by ALCHEMY DMC | Dic 27, 2017 | ALCHEMY DMC News, Tourism News
Vicuña has started a way in which the public and private world are empowered by an objective: astronomy. On January 19, 2017 has been remembered as one of the most important days for Vicuña, thanks to a mayoral decree that established the commune as the world capital of astronomy, which brings with it a series of activities and initiatives that seek to go that direction.
This is how the Vicuña has embarked on a path in which the public and private world are empowered by a common goal in which various actors who have already carried out activities such as the Star Party will participate once a month in the heritage Antakari Route. , the first contest of poetry, photography, painting and drawing with topics related to astronomy that had an excellent call.
One of the arguments of the decree is precisely the choice of Vicuña as the ideal place for the installation of astronomical observatories. “Since the 1960s it has been the site of several observatories, notably the Cerro Tololo observatory, located on the hill of the same name, where one of the most important telescopes on the planet and the first in our country is located. Later the SOAR and Gemini observatories were installed and the LSST observatory is under construction “, as well as a series of clear signs that Vicuña deserves to be considered the world capital of astronomy because of the greatness of its skies, 300 nights a year without clouds and the mention of these unique characteristics, not only in national media, but international ones such as The New York Times and The Guardian. In addition, tourist observatories such as Cerro Mamalluca stand out, as well as other observatories such as El Pangue, Alfa Aldea, Astro Elqui: cosmovision and archaeoastronomy, the Casa Bagua campsite, to name a few places that have implemented telescopes in their ventures.
The mayor of the commune, Rafael Vera said that signing this decree has a strategic sense, for decades the main sources of income in Vicuña have been thanks to agriculture, which will continue to be strengthened, and in cultural terms the figure of the poet elquina Gabriela Mistral, but astrological tourism will also be given a fundamental value. “We have the clearest skies and that gives us the possibility to also enhance that line, and if it is true that the traditional, the identity of Gabriela Mistral is an issue that we have been working on for a good number of years now, that of tourism It has been developing, we are offering a tourism with added value, and effectively being the world capital of astronomy, it allows us to channel a large number of tourists “commented the mayor.
Hernán Julio, journalist, scientific disseminator and director of the astronomy magazine Astrovida applauds this initiative because it points out that besides being the commune of Vicuña the first in the installation of scientific observatories, “the other thing is the fact that just in the commune there is the first dark sanctuary of nature, the first in Chile and that was declared by the Association of Dark Skies of the World and also the World Organization of Astronomy that also gives a stamp not only of the quality of the heavens, but also of darkness that today is so important because of the issue of light pollution, “says the researcher. “I think we also have to integrate the educational world, because young people are the heirs of these heavens, and not only the heavens, but what it involves is also a technological scientific heritage,” added Julio. It should be noted that the Gabriela Mistral Dark Skies Sanctuary is located in the grounds of the AURA observatory, belonging to the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, who acquired the land in the 1960s, and since then they have tried to maintain favorable conditions. for astronomical research.
The name of the place is not accidental, since the poet was always in love with the Elqui Valley, her place of birth.
The macro objective of this project is to consolidate Vicuña itself as the world capital of astronomy thinking of the total solar eclipse that will take place on July 2, 2019.
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Source: http://www.diarioeldia.cl/region/vicuna/vicuna-se-prepara-con-todo-para-ser-capital-mundial-astronomia
by ALCHEMY DMC | Dic 27, 2017 | ALCHEMY DMC News, Tourism News
Peru is consolidated as ‘Best Culinary Destination’ and Machupicchu as ‘Best Tourist Attraction’ in the world at the World Travel Awards 2017.
For the sixth consecutive year, Peru received the recognition as ‘Best Culinary Destination’ in the world, while the Archaeological Complex of Machupicchu was awarded as ‘Best Tourist Attraction’ in the latest edition of the prestigious World Travel Awards (WTA), held in Phu Quoc, Vietnam, PromPeru informed. It should be noted that the prizes are awarded based on the online voting platform of the organization in which tourism professionals, entrepreneurs and travelers from different places participate.
