Colombia’s tourism trade associations have ratified that the sector’s impact will be measured on indicators beyond visitor volume, following a meeting between Vice Minister of Tourism Julián Franco Restrepo and representatives of the industry guilds, the Ministerio de Comercio, Industria y Turismo (Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, MinCIT) announced on September 1, 2026.

According to the ministry, the guilds ratified that the sector’s performance will be judged on effective visitor spending, socioeconomic opportunities in the regions, sustainability, the positioning of Colombian gastronomy, and tourist security, rather than on visitor volume alone. Among the strategic themes discussed, the ministry highlighted the goal of establishing tourism as a cross-cutting policy for regional growth and formal job creation.

The meeting was convened on the instruction of Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism Mauricio Gómez Amín, a Barranquilla attorney and former senator who, according to El Tiempo, was named to the portfolio in July by then President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella. The ministry described the session as a first-hand review of what is working in each segment of the industry, the priority needs identified, and the route the government intends to follow for the sector. It did not publish a list of the associations that attended.

“We want tourism to be the great engine of economic and social development for the country. This listening exercise allows us to chart a clear, shared route toward building a stronger, more coordinated industry with a real vision of the future,” said Franco Restrepo.

The Fondo Nacional de Turismo (National Tourism Fund, Fontur), the ministry’s financing and promotion arm, committed at the meeting to put its technical, promotional, and infrastructure-investment capacity behind the priorities the guilds identified. The ministry said Fontur will prioritize the recovery of the departments affected by the August 10 earthquake while continuing development projects and investment in the rest of the country. The ministry did not announce specific measures, funding amounts, or a timeline.

The magnitude 7.4 earthquake, with its epicenter near San José del Palmar in Chocó, struck western and southwestern Colombia on August 10, 2026, and initial assessments reported 472 municipalities affected. According to an August 18 report from the Unidad Nacional para la Gestión del Riesgo de Desastres (National Unit for Disaster Risk Management, UNGRD) cited by Infobae Colombia, the earthquake left 304 dead, 4,548 injured, 426 missing, and 292,043 people affected, figures the UNGRD said could change as field verification continued. Infobae, citing the Asociación Colombiana de Ciudades Capitales (Colombian Association of Capital Cities, Asocapitales), reported that Cali and Pereira recorded the heaviest loss of life and infrastructure collapses among the capital cities.

Pereira’s Matecaña International Airport, which Infobae reported was operating under restrictions at the time, has since reopened gradually. According to MinCIT, the airport received approval from the Aeronáutica Civil (Civil Aeronautics, Aerocivil) on August 22 and was handling an average of 18 flights a day with four airlines as of August 29, with full capacity expected within an estimated two months.

In an interview with Valora Analitik published August 28, María Isabel Campo, general manager of Fontur, said the fund will concentrate over the coming months on reconstruction in five departments hit by the earthquake: Quindío, Risaralda, Valle del Cauca, Chocó, and Caldas. She said Fontur has an emergency line but that it was not set up in anticipation of a tragedy like the earthquake, and that the fund is reviewing its competitiveness and infrastructure lines to finance the reconstruction of damaged tourism infrastructure. Campo also said the fund would work with the Servicio Nacional de Aprendizaje (National Learning Service, SENA) and the private sector on tourism training, and would help smaller municipalities structure projects.

At least one guild has already put specific requests to the government. At the 30th National Congress of Travel and Tourism Agencies in Barranquilla, which closed on August 28, the Asociación Colombiana de Agencias de Viajes y Turismo (Colombian Association of Travel and Tourism Agencies, Anato) presented proposals based on an assessment of its member agencies and other operators in Chocó, Valle del Cauca, Risaralda, Quindío, and Caldas. According to El Espectador, the proposals include subsidies to preserve jobs, a reduction of the value-added tax on air tickets, lodging, and tour packages, special credit lines, tax relief, and more flexible commercial penalties.

Speaking at the same congress on August 27, Franco Restrepo outlined what he called four engines for the sector: confidence, covering security, confidence in service, fair pricing, and institutional trust; experiences, built around tourism corridors and product design; a tourism intelligence center to support data-based decisions; and scale in both infrastructure and promotion. According to El País of Cali, the vice minister told the congress that the main indicators for travel agencies fell in the first half of 2026, and that the country’s roughly 18,000 agencies represent 15% of registered tourism providers and more than 30,000 jobs.

Franco Restrepo served for nine years as secretary of tourism for the department of Valle del Cauca before his appointment to the vice ministry, according to El País. The ministry said the joint work among MinCIT, Fontur, and the guilds is meant to lead to concrete actions to strengthen the sector’s development.

Headline photo: Tourism guild representatives and MinCIT officials after the September 1, 2026 meeting. (Photo courtesy MinCIT / Lincoln Acevedo)

The Ministry of Tourism of the Dominican Republic was present at the fair with an official stand, inaugurated in the presence of the Minister of Tourism, David Collado. During the inauguration, the minister highlighted the importance of the Colombian market and initiated a series of cultural and business activities that will strengthen relations with the country’s tourism sector. “With this participation in ANATO 2025, we reaffirm our commitment to promote the Dominican Republic as a key destination and strengthen our relationship with Colombian tourism, a strategic ally for the growth of the sector,” Collado said. The inauguration was also attended by the media, who highlighted the relevance of this event for the tourism industry.

