Medellín is the second most important city in Colombia and the second preferred for the realization of fairs, congresses and conventions, after Cartagena and above Bogotá, capital of the country. According to a monitor study, carried out 13 years ago, Medellín had to define its vocation towards corporate and event tourism, a plan that was launched some time ago, since the city has a wide geographical diversity, a temperate climate and a friendly population that make it have a special favorability for this type of tourist market. istic.The monitor study suggests that Medellín must work to position itself in corporate tourism, to be a competitive destination, not only nationally, but internationally. Due to this, strategies were generated to respond to this direction, such as the construction of Plaza Mayor, conventions and exhibitions, the Explora park and the remodeling of the Palace of Exhibitions and Conventions.
The city has achieved an important development in recent years, becoming an excellent place for foreign investment due to its changes in infrastructure and security. This new infrastructure offers a city for the realization of events such as the Plaza Mayor Convention Center, the hotel capacity, air connectivity, gastronomy, the proximity between the different important points of the City, in addition to the attractive sites for tourists and nearby subregions.
Education in the city is also taking a turn, orienting itself in the same direction, as municipal administrators focus on the basic introduction of a second language, in this particular case English.
Hotel investment in the city is growing, currently there are about 20 new projects that will be built largely by the influence of Law 788 of 2002 that brings with it tax incentives for the construction and remodeling of hotels. The construction of these hotels will be carried out with an 85% national investment and will offer 2000 new rooms. Today, Medellín has 196 hotels, of which about 70 are 3, 4 and 5 stars.
According to a study implemented by Cotelco, Hotel Association of Colombia, which evaluates the growth of the sector in the last two years in the country, Medellín increased its rooms to 932, while in Bogotá, Cali and Barranquilla, the opening of rooms was 400 new spaces.
Over the years the paisa city has positioned itself thanks to the realization of events such as Colombiamoda, Colombiatex, Expocamacol, Bolsa Turística de las Américas and the Feria de las Flores, as well as scientific, medical, academic and cultural events and congresses. It is worth noting that in Medellín the OAS Assembly was held in 2008 and the IDB Assembly will be held in 2009.
But this growth of the city does not refer only to infrastructure, but also to a strengthening of the gastronomic offer, training of tour guides and receptive tour operators, as well as the development of tourist routes within the city, and packages of itineraries and activities inside and outside Medellín, as the city has wonderful landscapes in its regions.
