COFFEE ROUTE
Structure, develop, and consolidate a sustainable rural touristic cluster for the coffee-growing region of the department of Quindio (Coffee Route) that allows increasing the competitive productivity and social development of the region and of the micro and small touristic operators businesses through the influx of national and international tourists. We will develop itineraries and touristic packages to appreciate and enjoy the productive and agro-industrial processes of coffee, thematic parks, and other attractions as tasting local food and appreciating expressions of art, culture and commerce of Quindio; all of these surrounded by a natural environment with exuberant landscapes of ...
About You
Contact Information
Title
Title (e.g. Mr. Ms.
First name
Rodrigo
Last name
Estrada
Your job title
Presidente ejecutivo
Name of your organization
Camara de Comercio de Armenia
Organization type
Organization Type
Annual budget/currency
Annual Budget/Currency
Mailing address
Mailing Address
Telephone number
Telephone Number
Postal/Zip Code
Country
Colombia
Website
Email address
Alternative email address
Alternative email address
Your idea
This will be the address used to plot your entry on the map.
Street Address
Carrera 14 No 23-15
City
Armenia
State/Province
Armenia
Postal/Zip Code
Country
Colombia
Geotourism Challenge Addressed by Entrant
quality of tourist experience and educational benefit to tourists , quality of benefit to residents for the destination , quality of tourism management by destination leadership , quality of stewardship of the destination.
Organization size
Medium (101 to 1000 employees)
Indicate sector in which you principally work
Tourism-related business
Year innovation began
2009
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Indicate sector in which you principally work
Living culture, Culinary or agritourism, Adventure, Education, General tourism, General destination stewardship/management, Other.
Name Your Project
COFFEE ROUTE
Describe Your Idea
Structure, develop, and consolidate a sustainable rural touristic cluster for the coffee-growing region of the department of Quindio (Coffee Route) that allows increasing the competitive productivity and social development of the region and of the micro and small touristic operators businesses through the influx of national and international tourists. We will develop itineraries and touristic packages to appreciate and enjoy the productive and agro-industrial processes of coffee, thematic parks, and other attractions as tasting local food and appreciating expressions of art, culture and commerce of Quindio; all of these surrounded by a natural environment with exuberant landscapes of ...
IDB/Fomin
Si perteneces a un pais de Latinoamerica y el Caribe tienes la oportunidad de presentar tu iniciativa para acceder a fondos para innovaciones en turismo sostenible del BID/FOMIN (para mayor informacion leer la seccion sobre la oportunidad BID/FOMIN en la pagina principal del Desafio).
Deseo postularme.
Si perteneces a un pais de Latinoamerica y el Caribe tienes la oportunidad de presentar tu iniciativa para acceder a fondos para innovaciones en turismo sostenible del BID/FOMIN (para mayor informacion leer la seccion sobre la oportunidad BID/FOMIN en la pagina principal del Desafio).
Consumidores (viajeros), Mayoristas, Agentes detallistas, Operadores de Turismo, Prestatarios de servicios turísticos, Prestatarios de servicios no turísticos (proveedores), Grupos comunitarios autóctonos, Atractivos naturales y culturales.
Indica cuales de estas tematicas cubre tu innovacion (elige todas aquellas opciones que apliquen)
Cartografía, Planificación y Gestión de destinos, Innovación y diversificación en el desarrollo de productos turísticos, Profesionalización, buenas prácticas y certificación de servicios turísticos sostenibles, Estrategias y herramientas innovadoras para la promoción y puesta en mercado de destinos y productos en turismo sostenible y geoturismo..
Innovation
What is the goal of your innovation? Please describe in one sentence the kind of impact, change, or reform your approach is intended to achieve.
Achieve an integral sustainable competitive rural tourism that relates the distinctive elements of coffee and its farms; depicting the Coffee Route as cultural identity tourism within the regionaltour
Please write an overview of your project. Include how your approach supports or embodies geotourism or destination stewardship. This text will appear when people scroll over the icon for your entry on the map located on the competition homepage.
