Travel agencies' Mexico sales are down after last month's cartel violence that occurred mainly in and around Puerto Vallarta. But advisors are hopeful that bookings will rebound quickly, and they are planning visits to show, rather than tell, clients what it's like on the ground.
The year started strong for Envoyage, with Mexico sales up 14%. However, since the Puerto Vallarta violence on Feb. 22, sales are down 15%, according to Christina Pedroni, Envoyage USA's executive vice president and general manager. Mexico's west coast destinations are hurting more than the Mexican Caribbean, she said.
Most cancellations were limited to close-in travel in March and April, with the highest rates in Puerto Vallarta. The majority of groups, including destination weddings, have opted to forge ahead with their plans, Pedroni added.
She and 11 of her colleagues also kept their Mexico travel plans, meeting at the Secrets Mirabel Cancun for Envoyage's annual Ambassador Summit. Pedroni said they planned to "capture and share content from our trip" to let clients know conditions are normal.
Sara Stankey, owner of Your Magic Journey in Eugene, Ore., said she has been reassuring clients headed to Cabo next month. So far, they haven't canceled.
Katia Cortes, owner of Planning Magical Trips in Clearwater, Fla., was hit with $200,000 in canceled Mexico trips in a single day. She said public perception of the destination is often inaccurate and that their reaction to incidents can be overblown. She noted there were "zero civilians killed" in last month's cartel violence.
Patty Nelson, an advisor with Renshaw Travel in Vancouver, has been emphasizing that tourists are safe in Mexico.
"I think that people will realize that nothing really happened to any tourists," she said. "It was more of a one-time thing, and hopefully they'll move forward."
Angie Filbrun, an Arcanum, Ohio-based advisor with Cruise Adventure and Travel, said clients have been hesitant but none have canceled or rebooked.
"This is just the world sometimes," Filbrun said. "There are just some things that happen, and people will get a little concerned, and then things will settle back down. I do think that it will rebound, because it's a beautiful place to be. We do need to continue to support Mexico and send our clients there."
The Caribbean side of Mexico will likely recover first, said Deborah Owen, owner of Veranda Horizons in Zachary, La.
Right now, her clients are "very leery of Mexico," with some opting for Caribbean destinations like the Dominican Republic or Jamaica instead. On the flip side, though, her honeymooner clients still plan to vacation in the Mexican Caribbean in April.
Fam and press trips
Destination management organizations in Puerto Vallarta and Riviera Nayarit have added fam and press trips, giving travel advisors and journalists an opportunity to show the public that their destinations are safe.
"One of the biggest challenges we face is perception," said Juan Enrique Suarez del Real Tostado, minister of tourism for the state of Nayarit. "When Americans and Canadians see headlines about incidents in Mexico, it can sometimes create the impression that the entire country is affected."
In addition to the press and advisor trips, Puerto Vallarta and Riviera Nayarit moved forward with a trade conference. More than 700 travel professionals attended Gala Puerto Vallarta-Riviera Nayarit, a travel business forum held March 10 to 12. The event had an opening message of "resilience" and "growth," according to event organizers.
Normally, each destination offers one pre- and one post-conference press trip with around five trade media. This time, it hosted about 60 media and 45 travel advisors, taking them to San Blas, Jala, Compostela and across 200 miles of the Riviera Nayarit, according to the State of Nayarit Ministry of Tourism.
Marival Resorts in Riviera Nayarit and Punta de Mita have made it a priority to communicate directly to guests and advisors that operations have gone uninterrupted, said Salvador Ramos, Marival Resorts vice president of sales and marketing.
"While we've seen some groups reschedule upcoming plans, the majority of bookings remain intact, and we are seeing bookings for the upcoming months pace consistently with projections," he said.
In the Mexican Caribbean, tourism executive Andres Martinez Reynoso is projecting normalcy.
"Across our 12 destinations, the tourism zones operate with strong infrastructure, clear protocols and ongoing coordination between authorities and the private sector to ensure a seamless visitor experience," said Reynoso, who is director general of the Quintana Roo Tourism Promotion Council.
Dario Flota, Yucatan state's secretary of tourism, said, "Our priority is to maintain open communication and reinforce the destination's strong reputation as a safe, welcoming and high-quality travel experience."
Andrea Zelinski contributed to this report.