New rules for maintanance of UNESCO protected mansions

The workshop brought together site managers from Belize, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Panama, to discuss strategic approaches to visitor management and identify priority areas for enhancing sustainable and inclusive tourism.As a major economic driver for World Heritage destinations in the region, tourism generates important revenue for the conservation of cultural and natural heritage in the region.

In this context, participants shared common challenges that currently impact tourism management in their sites, such as: the gentrification of urban areas, the rise of short-term rentals for tourism, displacement of local communities, seasonality, climate change and natural disasters. To gain a first-hand understanding of local issues and opportunities related to tourism, the site managers conducted visits to the Historic Centre of Oaxaca and the Archaeological site of Monte Albán.

The workshop provided a platform for site managers to share approaches for involving communities in tourism management and heritage safeguarding. These included: measuring community sentiment towards tourism, organizing community-based conservation programmes, holding community festivals/ events and providing educational programmes for local students.