Sun, sea and...severed heads? Mexico’s image over the last few years has been greatly tarnished since the government began its crackdown on organised crime partially due to requests of the US in efforts to control their own drug issues. Despite facts stating otherwise, such as the 30,000 odd related deaths being almost all drug-traffickers, foreign news coverage has given the impression that the entire country is an all-out civil war, burning from border to border. For an economy that relies on tourism for nearly a tenth of its income, the gruesome headlines are painful.
Yet despite the negative media coverage, Mexico’s tourism sector is doing exceptionally well. After the swine-flu scare of 2009, which emptied hotels overnight, the number of visitors has recovered rapidly, this year estimated to reach approximately 33 million, setting new records.
Many have been lured by cheap hotel rates and airfares, with the average tourist this year spending 5% less than in 2008. Spring break reservations for Mexico from U.S. college students also continue to remain steady. This year, reservations for Mexico from students at Oberlin, Baldwin-Wallace and other colleges have been coming in strong for months, said Kim Gray, a travel agent in North Olmsted, Ohio, with Travel Leaders, one of the top 10 travel agencies in the U.S.
They're heading to Cancun, Playa del Carmen and other destinations on the Riviera Maya, she states; "Some of them want to get away from the big crowds of Cancun and spend time in a smaller town where there's still beautiful beaches."
This all comes with a rise in public awareness that most of Mexico is still very safe, with almost all drug-related violence occurring in areas very far away from tourists.
“When I told people I was going to Mexico for a vacation for a month, people asked me why on earth I would want to go there; didn’t I know about all the drug-wars?” Jeremy from Seattle comments as he sits on the beach in Playa del Carmen, taking a well-deserved rest from working on the fishing trawlers, “Alot of people have no idea what it’s actually like here.”
There are strong signs that public fear in the US and Canada is slowly beginning to wane and is being replaced rather by education of the places one should and should-not visit while on vacation, very good news for Mexico’s continuing strong tourism sector.
Severed heads? Not one in sight.
so true
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