Why not El Salvador and Guatemala??

Guatemala - The Director of INGUAT, Institute of Tourism of Guatemala,
estimates that is possible for the country to reach an increase of 3
to 4 percent in the tourism industry for 2009.
The current financial crisis in developed countries could make
Guatemala, neighboring El Salvador and the rest of Central America a
very attractive travel destination suiting all budgets.
World renowned publications like
Forbes Magazine and others have described how much
'bang you get for
your travel buck' in Guatemala.

*Guatemala's advantage is that we are
considerably cheaper than Costa Rica and we have much more to offer.
Actually factual.

Pacific Ocean destinations like Monterrico are a favored tourist hot
spot. The new surfing madness brings young visitors to the beaches.
There is sports fishing, a newly developed industry that is taking of
with great success, so are the newly discovered opportunities for
whale watching.
For water and adventure lovers there is river rafting in river Cahabon
and many others.

Guatemala always has the usual culture travelers. The Mayan culture is
a magnet that brings hundreds of people from all over the world to
explore Tikal, Chichicastenango and many archeological sites all over
the country. One of the favorites is Tak alik ab Aj, down on the
pacific coast near Rethaluleu.. There are so many sites that the time
is usually not enough to visit them all.

El Salvador
El Salvador boasts 'The Pompei of the Americas' Joya de Ceren, the
Pyramids of San Andres and Tzumal and the recently excavated Ruins of
Ciuhatan, City of Women.
Back in Guatemala, for nature lovers, Bird watching tours are also a
trend that is
developing, so is the visit to the natural reserves like Laguna del Tigre
and la Lechua.

In El Salvador don't miss the nature preserve of Parque
El Imposible and the Cloud Forest of Montecristi in Parque El
Trifunio, summit is located where the borders of El Salvador,
Guatemala and Honduras meet. On a clear day one can view the Heart of
Central America from the Carribbean to the Pacific! Awesome! No
'tourist hordes'

Lake Atitlan nestled in the Indigenous Highlands of Guatemala is more majestic than ever,
it is recommended as a
phenomenal natural wonder and along her shores lie some funky tourist towns like Panajachel
and San Marcos, a pristine Lake village, where continental travelers
have a lot of fun and rub shoulders with our "Living Maya". And
Antigua is as beautiful and charming as ever.

Again, In El Salvador 330 km. (220 miles) of unbroken pristine Pacific
beaches, bays, islands and mangroves await, along with World class
surfing, and yes El Salvador boasts charming colonial towns such as
Suchitoto, off the beaten path indingenous villages of Panchimalco and Santo Domingo de
Guzman , volcanoes, cloud forests and much much more. Uncrowded, few tourists.

The world is in crisis, so is Guatemala, so is El Salvador, so is the
rest of Central America, so what!
Tourism, travel must go on. Tourism is a
motor for development.
The recommendations or precautions to not visit Guatemala and even
more so El Salvador are unfair
and geopolitically motivated.
The following lists of countries are
promoted to the wazoo by "the powers to be" and they share every
single problem that both Guatemala & El Salvador possess; some of them
additionally have
terrorism. Really. Sad but true.
China, India, Mexico, Colombia, Thailand, Indonesia, Russia, Vietnam,
Turkey, Malaysia, Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, are all on the list of
the 50 most visited countries in the world. Last time we checked they
had crime, drugs, human rights violations, organized crime, poverty,
inequality; etc.

So what makes Guatemala and El Salvador different from these other
countries? One
thing: the patronage they have, the promotion they get. "PR" Rumors
and bad press are nothing more than cheap online gossip, written
mainly by those who never even have traveled to Guatemala, El Salvador
or the rest of Central America!

There are of course security issues, as everyplace unfamiliar one will travel away
from home, however out of thousands of visitors evey month only a
handful experience problems and even some of those are preventable by
using common sense and being aware!

Entonces, le esperamos……
*The week that Mumbai in India was taken hostage by terrorist, 'CNN'
ran advertisements to promote "The exotic adventure of India".
Colombia, who still exports the same amount of drugs as 10 years ago,
is also being promoted in the US, sponsored by the US. The same
applies for Mexico, never mind the atrocities of the internal drug war
that is now spilling over its borders.

*So, if anyone can give me a specific reason to not visit Guatemala or
neighboring El Salvador, or Honduras or Nicaragua if you prefer, using
comparative objective criteria, I will listen. ¡Digame!

The Myth: "El Salvador is the most dangerous country for travelers in
Central America...."
The Reality: NOT SO, even in the congested capital city of San
Salvador are many small and affordable Guest Houses, Bed & Breakfast
and small Hotels catering to budget travelers on pleasant tree lined
streets, in fact, next to San José in Costa Rica, San Salvador, El
Salvador turns out to be the safest and most pleasant capital city to
base in, in all of Central America, the Beaches of La Libertad are a
45 minute drive or less and Suchitoto is about an hour. Slightly more
time on public transportation. The entire country can be seen in a few
days, no 'all day' bus rides or drives, where you arrive exhausted.
People are friendly here in El Salvador, willing to help out travelers
in a pinch. There exist now in El Salvador dozens of CS members, so if
traveling here try to contact a few CS hosts well in advance of your
arrival, especially if arriving holiday seasons such as December & New
Years. Neighboring Guatemala and nearby Costa Rica boast many CS
members while the number of members in Nicaragua has almost tripled in
recent months.
'Traveling to Central America made easy'!
I, a long term El Salvador resident, am suprised myself, despite the
ongoing 'bad press' and 'bad rep' of El Salvador, how many travelers
are now making El Salvador their first or second Central American
destination. Few go away dissapointed.
Of course there exist serious security issues in many parts of Latin
America so be aware, especially when traveling alone, and use common
sense.

The more Spanish you know, the easier traveling around gets, so if planning an extended stay there are dozens of fine and affordable Spanish Language schools, many offering home stay with locals as well as volunteer opportunties. As well El Salvador boasts several excellent Spanish Schools and many volunteer opportunties, low or no cost.

The writer is a long term resident of both El Salvador & Guatemala, presently volunteering with a pilot project in rural cultural & ecotourism, in Cinquera, where the pristine Rain Forest and historical Civil War monuments with trails, uniformed native guides, a majestic waterfall enroute, as well as 150 varieties of plants and animals in the protected area, the village has been reconstructed, destroyed in the massacre of 1981 during the conflict, Hostal for overnight guests and camping for those with vehicle and gear. No crime nor petty theft.

For more information on Central American vacation, on or off the beaten path, simply message me personally and I'll get back to you as soon as possible.

Saludos, Tropicalguide.