“These recognitions that we receive as a country are the result of the work we are doing to promote our tourism resources and our gastronomy. These awards help to highlight Peru in the eyes of the world, especially on top of the elite of the travel industry. Therefore, we will continue to work to maintain ourselves in the first place and to contribute to improving the quality of life of all those Peruvians whose welfare depends on the growth of international tourist arrivals, “said Isabella Falco, Country Image Director of PromPeru.
According to a study conducted by PromPeru, the main reason to visit Peru is to know Machupicchu. However, gastronomy is already among the other motivations of travel. The same report shows that 82% of the tourists who visit the country consider Peru as a gastronomic destination, and 25% say that the knowledge about Peruvian cuisine would be growing in their countries of origin.
On the other hand, according to experts, Peruvian gastronomy is increasingly positioned in the world, which opens new opportunities for the export of our native products, as well as the opportunity to show our culinary traditions and continue to innovate with our admired fusion cuisine.
PromPeru has been promoting our country in recent years with innovative campaigns that have managed to win over public worldwide. Continuing with this promotion, Peru has just launched the international tourism campaign ‘Peru, the richest country in the world’, in which travelers are invited to know our destinations in order to go back home enriched due to the sum of all the experiences that they enjoy in our country, such as exploring our ancient historical legacy or discovering our gastronomy.
In 2016, the Historic Sanctuary of Machupicchu received 1.4 million visitors and shows an average growth of 6% during the last five years. According to Trip Advisor, 98% of the tourists that visited it have a positive evaluation of their experience.
Currently there are three Peruvian restaurants that are on the list of The 50 Best Restaurants in the World: Central (5th place), Maido (8) and Astrid & Gaston (33); and there are 10 restaurants positioned on the list of The 50 Best Restaurants in Latin America: Maido (1), Central (2), Astrid & Gaston (7), Osso Carnicería y Salumeria (12), La Mar (15) , Isolina (21), Rafael (24), Malabar (30), Fiesta (46) and Ámaz (47).
ABOUT THE WORLD TRAVEL AWARDS
Since 1993, WTA have become an extraordinary barometer for measuring excellence in the travel and tourism industry worldwide. The winners are chosen thanks to the vote of the public through the Internet and the voting that the experts of the sector perform globally. According to the American newspaper The Wall Street Journal, these are considered the ‘Oscar of the Tourism Awards’.
These ceremonies are attended by the heads of industry, key decision-makers, chiefs, leading figures and the most important media of tourism and commerce. The WTA Grand Tour takes place in stages, with regional ceremonies in the Middle East, Africa and the Indian Ocean, Europe, the Americas and the Caribbean, Asia and Oceania.
by ALCHEMY DMC | Dic 27, 2017 | ALCHEMY DMC News, Tourism News
Starting January 1st, 2018.
In order to enter the Argentine Republic for tourism or business, holders of ordinary Canadian passports will no longer have to pay the Reciprocity Rate. The effective date of the elimination will be as of January 1, 2018.
The National Minister of Tourism, Gustavo Santos, stressed that “it is very important to provide new mechanisms for the mobility of tourists who want to visit the country and advance in international integration. Tourism is a key activity for Argentina’s trade relations with the world. ”
“From the beginning of our management we proposed to bring Argentina closer to the world, with the participation in international fairs of great call, promotion actions abroad, new connectivity options and concrete measures such as the refund of VAT to foreign tourists and the elimination of the rate of reciprocity, the distant markets are getting closer to us, “Santos added.
It should be noted that in terms of connectivity, Argentina and Canada are more connected than ever. Currently, Air Canada joins Toronto with Buenos Aires in six weekly frequencies, with a previous stopover in Santiago de Chile, although as of May 2018 there will be three direct weekly frequencies.
