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PROCOLOMBIA is nominated as " Best Tourism Office in South America&rdquo in the 2014 World Travel Awards, the top awards in the global tourism industry. The winners will be determined via online votes, open to the public until June 23rd.
The international tourism promotion office of Colombia is competing with Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, and Peru in a new category for this year' s edition. For 20 years, these awards have acknowledged excellence in different sectors in the so-called industry without chimneys.
" PROCOLOMBIA&rsquo s management attracted 3.7 million foreign travelers into the country in 2013 which, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council, created over a million jobs and contributed with 5.4% in the GDP. The same organization noted that Colombia&rsquo s international tourism in 2013 increased by 8.2%, three percentage points above the world&rsquo s average,&rdquo stated the President of PROCOLOMBIA, Maria Claudia Lacouture.
According to Lacouture, in addition to the increased flow of foreign tourism into the country, these figures are witness to the successful promotion strategy implemented by PROCOLOMBIA, which only last year put the country on the world map when 1,316 million people from 87 countries (20% of the world&rsquo s population) enjoyed the unique experiences of " Colombia is Magical Realism&rdquo .
These undertakings ranged from participating at international trade shows and destination promotion activities to Business Matchmaking Forums and familiarization or press trips and massive advertisement and awareness via social media like Facebook, Twitter, and You Tube.
According to the World Travel Awards rules, the winner selection is made by both industry professionals (tour operators, hotels, among others) and travelers via online voting at http://bit.ly/1iXyu0x, where users can sign up to participate. (Category: South America´ s Leading Tourism Board)
The results will be announced on August 9th in a ceremony in Quito, Ecuador, hosted by the organizers of these awards, regarded as the Oscars of global tourism.
In addition to PROCOLOMBIA&rsquo s nomination, the country has the chance to win in other categories, including " Best Beach Destination&rdquo (San Andres), " Best Business Trip Destination&rdquo and " Best Event Destination&rdquo (Bogota and Medellin), and " Best Cruise Destination&rdquo (Cartagena de Indias).
