Notiturismo - April 2003

Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo
…an up and coming destination

March 2003: Hotel occupation is up, time-share developments are doing well, new condos and vacation homes sprout in Zihuatanejo, Ixtapa and also 20 minutes north of the resort, in Troncones and as well as a few miles south at Barra de Potosí. For the very upscale clientele a couple of beautiful new boutique hotels are "in the making". Contrary to other beach resorts in the world and in Mexico, Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo keeps growing in spite of recent world history: During the first ten weeks of 2003 (until March 9th) hotel occupation has increased 6% (*) over the previous year. 2002 also held a couple of surprises: 4% increase over the previous year and the best summer in 14 years. Hotels in Zihuatanejo and Ixtapa are extending labor contracts and hopefully maintain most of the employees for the whole year and not only during certain seasons. A pretty stimulating picture for the population and business community.

Of course, tourism dollars, euros and even pesos are not that easy to come by these days and many of the local businesses seem to have a hard time lately. When talking to restaurant and shop owners or tour guides in Zihuatanejo and Ixtapa you might end up listening to worries. "Last year was better" is the general consensus. This might be true, but isn't it only natural that business is slower? World affairs and the economy have not been looking very bright for some time now. Even the upscale clients seem to cut back on spending. However, when comparing Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo to other beach resorts in the country, it's doing alright.

Presently, about 30% of the 5000plus hotel rooms are all-inclusive and as in all other beach destinations, local restaurant owners would rather see less of these kind of properties. But in a resort like Ixtapa all-inclusive hotels are a reality and necessity in order to cater to a big segment of the tourism market. With creativity and good will, some of the "all-inclusive" business may be channeled into the local economy. Zihuatanejo, on the other hand, caters to a more individualistic clientele, from back packing students to university professors, from low budget sport fishing enthusiast who come all the way from France to enjoy some of the best deep sea fishing in the world to the rich & famous who are frequent guests at boutique hotels such as Villa del Sol. Time-share resorts in both Ixtapa and Zihuatanejo have also been quite beneficial to the area. They bring more repeat business than the more massive charter tourism and a clientele willing and apparently more capable of spending money on a lot of goods and services. Upscale boutique hotels, private condos and villas are a blessing for Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, because they not only have attracted substantial investments to the local economy, they also bring people who care, come back and actively promote the destination.

The four and five star hotels in Ixtapa naturally invest a considerable amount of time and money into promoting their properties and the Visitors and Conventions Bureau or "Oficina de Convenciones y Visitantes" (OCV) is the organization with additional financial resources and the mission to lead or coordinate the efforts of hotels, developers, the important local FONATUR delegation, municipality, travel agencies (DMC's - Destination Management Companies) and other businesses in the tourism industry.

There is still a lot of room to grow in the group business sector, not to be confused with charter operations, which is part of the basic income for some of the bigger hotels. Meeting planners and incentive houses have recently chosen Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo as THE Latin American UP AND COMING DESTINATION by a panel of international tourism executives, headed by IMEX Chief Executive Ray Bloom. The distinction includes a strategically positioned booth in the LOOK TO THE FUTURE pavillon of IMEX 2003 WORLD EXHIBITION, to be held in Frankfurt, Germany from April 8 to 10, right after the Tianguis. With the right "tools" and this kind of exposure, international meeting planners are sure to consider Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo for future events. Presently, hotels like Las Brisas (formerly Westin) and the Meliá Azúl are catering to groups up to 300 - 350 pax, but the Meliá is adding a new tower and a state of the art conventions center with capacity for 2000+ guests and participants.

In the immediate future, speak: coming summer and fall, catering more intensively to the Mexican clientele seems to be the answer to a complicated international scenery. Shifting to a higher percentage of Mexican visitors is not only the logical alternative to an unstable international market, it's a solid business decision. Most everywhere in the world, Mexicans are rated (right after Arabs) as the very best customers (the biggest spenders). Hotels and incoming travel agencies (DMC's) in Europe will confirm this fact. And the national market is becoming even more attractive with the new highway to Morelia, which has given Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo already a boost. This comfortable and secure new highway is an opportunity to attract a lot more people from the "Bajio" and it also signifies a great new attraction and an important added value to the resort. Patzcuaro lake, Uruapan, Santa Clara del Cobre, the famous Paricutin volcano and the unspoiled Purepecha Indian culture and arts and crafts in the neighbor state Michoacán are less than three hours driving time away. A perfect day excursion. A visit of the state capital, Morelia, a number of smaller colonial towns, the monarch butterflies (during the winter) and some of Mexico's most beautiful landscapes can now be combined with a beach vacation in Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo.

A vast new market - Guadalajara - has barely been tapped. The driving distance between the capital of Jalisco and Zihua will be around five hours, the same time it takes to drive from Guadalajara to Vallarta. With the more comfortable highway via Morelia, within a year or less, Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo is the natural alternative beach destination for an estimated 200,000 additional visitors (220,000 additional room-nights) annually from Mexico's second biggest city.

Things are looking up for this resort on the Pacific Coast, gifted with perfect climate and pleasant water temperatures all year round, a real Mexican town with a laid back atmosphere and the perfectly well kept resort of Ixtapa with it's Marina and two championship golf courses. Time seems to be ripe for the sleeping beauty to awaken.

(*) According to SECTUR, the (Mexican) Federal Tourism Ministry, hotel occupation in town is up and continues outperforming other years. If interested in details, please log into the following very well managed website with statistics, "dynamic comparisons" and a lot more interesting information about the national tourism industry: www.sectur.gob.mx. For statistics go to the section DataTur.

15/MAR/03