World Tourism Leader - Danilo

Caribbeandreamto

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Mar 26, 2011
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Not sure if this has already been posted but Danilo Medina will be named World Tourism Leader by the World Tourism Organization, according to Dominican Today

I know there will be a lot of negative comments to follow this post but I will say, at least in Punta Cana, I am seeing a great deal of public works for the first time: The boulevard is finally being completed, cat eyes (reflectors) have been placed on many roads, the old crap sidewalk that was built in the Bavaro area is being ripped up to construct a wide pedestrian friendly sidewalk, the Macao - Miches highway is well on its way, the Coral Highway is set to be fully completed by November 2013.

President Medina has called for 10 million tourists to the Dominican Republic by 2020. I hope that he won this award not because he announced such ambitious plans, but instead because he is implementing them. Only time will tell, but I hope the public works I see now (at least in Punta Cana/Bavaro) are part of a long term and broad tourism initiative.
 

the gorgon

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Sep 16, 2010
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Not sure if this has already been posted but Danilo Medina will be named World Tourism Leader by the World Tourism Organization, according to Dominican Today

I know there will be a lot of negative comments to follow this post but I will say, at least in Punta Cana, I am seeing a great deal of public works for the first time: The boulevard is finally being completed, cat eyes (reflectors) have been placed on many roads, the old crap sidewalk that was built in the Bavaro area is being ripped up to construct a wide pedestrian friendly sidewalk, the Macao - Miches highway is well on its way, the Coral Highway is set to be fully completed by November 2013.

President Medina has called for 10 million tourists to the Dominican Republic by 2020. I hope that he won this award not because he announced such ambitious plans, but instead because he is implementing them. Only time will tell, but I hope the public works I see now (at least in Punta Cana/Bavaro) are part of a long term and broad tourism initiative.

i will reserve comment, since i have no idea what such a title means, or what it is supposed to mean. i just hope that when he invites 10 million tourists, he will consider the carrying capacity of the environment and infrastructure, so we do not see a redux of Puerto Plata.
 

dv8

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Sep 27, 2006
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oh really. surprising, no? there was an article in diario libre couple of day ago about a possible loss of those 10 million tourists. basically, they talk how danilo has moved away from his tourism plans and into increasing government help and support for the agriculture sector. apparently there is no solid plan of tourism development at all...

i actually think that maybe this is a wise move after all. yes, DR benefits from visitors and will continue to do so but recent trends for organic, free range and natural foods will only grow in strength. and DR can produce and export plenty of healthy food products, from fruits and veggies to rice and coffee. there is a future in that.

anyway, here is a link to the story: ?Adi?s a los 10 millones de turistas? - DiarioLibre.com
 

NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
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Danilo told Cesar Medina that in 3 years, he is going home.

With this, it goes without saying that everything he is doing, has to be for the long term.
 

Big_Poppi2

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I know it maybe Human nature, but I don't understand why people feel the need to speak badly about an inividual at all times and no matter what he says, does, or is being honored for. I am Proud that our Presidente has been chosen for this very prestigious award. By the World Tourism Organization honoring President Danilo Medina, they honor all Dominicanos both in DR and around the world. This is a great honor for our people, and yes there are flaws, and short comings to every one of us. Which is why we should and must, stop and celebrate our acomplishments in grand fashion when they occur. Take care and God bless,
Biggs <3
 

the gorgon

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Sep 16, 2010
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BigPoppi, i hate to say this, but this is not exactly a prestigious award. who was the last guy , or lady, to win it? see what i mean? hey, be realistic. i bet more people know who the latest rapper is than who is the WTO leader.
 

beastwood

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Now all we need is a theme song...seriously I imagine 100s of thousands can hum you the now ancient Jamaica tourism tune, but a scant few know which airport in the Caribbean is closet to the the first city, first cathedral, first university etc in the new world. Real opportunity for some real PR and some real money for this island country. Hope this helps.
 

