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ACAPULCO, Mexico — Despite tensions sparked by comments President Trump has made about the character of Mexicans entering the U.S. and his demands for a wall to separate the countries, the mood at Tianguis Turistico, the Mexico Tourism Board’s annual trade exposition held here last week, was festive: American suppliers and Mexican officials alike were celebrating a year in which Mexico appears poised to jump from the ninth most popular tourist destination in the world to eighth.
At this point, worries that Americans might be hesitant to travel to Mexico appear to be unfounded.
“We conducted a survey in March because we were concerned [about the impact of the Trump administration] and that summer travel [to Mexico] was going to be affected,” said Lourdes Berho, CEO of the Mexico Tourism Board. “We have not seen any cancellations. The only thing [the survey uncovered] was that Volaris and Interjet were having no-shows of Mexican travelers who were afraid that they would not be allowed back into the U.S. [if they left]. That’s the only downturn that has been reported.”
Berho added: “We all know that [the U.S. and Mexico] are sister countries. We are neighbors, and we have so much in common. We love Americans, and we love Americans visiting us.”
Pleasant Holidays CEO Jack Richards said that for his company, “Last year was a record year for Mexico in terms of sales and passengers, and 2017 is experiencing double-digit growth. Mexico is our top destination for destination wedding travel, and we have received no cancellations thus far in 2017.”
Pleasant Holidays recently expanded its product in Mexico to include Mexico City and Guadalajara.
“We have had only one cancellation [due to Trump],” said Zachary Rabinor, CEO of Journey Mexico. “However that client reinstated [their travel plans],” he said.
Mitch Toren, chief vacation engineer at TripGuy.com, said his company was “not seeing any meaningful reluctance for our clients to visit Mexico due to U.S. politics.”
However, Beach Bum Vacations vice president of sales and marketing Robert Whorrall said his company had experienced a few cancellations. “Not many, but the people who did cancel said it was due to the uncertainty of what Trump was going to do next with future travel bans and how the citizens of Mexico would view them as American citizens due to Trump’s rhetoric.”
Whorrall said he believes, however, “that the citizens of Mexico welcome our clients with open arms” and provide “some of the best service in the industry.”
Although Mexican government officials, including president Enrique Pena-Nieto and tourism secretary Enrique de la Madrid, avoided any mention of U.S.-Mexico tensions in their official addresses at the conference’s inaugural assembly, one speaker did not hold back.
Taleb Rifai, secretary general of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), said in a video that preceded his remarks, “No wall will isolate a country, and anyone who [builds one] will isolate themselves.”
Moments later, addressing Pena-Nieto directly from the stage, he said, “You are on the south side of the [geographic] divide … but the right side of history. … The future is Mexico.”
The audience, the Mexican president included, interrupted Rifai with a standing ovation.
Rifai also teased the audience about the possibility that it will rise substantially in the rankings of international arrivals when the UNWTO announces its official stats this spring, suggesting the country could go from ninth to eighth place, “maybe even seventh.”
In an interview with Travel Weekly the day after Rifai’s remarks, de la Madrid said, “Let me put it this way: I think [the rise in Mexico’s ranking] is a fact, but it’s not yet official. I think they’re still waiting for some data from Russia.”
De la Madrid said he won’t complain if it is eighth rather than seventh place. “In just four years, Mexico will have gone from No. 15 to No. 8, which is amazing,” he said.
The rise is also reflected in Mexico’s internal statistical reporting.
“At the beginning of this administration, tourism was No. 22 in terms of contributing income,” he said. “Hopefully, we should be around 14 [when data is next reported].
Sоurсе: travelweekly.com
