experiences market.
This insight is based on the analysis of supply of tourist activities and experiences in Latin America and the Caribbean and the interests of demand for these types of products, leveraging data from two major activities online platforms (Civitatis and GetYourGuide), with consolidated data from the last 6 months.
The analysis indicates that Peru (25.7%) and Mexico (25.4%) account for more than half of all available activities, positioning them as the powerhouses of the region’s experiences’ market. Colombia (8.4%), the Dominican Republic (7.7%), and Brazil (6.1%) complete the top five, followed by Argentina (6.1%), Costa Rica (5%), Chile (3.4%), Bolivia (2.3%), and Ecuador (2%).
According to Carlos Cendra, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at Mabrian, these data indicate that large Latin American destinations have “room to grow their experience offerings to extend demand throughout the territory, enriching the visitor experience while boosting local economies and communities.”
Another key takeaway from Mabrian’s data intelligence is that cultural experiences (36.9% of available listings) and active tourism (32% of the total) continue to serve as the region’s core pillars in terms of supply, complemented by nature-based activities (14.9%), gastronomy (11.2%), and sunbathing (3%). Other categories, such as shopping and nightlife, family-friendly activities, and wellness, are currently less prominent in terms of available supply and together represent the remaining 2% of experience offerings across the region.
Traveller interests are quite aligned with the existing supply. Cultural plans account for 40.1% of visitors’ reviews, reflecting the strong engagement generated by experiences centered on local heritage, arts, and traditions. The balance between active tourism (23% of reviews) and nature-based activities (17.1%) indicates the demand appetite for less intensive outdoor plans, while gastronomy activities (16% of total reviews) represent an opportunity to further strengthen experience offerings around local food and culinary arts, as is also the case with nightlife.
“Data reflect opportunities to diversify the experiences value proposition across Latin America and the Caribbean, and to build specialisation strategies in each country to appeal to experience-driven, curious, and discerning travellers who expect to blend with the local way of life in more meaningful ways, contributing to a long-term, sustainable competitive tourism strategy for destinations in the region,” points out the Mabrian expert.