There are also flights with a stop or connection, operated by Delta (Atlanta, USA), Aeroméxico (Mexico City), United Airlines (Houston, USA) and American Airlines (coming through Dallas, Miami or New York).
by ALCHEMY DMC | Dic 27, 2017 | ALCHEMY DMC News, Instagram, Tourism News
By Natalie Paris, Travel writer
18 reasons to visit Argentina – including a secret German village and the world’s most beautiful bookshop.
1. You can ride with gauchos
Argentinian cowboys wear actual chaps, drink Mate tea so bitter it makes you gurn, raise and wrestle cattle, and at night sing folk songs about love and loss. Gauchos traditionally were seen as nomads and outlaws but grew to be respected as freedom fighters in the mid-16th century. Traditions vary in pampas in different parts of the country, with Salta’s gauchos some of the most revered.
Gauchos: revered when a week-long Fiesta Nacional de la Tradición is staged, which sees gauchos from all over Argentina ride into town, grill whole cows for dinner and show off their dressage.
2. See giant guinea pigs
Capybaras are a squeaking, loveable feature of the Argentinian wetlands. Take a trip to the Ibera Wetlands, rgentina’s answer to the Pantanal, to see them. In a motor boat out they are easy to find – loud splashing often signifies that one has just hauled its fat bottom into the water, while alarmed grunts mean you’ve just disturbed one in the undergrowth. The babies make a plaintive high-pitched squeak to call their mothers, just as their smaller cousins do.
Capybaras: cute Credit: copyright supervliegzus 2010/shot by supervliegzus
3. Take one of the world’s best drives
A drive through the multi-coloured valley of the Quebrada de Humahuaca is one of the world’s most spectacular. Aside from views of rainbow-striped and wind-shaped rock formations, sights along the route, which has been used over the past 10,000 years as a crucial passage for the transport of people and ideas from the high Andean lands to the plains, include a cave cathedral with impressive acoustics where local musicians play.
4. And drink world-beating wine
Mendoza is Argentina’s main wine region, set picturesquely at the foot of the Andes. Malbec grapes made the area internationally renowned but shiraz and cabernet sauvignon have also been making great gains.
Lesser-visited but just as pretty is Cafayate, a small town in Torrontes wine country. This Argentinian variety makes fruity, aromatic whites, similar to a crisp viognier, that are perfect for washing down a lunch of empanadas.
5. It’s a beguiling wilderness
Vast and empty, wind-swept and barren, Patagonia is an archetypal landscape of the imagination, writes Chris Moss, in an article for our Trip of a Lifetime series. “Where the pampas run out around the Rio Negro, the land becomes unfriendly to human settlement, and if you drive down the great highways you’ll see mainly sheep, flightless rhea and llama-like guanacos. Eventually you come to the Andes, where ice-fields break through to form glaciers on the lakesides, or to the lonely island of Tierra del Fuego.
“It continues to beguile intrepid travellers, and in the past two decades smart hotels have opened across the region to provide comfort and luxury, and the dining options have improved immeasurably.”
Patagonia: beguiling
6. It’s got a little piece of Switzerland, Germany – and Wales
Argentina’s Lake District is a stunner, with mountain after craggy mountain sliding serenely into ice-blue lakes. To see it, you would do well to make Swiss-themed Bariloche your base. The town has improbable wooden chalets, chocolate shops and even St Bernard dogs to give it an Alpine feel.
Set in the hills a couple of hours from Córdoba, meanwhile, La Cumbrecita is a meticulously recreated German village. Tourists come from across Argentina, and farther afield, to experience this bizarre vision of little Germany. They have apple strudel at the café and buy trinkets from the gift stores. There’s even a huge cuckoo clock that greets you as you enter the village.
Cumbrecita Credit: GETTY
Even more unusually, the nod to Europe continues via a Welsh settlement on Patagonia’s coast. “The Welsh first landed in the other great and green land – that of Patagonia – back in July 1865,” explained Michael Kerr, after visiting Puerto Madryn last year to mark its 150th anniversary.
