Dear Reader of Ballena Tales Magazine:

World Tourism Day 2020 will celebrate Rural Development – September 27
This year’s hosts belong to the Mercosur Bloc, which exemplifies the spirit of international solidarity. And for the first time, tourism is focused on providing opportunities outside of the big cities, thus preserving the cultural and natural heritage. This change in perspective comes at a critical moment, functioning as a virtual impulse to attract visitors to southern Costa Rica with its unspoiled landscapes and friendly people.
It will empower rural communities, providing them with jobs and opportunities, allowing them to care for their cultural heritage and unique traditions while protecting habitat and endangered species.
Rural communities are often less prepared to deal with the short and medium-term impacts of a crisis due to lack of opportunities, lower income levels, and the “digital divide.” Tourist activity offers a solution to all these challenges. Tourism is a lifeline that allows rural youth to earn a living without traveling within their country or migrating abroad.

For the first time – Tourism Day 2020 in the South Pacific of Costa Rica – Puerto Cortés
In less than six months, the tiny town of Puerto Cortés has reinvented itself thanks to an incentive from the Chamber of Tourism (CATUOSA). With a titanic effort, neighbors, business people, and friends collaborated with the Municipality of Osa, Judesur, the Corcovado Foundation, and the Free of Single-Use Plastic organization. They created the first phase of a more significant project that will benefit rural areas, such as Puerto Cortés, Sierpe, and Puerto Jiménez.

On September 27, Puerto Cortés will inaugurate the Historic Walk to the “El Embarcadero” Pier. Be sure to follow the event on our Facebook page.
Costa Rica has positioned itself as a destination that mainly attracts tourists with a high educational level, stable employment, and economic situation, who value the country for its nature, human well-being, and the locals’ friendly welcome.

For Ballena Tales, the crisis represents a unique opportunity to make strategic changes to face a completely different world. We much appreciate our clients and writers who brilliantly describe what happens in our paradise. They have been with us, overcoming difficulties as they arise, always with their positive contributions and the conviction to overcome these challenging times together.

We live in a historical moment that offers us the unique opportunity to reinvent ourselves to be the way we want to be.
Lots of love 

Dagmar Reinhard, Editor
Ballena Tales Magazine and Travel Guide

Ballena Tales is a travel guide and magazine covering Costa Ballena in the Canton of Osa in the South Pacific region of Costa Rica. It is a fully bilingual, bi-monthly and full color magazine. The distribution is 18,000 copies a year along the coast to Sierpe and even the Osa Peninsula, including the Palmar Sur and Quepos airports.

The magazine introduces the reader to the life of the local community, with interviews of pioneers, writers, and artists, as well as extensive information on restaurants, hotels, experiences, natural attractions, and wildlife of the South Pacific of Costa Rica.