the gorgon

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Sep 16, 2010
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Now all we need is a theme song...seriously I imagine 100s of thousands can hum you the now ancient Jamaica tourism tune, but a scant few know which airport in the Caribbean is closet to the the first city, first cathedral, first university etc in the new world. Real opportunity for some real PR and some real money for this island country. Hope this helps.

the thing is, beastwood, Jamaica markets a brand. the DR markets a destination. it started with Puerto Plata, and now it is Punta Cana.ever since the 60s, we have all heard songs like The Banana Boat Song, and Take Me To Jamaica Where The Rum Comes From. the DR is trying to market white sands and 5 star hotels, which everybody has. the DR has suffered, in part, by entering the game at a late stage, and rushing the process without planning. it is now operating in crisis response mode, to resurrect POP, which cannot be done. it will have to be reinvented. serious planning will have to be done, and it will have to be undertaken by well trained, insightful professionals. sadly, i see the research grant from IADB going into the pockets of political hacks and their enablers, and some half assed "study" will prescribe some dimwitted, confused recommendations which will do more harm than good.
 

drstock

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Oct 29, 2010
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I'll support this award when I see the improvements he has promised for Cabarete actually taking place. No sign at present!
 
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Not to pee on anybody's parade, but has anyone thought about what our options are going to be for president in the next election?

It ain't pretty, Dorothy.

Other than Guillermo Moreno and maybe Dominguez Brito (if Danilo doesn't run) no other names come to mind. Well maybe one more, Ito Bisono.
 

LTSteve

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Jul 9, 2010
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Yes, Danillo understands the importance of a very strong Tourism economy. I believe you will see continued investment in the tourist infrastucture. The DR has certainly worked hard to take advantage of the fact that Cuba has been closed to Americans for years. This has allowed the DR to be the most competitive and tourist leader in the Caribbean. Danillo is trying to cement places like Punta Cana as the destination of choice for North Americans.

LTSteve
 

the gorgon

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Sep 16, 2010
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Yes, Danillo understands the importance of a very strong Tourism economy. I believe you will see continued investment in the tourist infrastucture. The DR has certainly worked hard to take advantage of the fact that Cuba has been closed to Americans for years. This has allowed the DR to be the most competitive and tourist leader in the Caribbean. Danillo is trying to cement places like Punta Cana as the destination of choice for North Americans.

LTSteve

when you use the term " tourist leader", what exactly do you mean?
 

JMB773

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Nov 4, 2011
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the thing is, beastwood, Jamaica markets a brand. the DR markets a destination. it started with Puerto Plata, and now it is Punta Cana.ever since the 60s, we have all heard songs like The Banana Boat Song, and Take Me To Jamaica Where The Rum Comes From. the DR is trying to market white sands and 5 star hotels, which everybody has. the DR has suffered, in part, by entering the game at a late stage, and rushing the process without planning. it is now operating in crisis response mode, to resurrect POP, which cannot be done. it will have to be reinvented. serious planning will have to be done, and it will have to be undertaken by well trained, insightful professionals. sadly, i see the research grant from IADB going into the pockets of political hacks and their enablers, and some half assed "study" will prescribe some dimwitted, confused recommendations which will do more harm than good.

Excellent post gorgon about marketing a brand very true. I have a partner in California that owns a beautiful 2 bed 2 bath condo in Escazu a suburb in San Jose Costa Rica. A couple years back he married a woman from Los Angeles and she does not like the whole latin America thing, because she prefers the islands in the Pacific Fiji is one place they visit often. Costa Rica is no longer a place he enjoys because I think the women were a big reason why he spent so much time in CR, but that is another story. He allowed me to stay in his condo for free just as long as I check on everything to make sure it nothing was going with his unit. The price of my airline ticket was my only expense and make sure the lady was paying everything she was suppose to, who good beat that.

