Volume 2, No. 5. March 8, 2002
Eco econ I
Putting a first-class resort in an
out-of-the-way, ecologically preserved portion of Brazil may attract sufficient
visitors, but once there they need entertainment. That is the hybrid philosophy
driving Wolf Vierich, chairman and owner of Vitala Group, to develop an upscale
ecological resort in a country still struggling through economic crisis.
Vitala is concluding negotiations on a plan to develop Captain Nikolas Ecological
Island Resort at Isla da Croa. Isolated on a peninsula about an hour north of
the 800,000-people city of Maceio and currently accessible only by ferry, the
320,000-square-meter beach-front site currently has 39 chalets surrounded by
some 4,000 coconut and tropical fruit trees. Because of a coral reef three miles
(five kilometers) off shore, the warm Atlantic Ocean laps up to the beach in
gently rippling waves, Vierich said.
His plans call for acquiring additional land on the side and behind Captain
Nikolas' current holdings and building a hotel that would ultimately give the
resort up to 500 rooms. "We would provide everything in-house to keep the vacationer
for nine days on site without complaining," Vierich said: "from themed restaurant
to retail shops, a small waterpark, a botanical garden element and an entertainment
element where you can learn about Brazil's fauna and plantations." No motor
vehicles will be allowed on the property. "You walk, you bicycle, you climb,
you pull, you push," Vierich said. "Everything with noise and vibration is out."
Hence, no traditional amusement park, "no roller coaster," and the waterpark
would be "low key," stressing landscape.
Vierich put the total investment at US$320 million. Despite Brazil's ongoing
economic doldrums, and the recent economic collapses in neighboring Argentina
and Bolivia, Vierich feels eco-tourism is a promising growth market in the region.
"Brazil is now hotting up as a resort market," said Vierich, who has a long
history of resort and waterpark development there. "Money is flowing in, especially
Asian money." He also notes that a Canadian firm is building a resort near Maceio.
He cites several reasons for his bullish attitude. Though still high—the
prime rate was 18.75 percent last week—Brazil has the lowest lending rate
in the region. Combine that with the climate, the live-for-today cultural attitude
and an "abundance of beach and undeveloped areas unrivaled anywhere in the world,"
Vierich said, Brazil remains at the forefront of tourism-sector development
in South America. The central government also is pushing initiatives to spur
tourism investment.
Even so, Vierich does not expect his plans to speed through the Brazilian bureaucracy.
"We think by mid-2005 we will have made it," he said. His also will be an expensive
proposition, whether located in Brazil or not. "Ecology costs a lot of money,"
he said. "It is expensive to guard ecological enterprises." That, however, is
an expense many consumers seem more willing to take on themselves.
