Getting the Yucatan’s tourism back on track

Our Best Stories — Straight to Your Inbox!

Sign up for the Yucatán Roundup and get our biggest headlines once a week in your inbox. It's free and you can unsubscribe at any time.

The Yucatan in Mexico is known for its pristine beaches and historical significance, and as such has long been viewed as a desirable travel destination. However, the tourism numbers for the area are actually in decline. Looking at the issue broadly, there doesn’t appear to be any one major change causing the decline, and as such there’s no obvious solution for it. However, considering a few factors, we’ve come up with some suggestions as to what could give the Yucatan tourism industry a fresh boost.

More Promotion

Since Mexico’s government announced it was liquidating the CPTM (Tourism Promotion Council of Mexico) last year, the drop-off in foreign visitors has become more precipitous. If promotion stops altogether, of course, the Yucatan stands to fade from popular consideration as a destination, at least in due time. Where this point is concerned though, it’s simply a matter of investment. If the state wishes to turn the tourism numbers around, the first and perhaps most important step is likely to make sure that the Yucatan is at the forefront of the travel advertising and marketing so many prospective tourists encounter, primarily on the web. 

Modernized Casinos

To some extent casino activity is expected at tropical vacation destinations, and in this regard the Yucatan has fallen behind. This is partially thanks to the fact that casino tourism just hasn’t been emphasized much, but it’s also because the pace of advancement in online casinos has shifted travelers’ expectations. Bonus-leaden New Zealand casino platforms, UK sites offering thousands of games in one place, and more and more apps have gotten people to expect high-end, digital experiences — which is why we’re suggesting a few modernized casinos on the peninsula could do well. New, modern venues, cutting-edge games, and sets of perks resembling those people find online could appeal to dedicated casino lovers and younger, millennial travelers alike. As much as people are playing on the internet now, the idea of an enjoyable casino near the beach, or among resort facilities, can still draw a crowd. 

Celebrity Draw

Where there are stars, there are paparazzi (or these days just adoring fans with smartphones), and by extension attention is drawn to wherever those stars might be. Whether you appreciate the reports you see about the everyday lives of celebrities, or you think they should be entitled to more privacy, the fact remains that the rich and famous draw attention. Harnessing that attention and utilizing it for tourism potential could just help to inject the Yucatan with a bit of its former popularity. As for how to make this happen in a deliberate manner, there are plenty of options. The area could explore options with film studios to bring a project with an A-list actor to the Yucatan; promotional events with high-end sponsors and celebrity endorsers could be hosted at area resorts; a few hotels could reach out to celebrity chefs to inquire about setting up new restaurant locations. These are all fairly ambitious ideas — but also potentially effective ones. 

Feature Film or TV Show

We mentioned the idea of Hollywood partnership regarding celebrity attention, but it’s worth mentioning that a film or show itself could also bring a massive spotlight to the Yucatan. One need only look at the effect of Game Of Thrones on Croatia to see that a hit will bring tourists (though it should be noted that the Croatia example is extreme, and went well beyond what many locals would have preferred). Nevertheless, the idea is a sound one. The whole area could stand to benefit from the attention that would be brought by a project like this, be it an action movie, a potential Oscar winner, or even the latest big original series for Netflix. 

Visiting gorgeous international locations like Mexico and the Yucatan specifically should be on everyone’s bucket list. And while we wouldn’t want to see things swing too far toward constant, mass tourism, any of the above ideas could help more people to plan trips to this wonderful corner of the world. 

- Advertisement -spot_img
AVAILABLE NOWspot_img
ADVERTISEMENTspot_img
Verified by ExactMetrics