Costa Rican Tourism Board
Encyclopedia
The Costa Rican Tourism Board is the government agency responsible for promoting sustainable tourism in Costa Rica
. Originally the agency was created by decree in 1931 as the National Tourism Board, and by a law approved on August 9 of 1955 the agency became the Instituto Costarricense de Turismo (ICT).
The Tourism Board is responsible for granting the fiscal incentives available in the country since 1985 for tourism development. These incentives consist mainly of tax exemptions for companies providing hotel services, air transport, car rental
, gastronomy
services, travel agencies, and other tourism related services.
The agency introduced in 1997 a voluntary Certification for Sustainable Tourism Program (known as CST) was introduced in order to turn "the concept of sustainability into something real" by "improving the way in which the natural and social resources are utilized, to motivate the active participation of the local communities, and to support the competitiveness of the business sector. The program was aimed for all types of businesses in the tourism industry, but it began only with lodging providers. By 2007, a total of 108 parameters are considered for the CST evaluation.
Tourism in Costa Rica
Tourism in Costa Rica is one of the fastest growing economic sectors of the country and by 1995 became the largest foreign exchange earner. Since 1999, tourism earns more foreign exchange than bananas, pineapples and coffee exports combined...
. Originally the agency was created by decree in 1931 as the National Tourism Board, and by a law approved on August 9 of 1955 the agency became the Instituto Costarricense de Turismo (ICT).
The Tourism Board is responsible for granting the fiscal incentives available in the country since 1985 for tourism development. These incentives consist mainly of tax exemptions for companies providing hotel services, air transport, car rental
Car rental
A car rental or car hire agency is a company that rents automobiles for short periods of time for a fee...
, gastronomy
Gastronomy
Gastronomy is the art or science of food eating. Also, it can be defined as the study of food and culture, with a particular focus on gourmet cuisine...
services, travel agencies, and other tourism related services.
The agency introduced in 1997 a voluntary Certification for Sustainable Tourism Program (known as CST) was introduced in order to turn "the concept of sustainability into something real" by "improving the way in which the natural and social resources are utilized, to motivate the active participation of the local communities, and to support the competitiveness of the business sector. The program was aimed for all types of businesses in the tourism industry, but it began only with lodging providers. By 2007, a total of 108 parameters are considered for the CST evaluation.