As part of its strategy to strengthen the Colombian market, the Dominican Republic held a successful roadshow at the Sheraton Hotel in Bogotá, where it presented the latest developments in the destination. The event brought together travel agencies, representatives of the hotel sector, and renowned international public figures, who lived first-hand the experiences that the country offers its visitors. This roadshow, like other events organized during the fair, is consolidated as a key space for the generation of business, the strengthening of commercial relations, and the promotion of new opportunities in the tourism sector.

The Ministry of Tourism of the Dominican Republic was present at the fair with an official stand. Photo credit: LLYC.global.

Colombians’ interest in the Dominican Republic continues to rise. In 2023, 305,655 Colombian tourists visited the country, and in 2024, the figure grew to 335,819, evidencing a constantly growing demand. A key factor has been air connectivity, with more than 3,600 flights operated in 2024 between the two countries. Of these, 50% depart from El Dorado Airport in Bogotá, and more than 60% of passengers arrive directly in Punta Cana. Airlines such as Copa Airlines, Avianca, Arajet, Wingo, and Air Century have played a fundamental role in the consolidation of these routes.

In addition to Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic has diversified its tourism offerings, positioning new regions such as Costa del Ámbar, Miches, Samaná, and Santiago. These destinations offer a unique combination of nature, luxury, history, and culture, with paradisiacal landscapes, eco-adventures, and vibrant urban centers with a rich gastronomic tradition.

To strengthen its relationship with the tourism sector, the country has “DO Travel Rewards”, a loyalty program aimed at travel agents that has trained and connected more than 20,000 professionals around the world with the hotel industry, generating new opportunities and value offers for travelers. With its outstanding presence at ANATO 2025 and the support of the Ministry of Tourism, the Dominican Republic reaffirms its commitment to the Colombian market, consolidating strategic alliances and presenting its wide tourism offering to continue attracting more travelers in the coming years.

Headline Image Credit: LLYC.global.

After Avianca and Viva repeatedly demanded speedy approval by the Colombian government for their deal, Viva abruptly ceased operations on the last day of February. Now, Avianca is no longer in such a hurry to consummate the deal, citing Viva’s deteriorated situation and the conditions imposed by Aerocivil.

If Viva remains shut down, Avianca has effectively eliminated its strongest competitor.

In a statement issued this morning, Avianca said (translated by Finance Colombia):

After having informed [the Colombian government] in 2022 about the acquisition of the economic rights of Viva Air by the controlling shareholders of Avianca (transaction covered by Resolution 10390 of 2015 of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce) and having requested more than seven months ago the integration of both companies to the Civil Aeronautics -Aerocivil- in the framework of the evident financial crisis of the low-cost carrier, Avianca received yesterday the notification of approval with conditions by the Civil Aeronautics.

Given the operational, financial and technical implications of Aerocivil’s decision, Avianca will study the resolution and the implications of the measures set forth by the authority as soon as possible to determine the feasibility of complying with them. In this context, it should be noted:

• • • Viva Air no longer has the same capabilities – route network, planes, workers – that it had before the temporary suspension of its operations, a factor that must be analyzed in detail to determine the relevance of the conditions established by Civil Aeronautics.
    • As provided by the Civil Aeronautics, against this decision there is room for appeals and reinstatement not only by the parties involved but also by interested third parties recognized by the authority in the process (LATAM, Wingo, Ultra Air and Aerolíneas Argentinas), for which approval with conditions is not yet firm. Until that happens, Avianca is not empowered to intervene in the operational or financial situation of the Viva airline, nor will it be able to resolve, as required by the resolution, the situation of the users affected by the low-cost carrier.

Regardless of the foregoing and meeting the needs of users who have been affected by this situation, Avianca will continue to offer those with confirmed tickets alternatives for their relocation:

1. 1. 1. Free of charge until March 24, subject to seat availability and in order of arrival at the airport.
      2. Through special protection rates that allow seat confirmation.

To date and seeking to preserve the stability of the Colombian air system, Avianca has led the protection of passengers affected by Viva by having relocated more than 70,000 users on 103 routes (61,000 on the domestic Colombia and 9,000 on international routes), and has arranged five planes and has put 56 exclusive counters at the airports at the service of the situation.

The speed of the authority will be essential so that there can be a solution that allows safeguarding the existence of what remains today of the low-cost pioneer in Colombia.

The two airlines were dealt a blow after the April 2022 deal when Aerocivil in November rejected the merger on grounds of market dominance. Viva no longer had access to additional capital once the airline changed hands, leading to the repossession of several of its airlines, and in February of this year, a chaotic termination of operations, stranding passengers, abandoning employees, and (possibly irrevocably) destroying the airline’s brand trust.

