Valle de Aconcagua launches first tourism academy to train over 50 entrepreneurs

More than 50 business owners from the Valle de Aconcagua began a training program in Chile's first Tourism Academy, organized by the Sercotec Aconcagua Business Development Center. The initiative, supported by the San Felipe municipality and the Fundación Lepe, follows a 2025 commercial competency study that surveyed about 70% of local commerce.

The academy will run seven modules covering market‑niche identification, risk assessment for unplanned tourism development, and the importance of governance and stakeholder coordination. Regional Sercotec director John Reid Echenique said the program will "allow entrepreneurs to acquire competencies to develop their businesses in tourism, a field with very different skills from ordinary commerce." San Felipe municipal administrator Cristian Aravena called the effort a step toward "professionalising tourism" in the valley. Fundación Lepe executive Consuelo Romano highlighted the focus on sustainable, high‑quality tourism as a driver for local communities, while regional tourism council chair Edith Quiroz stressed the value of the academy for helping entrepreneurs access funding and promotion. Hotel owner Franz Röber added that the training provides a "complete business vision" needed for growth.