“More than 150 Welsh-speaking men, women and children had sailed in May from Liverpool on the Mimosa, a converted tea clipper, with the intention of establishing a community where they could practise their language and faith free from the dictates of English government.”
7. You can visit a deserted town
Epecuén is an abandoned spa town in Argentina that provided the backdrop for a new film starring the stunt cyclist Danny MacAskill in 2014. Watch what he gets up to below.
8. Or one of the world’s most beautiful bookshops
This astounding shop interior has to be one of the world’s most glamorous, especially considering it sells books rather than designer clothing. The El Ateneo Grand Splendid in Barrio Norte, Buenos Aires is a bookshop set in a former theatre, the Teatro Gran Splendid, which originally opened in May 1919.
If you can get your head out of one of its thousands of books (and we’re sure that you can) red velvet curtains hang over a stage at one end, while the ornate stalls on the upper levels contain elaborately-lit shelves.
El Ateneo Grand Splendid
9. The Metro is really rather quaint
The Buenos Aires subway system adds an element of travel glamour to the busy Argentinian capital. It was launched in 1913 – the first underground railway in Latin America.
10. You can have a more glamorous coffee break
There are a handful of grand coffee houses along the wide boulevards of Buenos Aires but Cafe Tortoni is one of the best, dating from 1858. It has perfect pastries and a cavernous interior with marvellous decorative glass ceilings.
11. Climb South America’s highest peak
The highest mountain outside of Asia, at 22,841 feet, Aconcagua is the second highest of the Seven Summits and can be climbed by those with know-how, even without roped mountaineering experience.
Aconcagua Credit: Gustavo Cherro
12. Join the crowd
Watching local team Boca Juniors play football at the La Bombonera stadium in Buenos Aires will undoubtedly involve blazing flares, bitter rivalries, chants you don’t understand and general mayhem.
13. Walk among angels
Romantic, ageing, Recoleta Cemetery in one of Buenos Aires’ most middle-class suburbs is where Eva Perón is buried, but is an atmospheric place for a stroll in any event. Free guided tours in English, Tuesday and Thursday at 11am.
Recoleta Cemetery.
14. Remember a leading lady
First peasant, leader, then legend, Buenos Aires’s Evita Museum is where you can find out about the life of Eva Perón. The city’s main square, the Plaza de Mayo, is where you will find the Casa Rosada – as pink in colour as its name suggests – the office of the president. Eva Perón made her carefully choreographed speeches from its balconies.
15. Feast on grilled meat
Argentina is famous for its high-quality, doorstop-sized steaks and there is nowhere better to try one than in a parrillada restaurant where you select a slab of meat still sizzling off a parrilla grill set at your table in front of you. As well as familiar steak cuts like lomo and bife de chorizo, locals like to load up their grills with “vaccio” (juicy flank) and “morcilla” (fat black pudding sausages) – while delving into impossibly chewy plates of melted provolone cheese. Delicious.
Tango: can your relationship stand up to the test?
16. Test your relationship
Tango is one of Portenos’ biggest passions and tourists are encouraged to book themselves into one of many classes held in Buenos Aires. Be warned though, the “dance of love” is tricky to master and it is said a couple’s aptitude at getting in sync with each other is a microcosm of the relationship.
17. Set foot in the world’s southernmost city
Ushuaia is the launch point for (small) cruises to Patagonia and Antarctica. They can visit South Georgia, where is possible to make contact with local whalers, and set off to retrieve his men and occasionally land on Elephant Island, from where the 22 remaining sailors were picked up on August 30 1916 – as well as the Antarctic Peninsula.
18. And try the world’s oldest team sport
Argentinians are known as some of the world’s best polo players. Just ask Jilly Cooper. Polo is a celebration of tradition, skill and family – and Argentina celebrates it like no other polo nation. Even novices can enjoy on neat lawns in the grounds of estancias around the country.
