The Mazatlán Chamber of Commerce, Services, and Tourism (Canaco-Servytur) is requesting support from all three levels of government and the private sector to stem the decline in visitors to the beach center and surrounding municipalities, as it puts jobs and the well-being of the region at risk.
The president of this business organization, Francis Cázares Oliveros, said that its members are working hard to mitigate the negative effects of insecurity in Sinaloa, which exploded to unprecedented levels last September due to the dispute between criminal groups.
This situation damages the image of Sinaloa, including Mazatlán, the state’s main tourist destination.
Figures from the Ministry of Tourism show that hotel occupancy in the beach center was 44.9% last March, 17 percentage points lower than a year ago.
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Business leaders are seeking to mitigate the decline in travelers through private investment in events and advertising in Mazatán, as the Federal Government and local governments are not strongly supporting the attractions of the beach destination and other municipalities.
Cázares Oliveros called on other business leaders to join forces to address the situation, as happened in Quintana Roo, where they organized to compensate for the disappearance of the Mexican Tourism Promotion Council (CPTM) in 2019.
“When something doesn’t suit us, they invest in generating positive news, but that money doesn’t come from the 3% lodging tax the government manages, but rather from contributions from the private sector. This is something we are working on, raising awareness that we don’t have to wait for the government to do everything,” the business leader stated.
“We have to invest in it because, ultimately, we are the ones who make a living from this. When we have the least, the destination needs us the most,” said the president of Canaco-Servytur Mazatlán.
The private sector estimates that 80% of Mazatlán’s economy depends on tourism, especially domestic visitors.
The federal government stopped collecting hotel occupancy figures in Culiacán due to security issues and the perception of violence.
Cázares Oliveros said that hotel chains have lowered rates by up to 40% to encourage travelers to the area.
“We are inspecting ourselves every day to see who lowered their rates, so we can lower them, but if we don’t lower them, we can’t sell; we no longer have the tourism we used to,” the executive lamented.
The efforts of the private sector in Mazatlán were capitalized on last week when a one-kilometer Sashimi event was organized and set a Guinness World Record, allowing average occupancy to rise to 90%.
Source: eluniversal
