The Tourism Industry in Mexico

Tourism is the third largest source of foreign exchange in Mexico, behind petroleum and manufacturing. In 1995 Mexico earned $6.3 billion dollars from international visitors, five percent of its gross domestic product, and about $25 billion dollars from both foreign and domestic tourism. Tourism creates 2 million jobs, about one third of which (618,000) are directly attributable to the industry, the rest from the multiplier effect. Foreign investment in tourism from January 1989 to February of 1995 rose to 4.9 billion dollars, more than 16 % of total foreign investment. The 2005 forecast is $10 billion. The Mexico Tourism Board reports that 70% percent of visitors to Mexico come from the U.S. Visitors come for the sand, surf, shopping and the Mayan ruins. Too many, it's home. The Mexican Population Council says 8.9 million Mexicans and 14.4 million Americans of Mexican origin live in the U.S., together making up 8% of the entire U.S. population.

Mexico Grows as an Incentive Destination

Mexico is a popular Incentive Destination. Only two non-U.S. cities made the cut on St. Louis-based Maritz Travel's Top 10 List of the most-sought-after incentive and business meeting destinations: The Mexican resort towns of Los Cabos and Cancun. Based on an annual review of all past years, pending and presented business, the list shows an increasing interest in Mexico. Reasons cited include a growing number of all-inclusive resorts, as well as a variety of activities, including adventure-travel. Los Cabos and Cancun also have many top golf courses, new luxury resorts and plenty of rich cultural and historical sites nearby, according to a statement by Alicia Feito, Vice President of Industry Relations for Maritz Travel. Los Cabos ranked third and Cancun seventh. The Scottsdale/Phoenix area and LasVegas were the top two destinations on the list. After Los Cabos came Orlando, San Diego and Chicago. New York, Dallas and Miami rounded out the list, taking eighth, ninth and tenth places, respectively.