One day I came up with a way to make money for my man in Cali because so many people would tell me they would love to go to a Latin American country, but was unsure of how safe it was and did not speak the language. I have a side business were I rent his apartment mainly to African Americans here in the Midwest Illinios, Indiana, and Wisconsin. I am the bridge here in Chicago for African Americans and Latin America( mainly Costa Rica, but one couple wanted to go to Panama) The apartment started off just renting to friends of family members and people I went to school with, but I did not expect for them to tell their friends how great the trip was and they told their friends. I ONLY deal with referrals, because the condo is very nice and view is worth about 1 million bucks. I handle transportation, tours, food, and a the woman that drives for me also is fluent in English. The last night I pay for dinner at a place in Escazu as a thank you. I rent the place for 1,700USD a week Sunday to Sunday no exceptions. African Americans have strong buying power and most of them only go to Jamacia and take cruises, so I wanted them to see a place that is so beautiful they think they are dreaming. The place rents itself because I have two things going for me here in the Midwest cold weather, and STRONG customer base. I go to my clients home or they come to my apartment and I put on a presentation on for Costa Rica, San Jose, Ticos, and the condo and when I conclude they are so exciting about going they want to live the next day.

I thought about doing this in the DR because so many people here ask me about DR and why don't I have a place in DR so they could go there. I tell them DR is different the people are different the Costa Rican people even though you and many Dominicans share the same skin tone, Costa Rican people will be a much better host. I do not have people in DR I totally trust with the exception of a couple of Haitians I know, but because they are Haitian I can't leave my fellow Chicagoans well being in their hands while in DR, because we know what goes on in with Haitians.

The DR is missing a huge market by not targeting African Americans in the USA and most of them travel as husband and wife or boyfreind and girlfriend and this is why I only deal with referrals no need for a guy using my place to have sex with hookers or calling me telling me he met his future wife in CR.

BTW PURA VIDA!!!
 
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the gorgon

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Sep 16, 2010
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the whole issue of Dominicans and people like African Americans is really contorted. the first thing to examine is the perceptions that Dominicans have regarding pigment. Dominicans GENERALLY see people of darker skin tones as being lower on the human totem pole than white people, even if they themselves are as black as the ace of spades. it is some cultural belief ingrained into them from childhood, and that will not change anytime soon. secondly, from where i view things, Dominicans have never seen the need for outreach to the African American community on any level. they do not consider them to be a worthwhile demographic that fits into their development plans. i mean, ex-president Leonel Fernandez took a trip to Kazakhstan, ostensibly to improve TOURISM between the two countries, among other things. i see no evidence of him, or his cohorts, having made any attempts to attract African Americans, who, as you just stated, do have spending power, and do go on vacations. because of complete lack of interest in that community, the bulk of African Americans that vacation in the DR are males looking for chicas in Sosua. others who come on more traditional vacations have complained about the second class attentions they have received, in comparison to the concern lavished on white visitors. apparently, Dominicans associate white with money, and prefer to expend their efforts upon targets they think will bear greater returns.
 

JMB773

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Nov 4, 2011
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the thing is, beastwood, Jamaica markets a brand. the DR markets a destination. it started with Puerto Plata, and now it is Punta Cana.ever since the 60s, we have all heard songs like The Banana Boat Song, and Take Me To Jamaica Where The Rum Comes From. the DR is trying to market white sands and 5 star hotels, which everybody has. the DR has suffered, in part, by entering the game at a late stage, and rushing the process without planning. it is now operating in crisis response mode, to resurrect POP, which cannot be done. it will have to be reinvented. serious planning will have to be done, and it will have to be undertaken by well trained, insightful professionals. sadly, i see the research grant from IADB going into the pockets of political hacks and their enablers, and some half assed "study" will prescribe some dimwitted, confused recommendations which will do more harm than good.

Jamaica and Costa Rica yeah those are brands like "GAP" and "Pepsi Cola" both places are hugh players in the tourisms industry. Also in DR they put way too much value in money now matter how the obtain it.

