Tourism
From The Report: Mexico 2019
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Over the past decade, Mexico’s tourism industry has shown steady expansion, growing every year since 2011 despite security concerns and travel warnings. The 41.4m tourists that visited Mexico in 2018 reflect a 5.5% increase from the number of visitors in 2017, when the government estimated 39m foreign tourists entered the country. Tourists are increasingly venturing out of the traditional tourist centres – Mexico City, the Mayan Riviera with Cancún as the star attraction, Riviera Nayarit with Puerto Vallarta and Los Cabos – to visit the up-and-coming destinations of Campeche, Yucatán and Oaxaca. Meanwhile, steadily increasing investment in popular resorts reflects the strength of Mexico’s beach tourism. Greater demand for business travel alongside niche alternatives such as ecotourism and cultural heritage visits also demonstrates the continued potential of the tourism industry. This chapter contains an interview with Miguel Torruco Marqués, Minister of Tourism.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Beyond the beach: Heritage sites and business travel drive diversified growth
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Over the past decade, Mexico’s tourism industry has shown steady expansion, growing every year since 2011 despite security concerns and travel warnings. The 41.4m tourists that visited Mexico in 2018 reflect a 5.5% increase from the number of visitors in 2017, when the government estimated 39m foreign tourists entered the country. According to the World Travel & Tourism Council, tourism accounted for 17.2% of GDP in 2018. Additionally, the rate of growth outpaced that of overall economic…

Interview

Pivotal role: Miguel Torruco Marqués, Minister of Tourism, on the sector’s changing landscape and where the state can provide assistance
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Interview:Miguel Torruco Marqués In light of the new multi-phase tourism policy, what diversification initiatives will be put in place to strengthen the industry? MIGUEL TORRUCO MARQUÉS: The government has set a series of inclusive tourism policies, whose benefits are expected to reach all segments of society, with fundamentals for the implementation of programmes focused on promoting business, leisure and health tourism activities. Additionally, the development of infrastructure projects…

Analysis

All aboard: The government tourism strategy aims to promote sustainable and inclusive growth for the broader economy
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Mexican officials are turning to the tourism sector in a drive to create a more inclusive and sustainable economy based on technological advancement, as well as value-added products and services. The National Development Plan (Plan Nacional de Desarrollo, PND) 2019-24, released by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador – commonly known as AMLO – aims to promote the responsible use of resources and reach 6% economic growth by 2024. It is expected to have a wide impact on the overall Mexican…

Analysis

A short drive away: Tourist attractions benefit from Hidalgo’s proximity to Mexico City, making it a popular inland destination
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As recent years have seen Hidalgo place a greater emphasis on its tourism sector, private companies are also recognising the potential of the small but strategically located state. In November 2018 leading US water park and resort provider Great Wolf Lodge announced that it had chosen Hidalgo as the site of its first facility outside of the US and Canada. After analysing several Mexican states, the company decided that Tepeji del Río was the best place to reach the largest market in the…

Analysis

More to offer: Improved infrastructure, marketing and training are priorities to support tourism growth in San Luis Potosí
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San Luis Potosí has a portfolio of attractions to appeal to different segments of the tourism market. Beyond the picturesque colonial centre of the capital, palm groves, natural pools and archaeological sites make the south-eastern Huasteca region worthy of promotion, and adventure tourism has grown significantly in recent years with activities such as white-water rafting, climbing and mountain biking east of San Luis Potosí city. According to the “Third Government Report 2017-2018”,…

Overview

Room to manoeuvre: The hospitality sector is expanding and evolving to support growing numbers of international travellers
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Aided by easier and cheaper travel, global tourism has experienced two decades of almost uninterrupted growth. According to the World Bank, the number of international departures more than doubled between 1997 and 2017, from 687m to 1.57bn per annum. With the global middle class estimated by the US-based think tank Brookings Institution to be expanding by as many as 160m people per year until 2021, it is perhaps unsurprising that almost half of the growth in tourist numbers was accounted for by departures from lowand middle-income countries, which increased from 121m in 1997 to 564m in 2017. Significant growth was also recorded in the…

Overview

Room to manoeuvre: The hospitality sector is expanding and evolving to support growing numbers of international travellers
OBG
plus

Aided by easier and cheaper travel, global tourism has experienced two decades of almost uninterrupted growth. According to the World Bank, the number of international departures more than doubled between 1997 and 2017, from 687m to 1.57bn per annum. With the global middle class estimated by the US-based think tank Brookings Institution to be expanding by as many as 160m people per year until 2021, it is perhaps unsurprising that almost half of the growth in tourist numbers was accounted for by departures from lowand middle-income countries, which increased from 121m in 1997 to 564m in 2017. Significant growth was also recorded in the…