The recent appointment of Josefina Rodríguez Zamora as new Secretary of Tourism of Mexico, offers a unique opportunity to boost inbound tourist traffic to the country, which is on the verge of surpassing pre-pandemic international tourist arrivals and spending, says a report.

The new appointment could open up many new opportunities for the North American country to reposition, realign and relaunch itself as a destination with a long-term vision, says Mabrian, a global tourism intelligence platform. 

According to a press statement by Mabrian, Mexico can lay the foundations for sustainable and profitable growth by addressing the revamp of its hospitality and tourism products and services based on experiential-led models.

Mabrian says that this can reinforce the destination’s image of security and international air connectivity, boosting its global promotion campaigns.

According to data from UN Tourism, on average and since 2020, Mexico has experienced an average annual growth of 20.9 pc, reaching 42.14 million international tourists in 2023, only 6.4 pc below the figures for 2019.

According to Mabrian, the potential of this country, which is also the sixth most visited in the world, is enormous.

Investing in experiential tourism products

After the pandemic, travellers’ interests have evolved. Tourism industry has had to adapt to respond to a more experiential demand. 

Carlos Cendra

This process has not advanced at the same speed in all destinations, which affects travellers’ expectations and satisfaction.

In the case of Mexico, Mabrian’s data shows that the destination follows the global trend and the demand for tourist experiences related to active, natural, gastronomic or wellness tourism has increased by more than 2 percentage points since 2019, although the Tourist Product Satisfaction Index of international markets still shows some room for improvement, scoring 70.3 points out of 100.

“It is vital to promote and develop an authentic and relevant tourist offer, which highlights the natural wealth and cultural heritage of the destination, which will attract segments with greater spending capacity and willing to enjoy longer stays,” says Carlos Cendra, Partner and Director of Marketing and Communication, Mabrian.

Renew & update the hotel offer

According to Mabrian, the hotel offer is an essential component of any destination’s tourism package. In Mexico’s case, it is even more so because of the country’s well-known vacation package and sizable urban tourism industry.

Since 2019, and also compared to last year, the Hotel Satisfaction Index for Mexican accommodations has dropped in all categories from 11 to 13.5 points.

This signals how dissociated the expectations of travellers are with the hotel experience, especially among international visitors, in a context in which the quality of the experience can make the difference.

“Mid-range hotels are a very important link in the configuration of tourist packages, and 5-star hotels are the reference for the high-impact market; therefore, having a solid hotel offer is an essential condition for consolidating mature markets and for opening new markets,” says Cendra.

Boosting the destination’s global image

Mabrian says that the motivations of international travellers to visit Mexico reflect the rise of experiential travel, which drives interest in nature, gastronomy and active tourism, segments that have gained prominence since 2019. 

Contrarily, although sun and beach tourism continues to represent 13 pc of the motivations for international travellers visiting Mexico, it moves into fourth place after losing 4 percentage points compared to the same period in 2019.

“Travel motivations to Mexico are diversifying, which is positive for the destination and contributes to beat seasonality. Mexico has a unique opportunity to relaunch the promotion of the destination by focussing on these segments, developing more complete and combined experiences, a strategy that, in the long run, will improve income per tourist and the rates of satisfaction with the tourist product,” says Cendra.

According to him, initiatives such as the Mayan Train, which connects Cancún with other Yucatán destinations, could not come ‘at a better time.’ 

This is because it is not only an infrastructure that structures the southeastern region of the country, it also connects with the ‘tourist demand phase’ in which travellers are eager for new experiences, especially in very renowned destinations, such as Mexico.

Other very relevant aspects that Mabrian analysed regarding the image of the destination Mexico are the Security Perception Index and the Climate Perception Index. 

In both cases, the data show a drop in perception in recent years, especially among international markets. 

When it comes to proposing a communication strategy that enables the nation to regain the perception of the destination, this presents one of the biggest obstacles.

“Identifying the sensitivity of the different markets with respect to these issues is key to knowing how and when to communicate to prevent an isolated security event or extreme weather event from generating a constant drop in perception of the destination,” says Cendra.

Strengthening air connectivity

Mabrian says that the combined effort to update the tourism and hotel offerings must be accompanied by a solid air connectivity and international promotion strategy that will make these investments profitable.

Mabrian’s data on air programming for the second half of 2024 indicate that Mexico is relying on its most loyal international source markets, increasing seat availability on connections to other countries by 0.8 pc year-on-year.

This is thanks to the strengthening of air connectivity with the United States, which has seen 3.2 pc uptick in seat availability, Spain with 1.5 pc uptick and the international hub that Panama represents with 14.8 surge.

Mabrian says that, however, seats are being lost on direct flights with France, the United Kingdom and Colombia, among others, and in particular with Canada that saw 10.8 pc year-on-year decline.

“This is also a very interesting moment for Mexico, to leverage the opportunity to align tourism products design, international promotion and its connectivity strategy, which can contribute to further diversifying its source markets,” adds Cendra.