Best of the rest
Also worth mentioning are the artistic wonders on display at the Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires; the steam train Argentines affectionately call La Trochita; the show-stopping Iguassu Falls, on the border with Brazil, but closer and louder on the Argentinian side; Parque Nacional Los Glaciares, a Unesco World Heritage Site and home to the immense, ever-expanding (until it collapses) Perito Moreno Glacier; and the Thermal Baths of Villavicencio, which it is thought possess theraputic properties.
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Source: telegraph.co.uk
by ALCHEMY DMC | Nov 30, 2017 | ALCHEMY DMC News, Tourism News
A UNIQUE PLACE FOR THE EVENT OF YOUR DREAMS
Now your most important events will be enveloped by the most spectacular view of Santiago. Come! Rise to the top with us! Sky Costanera is open every day—365 days a year. With our elevators, in just 2 minutes you will be at the highest point in South America. 360° at 300 mts! In this unique place, you will enjoy Andes Mountains and Santiago from a totally new perspective. Located in the beginning of new area called “Sanhattan” this space will flawless match with a trendy cocktail, gala dinner or cool event.
Facts:
Floor 61: Heated and high-rise indoor space
Floor 62: Open-air Terrace
More than 50 events have taken place in the 11 months since Sky Costanera began operating as one of the most innovative event centers that the Chilean market has seen in recent times, located at the top of the highest tower in Latin America and offering an exclusive 360 ° view of the Chilean capital. Product launches, press conferences and corporate end-of-year parties, among other meetings, have taken place in this unique space that is revolutionizing the industry. His proposal is calling the attention not only of companies but also of institutions for a cause and even government offices, especially related to tourism. MICE events have been successfully placed. Place is becoming a milestone in the city and in the industry that has allowed the realization of very novel events. “There was a climb up the tower, a vertical run, commemorating the Glaucoma Week,” says the executive.
The launch conference of the Rolling Stones concert, at the end of last year, and the Davis Cup draw, recently, are two other important events that have given the brand a presence in the mass media. Also, they emphasize the massive spinnig Skymorphosis, that counted on the participation of international and Chilean instructors.
Sky Costanera has positioned itself as a tourist/MICE landmark, placing itself in that sense as a top in Tripadvisor, something that companies have read very well, understanding that this attraction can be very well used to organize attractive events. “The companies understand that if they want a world class event, they need a space like this, which has enough advantages for it.
The demand for events at the top of the tower has been intense since the venue opened its doors for this purpose.
The safety and comfort for users is one of the decisive elements in the management of this place as a center of events, in such a way that two different meetings are not held at the same time, although technically there is room for this. On the one hand, Sky Costanera wants to assure its clients a 360 ° vision, which is an important differential, and at the same time having two floors is also a great advantage.
by ALCHEMY DMC | Nov 30, 2017 | ALCHEMY DMC News, Tourism News
The Inca sanctuary of Machupicchu is one of the 10 Unforgettable Trips listed by National Geographic Travel magazine that are sure to create unforgettable memories in the New Year.
The article is introduced with a question about the perfect trip to take with someone special.
New York City, in the United States, tops the chart as a place for the would-be National Geographic photographer.
Peru’s iconic Inca citadel, Machupicchu, comes next and is described as a destination for the hiker who appreciates comfort at the end of the climb.
One of the highlights includes hiking snowcapped peaks of the Vilcabamba mountain range.
The article recommends other tours through sites that are not as popular as the above-mentioned Inca masterpiece.
For instance, exploring coffee plantations and traditional Andean villages on your trek to Machupicchu could be a good option.
“Spot bird species like the golden-headed quetzal and the Andean cock-of-the-rock, plus 18 different hummingbirds, while walking the trails at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel with a naturalist,” the author suggests.
“Return to your adobe casita, set in the cloud forest at the foot of Machupicchu, and enjoy a cozy fire, a chance to relax in the eucalyptus sauna, and traditional Peruvian cuisine,” she adds.
The list also includes trips to Antarctica, Belize, Japan, Southern Africa, Southern Italy, Galapagos Islands, Cuba, and the Bahamas.
