On the Mayan Riviera you can see people enjoying the holidays as if the pandemic is no more. This summer, Cancun registered the largest number of arrivals since February 2020, before the World Health Organization (WHO) officially announced the COVID-19 pandemic.
In June alone, this is the most important destination in Mexico for international tourism, which was visited by more than 2 million visitors, the vast majority of whom were from other countries. The figures are as high as before the pandemic, although Mexico is currently battling a third wave of coronavirus.
The latest data on tourism activity in Cancun show the resumption of international tourism in high season. Of the 2 million visitors who arrived at Cancun airport, about 1.3 million arrived on international flights, according to the latest report from Mexico’s ASUR airport. The rest, almost 800,000, came from national destinations. Tourism Minister Miguel Torruco said the return of foreign tourists was linked to the country’s geographical location and the introduction of COVID-19 guidelines and protocols in the private sector to protect tourists.
“International tourism has undergone several changes since the pandemic. Tourists will NOT travel for more than 4.5 hours by plane in the next 3-4 years, and due to its location, Mexico is in a privileged position. In addition, tourists with high purchasing power, who were not previously attracted, now decide to come, especially to Cancun, Southern Baja California and Nayarit,” said Torruko. The Secretary also assured that domestic tourism has played an important role in reviving the industry, which this year recorded 258 million visits, resulting in an average occupancy rate of hotels over the same period rose to 82%.
The decline in tourism in Cancun over the past year has been significant. In 2020, the city received only 6.8 million visitors, while in the previous two years their number exceeded 16 million. However, the collapse took place all over the world, and despite the fact that the country was no exception, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador advanced his strategy – never to close the borders, placing the country in third place in terms of arrivals from abroad after Italy and France, according to the Ministry of Tourism.
The number of coronavirus cases in Quintana Roo, just outside the Mexican Caribbean, has been rising since April. Recently, the state, one of the least populous in the country, reported 34,000 cases and 3,000 deaths. Many cases are not even added to the Quintana Roo data, as they are tourists from different states.