But by this point, Colombia’s Ministry of Transportation, which Aerocivil reports to, had ordered Aerocivil to re-evaluate the acquisition based on technicalities in its original decision. The long-delayed final ruling was released at almost midnight, last night.

Still, Shareholders and certain executives of both Avianca and Viva are now facing civil charges from Colombia’s commerce regulator, and potential criminal charges for fraud from the attorney general—the latter due to the airline continuing to sell tickets for future travel once executives determined to shut down operations.

Last night, Aerocivil issued the following announcement (translated by Finance Colombia):

Faced with the request for pre-evaluation of a business integration presented by Avianca S.A., Viva Air and Viva Air Peru, Civil Aeronautics informs:

1. 1. On November 4, 2022, [Aerocivil] Civil Aeronautics, in accordance with the preceding procedures, objected to the application for integration in the terms that were presented because it considered it contrary to free competition and the condition of the company [Viva] being in difficulty was not proven.
   2. On January 18, 2023, through resolution 00079 of the Secretariat of the Aeronautical Authority of this entity [Ministry of Transportation], it was ordered to redo the administrative action and establish as a procedure for this type of request as enshrined in Law 1340 of 2009 with norms concordant to the tenor of extant consumer protection rules.
   3. The intervening companies, in the context of the new procedure, submitted a “final offer” of remedies to mitigate the underlying anticompetitive effects of the proposed transaction, which were the subject of analysis.
   4. The Directorate of Air Transport and Commercial Air Affairs of this entity carried out a detailed and technical study of the application submitted and, in turn, of the related remedies, to evaluate the viability of the solution, finding that the proposed ones failed to mitigate the effects of concentration, dominance and asymmetry derived from the transaction.
   5. Management took stock of the situation generated by the suspension of VIVA’s operations, its operational condition and the crisis that materialized in February, as well as the possibility of authorizing the integration by imposing a set of remedies that, from the point of view of competition, would mitigate the effects that current market agents and potential entrants would experience on behalf of the operation.
   6. As a consequence of the above, it was decided to authorize the integration, conditioning it to the fulfillment of various structural and behavioral remedies that guarantee, among others:
      1. That the rights of VIVA users be respected, that they be reimbursed for cancelled flight tickets and that those who have outstanding tickets be allowed to fly. In any case, they must respond to VIVA passengers affected by the unilateral decisions of the company to cease their operations.
      2. The return of the slots that imply aggravating the situation of concentration in the most demanded slots (prime) for both the Summer and Winter seasons, both in departures and arrivals, in order not to increase the barriers to [market] entry that this market generates access to the infrastructure of [Bogotá’s] El Dorado Airport
      3. Maintain the low-cost scheme of VIVA as an option in terms of air transport, which materializes options for air service users.
      4. The return of frequencies on the Bogotá – Buenos Aires route, which is particularly impacted.

Critical questions (and charges) remain:

The good news is that this provides in the short term, some certainty and a path for remedy for customers and travel agents affected by the recent chaos. The second immediate question is whether, with a damaged brand, repossessed planes, and key employees departed, Viva will continue to exist as a separate airline, or be absorbed into Avianca as many suspected all along?

The third question is what will happen to the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce investigation charges against Avianca and Viva, specifically Resolution 87164 of 2022 for “allegedly having participated in a business integration operation without the prior authorization of the SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE UNIT OF CIVIL AERONÁUTICA (hereinafter, AEROCIVIL).”

The agency, which is independent of Aerocivil and the Ministry of Transportation said in a statement:

“For this Superintendency, the acquisition of the economic rights of VIVA AIR and VIVA PERÚ by INVESTMENT VEHICLE 1 LIMITED, parent company of AVIANCA, could be sufficient to constitute a business integration or, at least, the beginning of the execution of the business integration between the aforementioned airlines. Operation that was not informed or authorized prior to its completion by the competent authority. Therefore, the investigated companies allegedly engaged in practices restricting free competition.”

Lastly, the Ministry of transportation Guillermo Reyes stated that he has submitted a criminal fraud complaint to Colombia’s attorney general for Viva’s management continuing to sell tickets to passengers and travel agencies once the decision had been made to shut the airline down.

Viva in a press release issued earlier this month, defends its actions, instead blaming Aerocivil for not approving the merger: “We want to be vehement, Aerocivil did not respond to our urgent calls in the face of the urgent need to define the alliance with Avianca, nor did our calls for notice of temporary suspension of operations, unlike what they are saying in the media about our misnamed ‘surprise’ anyone.”

Who is to blame? Will Viva fly again? Let us know in the comment section below.

Photos: Loren Moss

In his new role as director of sales and distribution for Viva, his job will be to work closely with travel agencies and other travel and tourism industry actors to consolidate Viva’s position in both the tourist and corporate segments, as the smartest option to fly.

For all commercial contacts and distribution channel affairs, Zapata will be available from December 1 via email at juandiego.zapata@vivaair.com.

Photo courtesy Viva Air