New focus on Panama’s hotel service
“Service”, a forgotten or unknown word in some quarters of Panama’s tourist industry, is to become the focus of a new tourism authority initiative.
The government and the private sector of Panama are out to improve the quality of hotel services including standardizing the published “star” system.
Currently hotels generally award their own stars. and there is an abundance with five, deserved or not.
The start point will be to work with hotels tour operators, travel agencies, and tour guides, to define the parameters for certifying the quality of service.
The tourism sector represents the largest contribution to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP),outstripping even the Panama Canal and , tourism is expected to grow between 10 percent and 12 percent this year across the country.
Salomón Shamah, Administrator of the Panama Tourism Authority (ATP) said to reach their goals it is necessary to consider multiple aspects aspects such as the facilities offered and the amount and quality of food services.
According to Shamah, an estimated 1.7 million tourists will visit Panama this year, a figure that would represent a record for the country.