World Cup, Sargassum Blamed for Slow Summer Tourism in Quintana Roo

Chetumal, Quintana Roo — Hotel occupancy in Quintana Roo during the summer vacation season averaged 60 to 70 percent, falling short of the 80 percent forecast for the high season, according to José Mac-Liberty, vice president of tourism for the Chetumal-Tulum Chamber of Commerce (Canaco).

Mac-Liberty attributed the disappointing numbers to the economic situation, sargassum on local beaches and the World Cup, which he said drove up prices at tourist destinations.

“We’re happy the vacation season is over, and we’d like to say it was prosperous, but the truth is we saw a decline in tourist arrivals across the entire state,” he said. “Not just in Quintana Roo — across the whole country.”

He described the slowdown as a recession in tourism activity at the state, national and international levels. He said the World Cup in particular made Mexican destinations seem expensive and discouraged people from booking.

“The World Cup made us look like an expensive destination and meant reservations did not increase, so tourist numbers dropped,” Mac-Liberty said. “We stayed between 60 and 70 percent occupancy when the projection for the high season was at least 80 percent.”

With the low season now beginning, Mac-Liberty said the chamber plans to reinforce promotion of the state’s southern destinations to improve expectations for December and erase the negative image.

He acknowledged that the communication strategy has been flawed. “People may have a wrong idea about what is really happening at the destination in terms of costs, services and sargassum,” he said.

Mac-Liberty stressed that sargassum does not affect the entire Quintana Roo coastline and called on state and federal tourism secretaries to focus more attention on the south of the state to diversify the industry.