Structure, develop, and consolidate a sustainable rural touristic cluster for the coffee-growing region of the department of Quindio (Coffee Route) that allows increasing the competitive productivity and social development of the region and of the micro and small touristic operators businesses through the influx of national and international tourists. We will develop itineraries and touristic packages to appreciate and enjoy the productive and agro-industrial processes of coffee, thematic parks, and other attractions as tasting local food and appreciating expressions of art, culture and commerce of Quindio; all of these surrounded by a natural environment with exuberant landscapes of flora and fauna. An informational system and geo-reference system will be implemented, so the tourists can book -in real time from their countries - their touristic packages according to their interests, need, and economic condition. The system will be supported by a technological platform interconnected with terminals that are present in all the organizations that offer touristic services in the region and will be connected to the integrated informational system, which will have technological tools for bookings and payments in real time. It will also have an online geographic system and a map of the route and of the Quindio department.
Explain in detail why your approach is innovative
We don’t offer a product or service, we offer a cluster integrated to a region, which combines the following aspects:
Cultural
Geographic
Environmental
Diversity
Touristic attractions (thematic parks, others)
Gastronomy
Lodging
Transportation
Diverse modes of tourism (agro-tourism, eco-tourism, adventure, landscaping, others)
Financial system
Agro-industry – agricultural sector
Community
Business sector
Additionally the proposal is sustained by a technological platform – IT – that allows the connectivity, integrality and plurality of the different touristic, geographic and cultural services of the region offered by the cluster.
Impact
Describe the degree of success you have had to date. How do you measure, both quantitatively and qualitatively, the impact on sustainability or enhancement of local culture, environment, heritage, or aesthetics? How has it transformed or contributed to the power of place or demonstrated the sustainability of tourism? How does your approach minimize negative impacts?
The project is part of the strategic projects of the regional competitiveness plan. It is included in the 2009 plan of the tourism working group of Quindio department. Some of its components are part of the development plan of the department and it is guaranteed by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism as a strategic project to reach competitiveness in the region.
The previous actions were coordinated with the community, academy, private and public sector.
The destination is unique since we will develop itineraries and touristic packages to appreciate and enjoy the productive and agro-industrial processes of coffee, thematic parks, and other attractions as tasting local food and appreciating expressions of art, culture and commerce of Quindio; all of these surrounded by a natural environment with exuberant landscapes of flora and fauna. It will allow admiring the organic plantations of coffee, its process of primary transformation, and tasting tests – where one can sample-taste and understand the attributes and differences of the varieties of coffee.
The project establishes commitments for the conservation of the patrimonial elements and the active participation of the inhabitants towards the sustainability of the Coffee Route.
In what ways are local residents actively involved in your work, including participation and community input? How has the community responded to or benefited from your approach?
The participation of the community and all the sectors of the department have been fundamental for the elaboration, development, and acceptance of the project. The proposal is grounded in several strategic actions
The information supplied by the twelve tourism observatories, the working groups with the fund to promote tourism, the department group of tourism, the bureau of coffee, Acodres, Cotelco, and touristic operators.
How does your program promote traveler enthusiasm, satisfaction, and engagement with the locale?
Since the route is frame worked by the processes, actions, and experiences of the coffee culture, the visitor will always be in contact with the local inhabitants, their way of living, and their natural spaces.
The program is directed to satisfy the needs of the visitants (demand) since they can program and organize their stay according to their interests and the great variety of touristic products and services offered.
Describe how your work helps travelers and local residents better understand the value of the area's cultural and natural heritage, and educates them on local environmental issues.
It is a route frame worked in the coffee culture, where the visitant and the community are involved with the tangible and intangible knowledge of the cultural patrimony and with the geographic, natural and environmental aspects of all Quindio department; all under social business responsibility criteria and actions.
Additionally, a didactic album of the whole route will be developed containing all the municipalities and their cultural, environmental, and rural patrimony, as well as the business and social assets.
This Entry is about (Issues)
Sustainability
How is your initiative currently financed? If available, provide information on your finances and organization that could help others. Please list: Annual budget, annual revenue generated, size of part-time, full-time and volunteer staff.
Currently, the initiative is financed through local resources and government and private sector contributions.
The annual budget of Armenia Chamber of Commerce is $2.500.000
Number of employees: 50 full-time and 15 through contracts of services
The program and Armenia Chamber of Commerce has established partnerships and agreements with the government, municipalities, SENA, private sector, academic sector to provide the co-funding resources.