I teach my people in Costa Rica to NOT look at your fellow Tico as competiton your competition is Panama, Dominican Republic, Belize etc. If more tourists make CR their number 1 place for R&R everybody will win in CR The ful time worker and the part time worker I have in CR I make them follow the same standard for customer service that the people in Chicago have to follow: NEVER cheat a customer, NEVER be dishonest with a customer, always be polite, the customer is always RIGHT, NEVER EVER under any circumstance ask for a TIP!!! NEVER. The" live today" way of thinking is something I am working hard to remove out of the Ticos mind.

I read on this board so often people saying "that is how it is done here get used to it" I do not teach my friends in CR because they are not my students I merely show them a different way of doing something they may get them a better result and a quicker result, and I do it with respect.

Dominicans are very "hard headed" they do not enjoy listening or taking advice from someone other then a Dominican. Punta Cana gets old real fast and now they are trying to add Santo Domingo to the experience in Punta Cana, but to do this you have to train Dominicans in Santo Domingo how to host a large group of tourists on a regular basis. I see so many people in the Colonial Zone when a cruise ship comes in looking very bored and not interested in the fact they are in the oldest place in the America and some quickly return to the ship. When Dominicans sit and watch kids harrassing tourists for money it does not paint a nice picture for Santo Domingo. Once a old guy gave a kid 300RD and he ran and showed his friends and next thing you knew the guy was being harrassed by the other kids until a Politur may them go away. My question is why didn't the 50 something people in Parque Colon stop the kids from asking the tourist for money?

American tourists are unlike any tourists on the planet, they believe in a certain way of doing this and they usually DO NOT compromise. If little boys are on the street begging during schools hours, an American will ask" why aren't you in school", if there is a HINT of prostitution most American tourist are turn off by that.

There have been 1000's of American tourist that spent a week in DR once and did not return because Americans DO NOT compromise when their money is involved.

BTW If a tourist want info on DR it will be wise to ask another tourists that have spent a week in DR and NOT an expat because they do not see the DR in the eyes of a tourist they see it as a local, and a person from the USA that decided to make the DR home can NEVER give advice to a tourists because seeing a man with a shotgun is not normal to a tourist from UTAH, but it is as normal as the sun shinning to an expat.
 

JMB773

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Nov 4, 2011
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the whole issue of Dominicans and people like African Americans is really contorted. the first thing to examine is the perceptions that Dominicans have regarding pigment. Dominicans GENERALLY see people of darker skin tones as being lower on the human totem pole than white people, even if they themselves are as black as the ace of spades. it is some cultural belief ingrained into them from childhood, and that will not change anytime soon. secondly, from where i view things, Dominicans have never seen the need for outreach to the African American community on any level. they do not consider them to be a worthwhile demographic that fits into their development plans. i mean, ex-president Leonel Fernandez took a trip to Kazakhstan, ostensibly to improve TOURISM between the two countries, among other things. i see no evidence of him, or his cohorts, having made any attempts to attract African Americans, who, as you just stated, do have spending power, and do go on vacations. because of complete lack of interest in that community, the bulk of African Americans that vacation in the DR are males looking for chicas in Sosua. others who come on more traditional vacations have complained about the second class attentions they have received, in comparison to the concern lavished on white visitors. apparently, Dominicans associate white with money, and prefer to expend their efforts upon targets they think will bear greater returns.

I knew an African American couple that went to the DR for his wife birthday and they did not have a good time. He never told me the whole story or his wife because they know of my daughter in DR so they did not want to say anything bad about it, but I knew something happen by his face. I was more MAD:mad: the fact that they spent money and did not have a great time in DR. To this day he and his wife never mention anything about DR if you bring it up they say " It was nice" then change the subject. Whatever happened it was so bad that I offered he and wife a week in CR, but the always turn it down and I offered it more then 5 times.

This is what I meaned about a bridge between latin America and African Americans. A black couple just can't show up in Santo Domingo and think they will have a wonderful time you need some sort of bridge.