Mexican travel experts believe that tourism recovery is possible in all destinations of the country between July and August, although it will depend on the planning and projection measures taken by the current administration.
In Mexico, until 4 months ago, tourism accounted for 8.7% of the country’s GDP. However, in a special report presented by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), that percentage will drop to 8.5% in 2020. During February, 3,770,836 international visitors entered the country, which represented an increase of 11.7 percent, reported the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI). These positive figures are expected to suffer a major setback in the coming months.
The COVID-19 pandemic can be classified as one of the worst in the last 10 years for Mexico, after the September 11 attacks in the United States. However, it is believed that tourism recovery is largely possible in all Mexican destinations, although it will depend on the measures taken.
The tourism industry already faced a global crisis in the past. In 2001, the attack on the Twin Towers generated one of the worst falls in tourism in modern history. It was not until after a period of 34 months that tourism recovered and regained its normal course. It has been 19 years since than, and the industry has learned a lot to be able to face unexpected events that compromise its development.
The ports of the Caribbean coast and the Pacific will surely be the most affected destinations in Mexico; however, there are actions that could be implemented in the industry to set in motion the recovery work that is expected to happen in July and August.
As a part of these measures, experts believe that the whole industry – all travel businesses and organizations – need to be kept informed so that, in turn, they can provide accurate and updated information to their clients on prevention measures and actions taken within the country to stop the spread of the virus.
Another factor is to start planning and projecting into the future when airports and destinations are reopened and the number of travelers and tourists begins to rise.
The worst thing that can be done in the industry is to sit back and do nothing. The future planning will be vital, that is, to start working on projects or products to capture the attention of tourists. Old and new customers should be encouraged to return to Mexican destinations and gradually resume their normal post-pandemic life.
The current situation should be seen as an opportunity to improve other aspects that had been delayed due to the holiday periods, such as designing or promoting new sanitary measures, working on gaining the trust of travelers, adhering to conservation measures and protocols, and designing new sustainable and eco-friendly tourist experiences.