Reuters, 4/1/2009
Tourism officials concerned about possible damage to Mexico’s image from reports of drug violence have launched a campaign to convince visitors it is safe, hoping to maintain growth in a vital industry. Mexico’s tourism has continued to grow despite the drug violence and the U.S. recession, with international visits up 2 percent in the first quarter of 2009 from the same period of 2008, Carlos Behnsen, executive director of the Mexico Tourism Board, told reporters in New York on Wednesday. That followed a full year in 2008 in which international visits rose 5.9 percent from 2007, Behnsen said, with U.S. tourists accounting for 80 percent of the total. “It is a victory, I think,” Behnsen said. “Our concern is looking forward.”
Tourism was a $13.3 billion industry in 2008, ranking it third behind oil and remittances from Mexicans living abroad, he said. The U.S. recession may be helping Mexican tourism because U.S. visitors could be choosing Mexico over destinations that are more expensive and further away, Behnsen said. Moreover, the weaker Mexican peso — which hit a 16-year low against the U.S. dollar on March 9 — could also be attracting U.S. visitors, he said.
Mexico Institute 