Is your initiative financially and organizationally sustainable? If not, what is required to make it so? Is there a potential demand for your innovation?
It is financially sustainable if we achieve the non-reimbursable resources, to cover 40% of the total proposal.
The value in dollars of the proposal is US$ 1.200.000.
The potential demand of the non-reimbursable resources is of US$ 500.000.
What are the main barriers you encounter in managing, implementing, or replicating your innovation? What barriers keep your program from having greater impact?
-Insufficient mechanisms of information and promotion to incentive national or international tourism towards this region.
- Limited use of quality management systems among the different providers of services (hotels, restaurants, transportation, etc.)
- Plentiful informal businesses (no legal businesses) that provide touristic services; and informal labor (under-pay employments and without social security affiliation).
What is your plan to expand or further develop your approach? Please indicate where/how you would like to grow or enhance your innovation, or have others do so.
The plan contemplates that in year-three, 40% more businesses are in the system by self decision, 30% more of human talent in implementation of competence, amplification of the route to more remote areas, increase in the number of benefitted communities, increase in the number of foreign tourists (the initial number is 120 micro and small businesses, 1200 employees and 12 municipalities.)
The model is replicable, since it is a route, a methodology and pedagogy to reach goals has been established, which can be transferable to other regions or countries.
The Story
What is the origin of your innovation? Tell the Changemakers and media communities what prompted you to start this initiative.
The motivation came from several aspects: the opportunity to implement a system that integrates all the touristic products and services of Quindio department with the coffee culture, the community, the geographic and environmental surroundings, and the 12 municipalities. All integrated in one cluster, oriented towards the demand and sustained by a technological platform.
This came from the need to strengthen and unify the touristic sector of Quindio department in one product called the Coffee Route, for the economical development of the department.
In the same way, in the last few years, the Armenia Chamber of Commerce, touristic, academic, and governmental sectors, the community and different associations have began developing actions and generating the conditions to strengthen the touristic sector, the coffee culture, the environment and the social responsibility of businesses. These entities have created a mix fund for promoting tourism, have supported the initiative of Coffee estates, have achieved the insertion of the touristic sector within the internal agenda of Quindio and within the competitive regional plan, and have supported the creation of technological tools to manage information and statistics.
We needed to create a program that could integrate in one product all the touristic offers of the department, grounded in the demand and in the union with the government, municipalities, touristic operators, academia, and community. Tourism working groups were created; those groups determined the problems, causes and probable solutions. Together we develop a scheme of the program, which resulted in the design of the proposal: Coffee Route for the Economic, Social and Environmental Development of the Department.
Please provide a personal bio. Note this may be used in Changemakers' marketing material.
Armenia Chamber of Commerce is a nonprofit organization. Founded in 1934, it works for the businesses of the department (95% are micro and small businesses). It was a main actor during the reconstruction of the coffee-producing route after the earthquake of 1999. It has executed and participated in social and business projects, developing infrastructure and creating new businesses, supporting the legalization of businesses and their social business responsibility. It formulates, manages and contributes resources in partnership with the private and public sector for the execution of strategic projects, for the economic development of the department.
Describe some unique tourist experiences that your approach provides. Be specific; give illustrative examples.
This initiative is focused in the demand. The tourist and/or potential client will be able to program, buy, organize his/her touristic package and/or trip according to his/her interests, need, time, and economic conditions.
The interested person will observe and identify -in real time- the places, attractions, products and services available.
The tourist will be able to live and feel the experience of the coffee culture from the sowing season to the care and harvest season, through the transformation to the consumption of coffee and the different sub-products derived from coffee.
The coffee route involves a high level of environmental appreciation of live-nature.
The proposal of the thematic tourism (parks, museums, agro-tourism, eco-tourism, adventure)
What types of partnerships or professional development would be most beneficial in spreading your innovation?
We have developed partnerships with the government, the 12 municipalities, the academic sector, organizations (Cotelco, Acodres, Fenalco, others), the private sector, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, the Ministry of Communications, SENA, Parquesoft, National Fund for touristic promotion, and with the financial sector through loans for the micro and small businesses related with the Route.
 | 154 weeks agoPatricia Breuer Moreno submitted this idea. |
