The Guatemalan Tourism Institute (INGUAT) was established as a decentralized state entity with legal personality and its own assets on October 6, 1967, through Decree 1701 of the Congress of the Republic, published in the Official Gazette.

However, the origins of Guatemala’s leading tourism institution date back to the early years of the third decade of the 20th century, specifically on October 27, 1932, when the Tourism Section was created during the second year of General Jorge Ubico’s administration. Initially, its office was located in the Hotel Palace in the center of Guatemala City and was inaugurated with the arrival of the country's first organized group of tourists.

 By 1944, during the presidency of Dr. Juan José Arévalo, the Tourism Office was housed in the National Palace. On December 12, 1952, the National Tourism Office was officially established through Government Decree No. 861 during Jacobo Árbenz Guzmán’s presidency. This office was located on 6th Avenue, between 10th and 11th Streets in Zone 1.

Shortly after, it was moved to 11th Street, between 4th and 5th Avenues in Zone 1, in a building owned by the Herrera family, where it remained for about three years. In 1954, the office relocated to 6th Avenue 5-34, Zone 1. 

In October 1961, through Decree No. 1497 of the Congress of the Republic, the Tourism Office was transformed into the Guatemalan Tourism Center, led by Roberto Bianchi Rosales, who assumed office on December 1, 1961. He was succeeded by:

• Alberto Urrutia Aparicio (April 1962)
• José Miguel Collado Morales (June 1962)
• Lucy W. de Sturgilly (July 1964)
• Colonel Ricardo Antonio Porras Figueroa (August 1964)

This new institution planned and accomplished two major milestones for the future of Guatemala’s tourism industry:

1. The establishment of INGUAT in October 1967, under Colonel Ricardo Antonio Porras Figueroa, the last manager of the Guatemalan Tourism Center, who became the first director of INGUAT.
2. The construction of a dedicated tourism headquarters, which centralized tourism administration. Approved in August 1973 during the government of General Carlos Arana Osorio, the project was led by Jorge Senn Bonilla, INGUAT’s director from 1972 to 1979.

The building’s construction began in April 1974, after the National Council for Economic Planning approved the investment, considering the increase in tourism activity and its financial sustainability.

INGUAT’s First Decade (1967-1977)

During INGUAT’s first decade, several directors, including Francisco López Urzúa, Leonel Sisniega Otero, Jorge D. Krausse, and Álvaro Arzú, contributed significantly to Guatemala’s economic, social, and cultural growth, despite the devastating 1976 earthquake. By January 1978, Guatemala had fully recovered and continued its growth, reaching the highest recorded number of inbound tourists by the following year. During this decade, Guatemala saw:

• The creation of important cultural centers, such as the Estanzuela Museum in Zacapa and the La Democracia Museum in Escuintla.
• The first two tourism seminars at the municipal level. The foundation of the Handicraft Market. The development of the Cerro del Baúl tourism infrastructure in Quetzaltenango. Major investments in the conservation of Antigua Guatemala, the landscaping and organization of the Relief Map, and the urbanization and lighting of Plazuela España (Zone 9, Guatemala City).
• The purchase and donation of two street sweepers to the Municipality of Guatemala.

Additionally, INGUAT launched major promotional campaigns for both domestic and inbound tourism. In 1976, Guatemala participated for the first time in the International Tourism Exchange (ITB) in Berlin, Germany.

SOURCE: Historical Background of Tourism in Guatemala.