Argentine and foreign firms plan to build 24 hotels in the jungles of Misiones province near Iguazu Falls in an effort to double the number of beds available in the area for visitors, the La Nacion newspaper reported Sunday. Tourism officials hope to see nine five-star and 15 four- and three-star hotels built in the region at a cost of about $150 million in the Yryapu jungle on the Iguazu River.

The hotels will be operated under the Hilton, Hyatt, Radisson, Panamericano, Loi Suites, Tekoa, Village Cataratas, Nido Jungle and Tapiz brands, among others.

Tourism has been surging in Argentina since the peso devaluation and economic crisis in 2002.

The Tourism Secretariat said 200 hotels were under construction or about to break ground in the South American nation.

Investors are pumping $473 million into the hospitality projects, or nearly triple the $152 million invested in the sector in 2005.
——-