The feared tourist retraction low season that usually covers the long break between Easter and the winter holidays will be faced from the municipality of Bariloche with a discount campaign coordinated with the providers themselveswhich cover a wide variety of areas and are registered voluntarily.
The beneficiaries must process a digital card and it will not be exclusive for tourists, residents can also use it.s. There are shops of all kinds on the list, in addition to hotels, cabins, tour guides, excursions and car rental companies.
On the existing list prices (which in accommodation, for example, are already lower than in high season) some companies will apply discounts of up to 30% during the months of April and May.
The Secretary of Tourism, Sergio Herrero, said that according to the result they will study the possibility of extending it in June. The municipal government’s concern is focused especially on an eventual growth in unemploymentwhich tends to become more acute when “temporary” workers become disaffected.
Herrero pointed out that “The intention is that we do not have a low tourist season and that all jobs can be maintained, “That the city continues to function and we are one of the most sought-after destinations.”
Bariloche traditionally attracts large waves of visitors in summer and winter, with low seasons in the intervening periods. The most pronounced, usually in autumn, because the spring one is shorter and is cushioned by student tourism.
Last year, exceptional rates were recorded and for the first time the low season had almost no impact. The April/June 2023 period was the best in memory for tourism in Bariloche. The influx exceeded the previous year by 36.3% and by a similar proportion the historical average for the quarter.
But this time the insignificant numbers would return, which the sector considers a real problem when it comes to sustaining fixed costs. Among other factors for this fall that everyone predicts is the disappearance of the Previaje program – which applied strong discounts with National subsidies – and also the general fall in purchasing power. and average consumption.
Without state investment
Herrero said that the burden of the discounts will be borne by the merchants and will have no fiscal cost for the municipality, which formulates the call, organizes the program and provides promotional support from Emprotur.
The plan was baptized “Baricheck” and according to the official there are already around 70 providers signed up. Incorporation is still open. He said that the Hotel and Gastronomy Association promotes for its members the adoption of a uniform 30% discount. In restaurants it would be 20%. There are businesses that have between 10 and 25%, and not all of them are in areas directly linked to tourism. Herrero said, for example, that a pasta factory was added.
“The effort is made by the merchant,” he explained. It comes from periods of extraordinary income and the proposal is that now what is priced at 100 pesos should be put at 70, to continue working.”. He insisted that the ultimate goal is to sustain “continuity of employment” and also ensure the extension of the benefit to local buyers.
He said that the “Baricheck” is already the main promotional flag of Emprotur, from now until winter, and is present in advertising “totems” in Buenos Aires, Rosario, Córdoba and towns in the region.