With continued 10% growth in international arrivals over the past three years, Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean one of the fastest growing destinations in the world, said Julia Simpson, President of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC).
The Mexican market has managed to maintain the loyalty of American and Canadian travelers, who are driving this growth.
As of today, Cancun International Airport (CUN) offers routes to 42 cities in the United States alone. This airport has become a strategic “global connectivity hub,” she said.
During a visit to the country, the executive told a group of businessmen that Mexico is no longer experiencing an economic recovery from the pandemic, but growth that exceeds 2019 figures.
According to Simpson, this phenomenon is currently experienced by only a handful of countries. For these and other reasons, she placed the Mexican Caribbean as “a benchmark for world tourism.”
In terms of revenues, this destination is expected to contribute more than $264 billion to gross domestic product (GDP), according to a study conducted by the WTTC.
The WTTC president and local hoteliers also discussed concerns about sargassum and how it has affected the destination, especially the beaches of Quintana Roo. There was also talk of potentially being hit by a strong hurricane.
However, there is good news for hoteliers and tourists alike. The Mexican Caribbean will experience a sargassum-free summer, according to a recent report.
Satellite images have revealed that a huge blob of algae that was bound for Mexico is now headed for South Florida, reported Esteban Amaro Mauricio, director of the Quintana Roo Sargassum Monitoring Network.
Weather conditions in the Atlantic Ocean have changed, making it possible that the destination will have a sargassum-free summer from the second week of July.
Sargassum will still wash up on a few beaches, including the “areas between Mahahual and Xcalak, the east coast of Cozumel, southern Punta Nizuc, the Sian Ka’an Reserve and Tulum.” But the rest will be clean.
Simpson also spoke about the importance of continuing large-scale marketing campaigns and implementing environmental projects to stay ahead of regional competitors, who are also growing non-stop.
In fact, industry leaders participating in the annual Caribbean Travel Marketplace revealed that the Caribbean as a whole received 33.2 million travelers last year, an increase of 14.3 percent compared to 2022.
“Other destinations breaking arrival and revenue records include Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Turks and Caicos, Belize and the Dominican Republic.”
