The Previaje program will have a fourth edition, after the resounding success of the previous ones; and this year those who travel between May and June will be able to enjoy it, to promote tourism in Argentina during the low season. The program, as anticipated, could also include a new price agreement, as happened with the third version of the initiative in which pre-fixed values were established, for example, in accommodation.
The Minister of Tourism and Sports of the Nation, Matthias Lammensconfirmed that the measure will be launched again in March and, as happened on previous occasions, tourists who decide to vacation in the country will be able to access a 50% refund on all purchases made on specific dates and places.
“We are going to release a new Previaje for the low season, like the previous one. It was important to readjust the tool that was successful and that had a great political consensus and among the people, it was used by more than 6 million people. But it was important to readjust the tool; a massive Pre-Travel for the whole year did not make sense”, explained the official in statements to the Radio Futurock. And he added. “It made sense to launch it for the low season to continue stimulating domestic tourism, which ends up being one of the activities that generated the most employment. We prop up this industry as one of the strategic ones to grow; we have to have a private sector that has the capacity to invest to generate job”.
The minister highlighted that the new edition of the program provides a predictability framework for businessmen: “It makes it go beyond the logic of seasonal employment that tourism has, we are making the demand for employment stable throughout the year,” pointed out about it.
Lammens also referred to the criticism of those who point out that the program includes purchases made both in five-star hotels and in other cheaper ones and the questions from economists who label the measure as a “subsidy for the middle class”. and, in that line, he pointed out that the program has a cap on reimbursements so that the expenses cannot be exorbitant. “For those who go to a 5-star hotel, the Previaje does not mean much; what we aim for is that there is a lot of internal movement and that the person who has a doubt about going to a neighboring country or abroad chooses to travel here because they have some type of benefit. The Previaje recovers $83 of every $100 that it invests and formalizes. The gastronomic sector has a high informality. Some raised prices because they are not used to billing, but that has been resolved,” he said.
The minister also assured that the third edition of the program also worked as a price control and that last October and November the gastronomy and hotel sector was below the general inflation index. “You have to make a more general price agreement when Previaje 4 is launched that includes the next 4 or 5 months,” he anticipated and added: “The sector has had to rebuild margins. It was one of the sectors most affected by the pandemic, for That’s what Previaje did. They have already recovered profit margins. So far it is an argument that could have been solid, but now a new path begins, the national State has made a huge investment to support the sector.”
The head of the Tourism and Sports portfolio referred to the current summer season and stressed that January will close with the arrival of some 700,000 foreign tourists, with an impact that will exceed 600 million dollars for Argentine reserves. And in this line, he also announced that in February he will meet with ministers from Uruguay, Paraguay and Chile to outline the candidacy of Argentina and those countries to host the FIFA World Cup in 2030: “We compete with countries that are more powerful in material terms and economic resources but what has to weigh is the historical tradition of South America for world soccer,” he closed.
