Holy Week: the first reactivating festive weekend

In a country as diverse and rich as Peru, Holy Week embodies the cultural syncretism of the Catholic faith inserted by the Spanish and the Andean worldview. Believers or not in the celebration of the life, passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christthousands of compatriots abandon their routine during the first holiday weekend of 2024.

For the current, the long holiday Easter It starts on Thursday, March 28 and ends on Sunday, March 31 – of resurrection, after the revelry and the hangover of the soul, paraphrasing César Vallejo.

The Tourism Guild of the Lima Chamber of Commerce (CCL) predicts that these days they will move S/1.9 billion, 10% more than in the same season but in 2023.

They project that 1.3 million people will travel throughout the countryand would slightly exceed the 1.2 million counted in the previous year.

After a 2023 where domestic tourism – with which trips are measured without counting foreign visitors – registered a flow of 37 million 162,782 excursions, the average monetary income and travelers are raised, allowing us to get closer to pre-pandemic levels ( 48 million 575,226 trips and S/4,912 million), since tourism is one of the few sectors – if not the only one – that has not been able to recover.

“At the end of 2023, the tourism internal showed a recovery of 37% compared to 2022 and, to a large extent, the long holidays throughout the year promoted and allowed the generation of a flow of tourists and important economic movements,” complements Paola Marín, director of Tourism Promotion of Promperú.

More than a minimum wage in expenses for the holiday

For its part, The CCL predicts that tourists will be willing to spend “more on experiences,” and for the entire long holiday – which, in essence, must be used for meditation, according to the prevailing religion in the country – an average ticket of S/1,100 is expected: intended for transportation, food, recreational activities and lodging. Thus, Peruvians will pay little more than a vital minimum remuneration: 37.5% higher than the S/800 in 2023.

“The favorable performance of tourism activity responds to the fact that we are in a scenario of economic recovery and greater consumer confidence that can travel without any restrictions and without social conflicts, which marked last year,” said Marianela Mendoza, president of the CCL Tourism Guild.

Mendoza maintains that the growth of the economic impact of tourism due to catholic holiday It would have been higher if dengue cases had not increased in some regions, where a health emergency was even declared in several areas.

Diversify the offer: beyond Ayacucho

Although the majority of travelers leave from Lima to Ayacucho, which, by far, is the most requested destination even by tourists from abroad – says Marín, from PromPerú –, regions such as Cusco, Tacna, Piura (Máncora) and San Martín (Tarapoto) recorded high levels of hotel occupancy during the long holiday last year.

However, there are a dozen celebrations for Easter which are Cultural Heritage of the Nation, apart from Ayacuchana: Pampacolca (Castilla, Arequipa); Chancay (Huaral, Lima); Catacaos (Piura), Bolívar (La Libertad), Huambo (Caylloma, Arequipa), Huancavelica; Moche (Trujillo, La Libertad), Omate (General Sánchez Cerro, Moquegua) and the Historic Center of Lima.

The state tourism agency – indexed to Mincetur – adds that two out of every three travelers hired the services of a travel agency and that the bus is the main means of transportation.

Plans for all budgets

Promperú, through the free online platform ‘Ytuqueplanes.com’, is highlighting trips to attractions that combine nature and adventure, such as Áncash, San Martín and Madre de Dios. Additionally, they also bet on the traditional offer of the regions that celebrate Holy Week in a particular way: Piura, Lambayeque, Huánuco, Junín, Arequipa, Moquegua and Ayacucho.

Be careful, according to Marín, the economic plans are aimed at travelers from all over the country, with emphasis on those from the main tourist-sending cities such as Lima, Arequipa, Chiclayo, Piura, Trujillo and Huancayo.

For example, From S/60 there are half-day packages to Moquegua, with transfers, tastings, visits to viewpoints and pisco wineries; as well as in Lambayeque, for S/80 a full day to the Museum and Royal Tombs of the Lord of Sipán and historical reserves and sanctuaries.

Meanwhile, Arequipa offers two days and one night from S/145 with transfer, accommodation and food to visit the Mirador de Volcanes and spend the night in Chivay and then go to the Colca.

The expense is a little higher, there is the beach tour in Piura from S/399 for three days and two nights; San Martín for the same number of days and nights but for S/480 and Ayacucho, from S/379 for four days and three nights in transfers from Lima, visits to Huamanga, Vilcashuamán and Holy Week activities.

What are the most important holidays?

Holy Week, on average, attracts 1.2 million visitors nationwide –according to Promperú–, but it is not the most influential long holiday in tourist activity. New Year’s Eve generated 1.4 million visitors in 2023 and moved US$200 million. It is followed by National Holidays, which in the previous year saw 1.5 million visitors and moved US$178 million.

Already on a smaller scale, we have holidays such as Labor Day, with 635,000 travelers and US$80 million, as well as the San Juan Festival in the Amazon, with 100,000 Peruvians in the jungle regions and S/16 million. For San Pedro and San Pablo, 9,000 visitors and an impact of S/2 million.

Keys

More channels. Travelers have IPERÚ, the tourist information and assistance service of PROMPERÚ. This is a completely free service that provides official tourist information. You can contact them through Whatsapp 944492314 (messaging only).

Scope. Promperú spreads the attractions of the 25 regions throughout the year.

Data

Domestic tourism recovered 37% compared to last year. The long holidays were key to the result.

There were 1.5 million travelers on National Holidays. Holy Week is in third place.

S/379 is the minimum package for a trip to Ayacucho for 4 days and 3 nights, according to Promperú.

Holy Week: faith and internal tourism

Approach. Juan Carlos Mathews, Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism

Travel in Easter It is to get closer to the traditions and customs that are practiced in the different regions of the interior of our country, where, in addition to predominating the expressions of faith, the encounter with the customs of each place and – of course – with its gastronomy converge.

For the tourism sector, Holy Week represents a key date for local economic recovery, since it implies an important injection for the national tourism value chain.

In addition to the moment of reflection these days, Traveling through Peru allows the possibility of discovering the wealth of archaeological sites, historical centers, and natural spaces.customs and music that strengthen our national identity.

The diversity of our tourist attractions allows national tourists the opportunity to live unique experiences through bird watching, enjoy the beaches, get to know the tourism community or practice ecological tourism, all accompanied by our regional foods.

In Peru, we have the so-called charming towns, such as Sibayo and Yankee in Arequipa; Sarhua in Ayacucho; Malabrigo in La Libertad; Ollantaytambo in Cusco and Villa Rica in Pasco. Towns recognized by Mincetur for their tourist vocation, with authentic and unique natural and cultural attributes.

Also, those recognized by the World Tourism Organization as the best tourist towns in the world, such as Lamas in San Martín, Raqchi and Paucartambo in Cusco, Pozuzo, in Pasco, Taquile in Puno, Chacas and Chavín de Huántar in Áncash. We also have beaches in the north and south of the country, our beautiful Amazon and every town in the Peruvian Andes that hides magic and will always surprise us.

Promperú, through the portal www.ytuqueplanes. com, invites us to discover the magic of the country. The bell #FeelTheGoodOfTravel offers travel alternatives designed to share unforgettable experiences.

Let’s know more, let’s live more, because there is a lot to know in Peru.