Travel Agent recently chatted with Rodolfo Lopez Negrete, chief operating officer of the Mexico Tourism Board, and learned that several cruise lines that canceled calls to some popular Mexico destinations later told Mexico representatives the decision was purely business and had nothing to do with whether the areas in question were safe or not.
“A lot of cruise lines canceled because they said these destinations were unsafe. But that wasn’t exactly the case,” Negrete says, not mentioning any specific cruise lines. “They have all recently admitted to us that this was a business decision and not a matter of safety.”
Throughout the year, a handful of cruise lines canceled calls to Mazatlan and most recently, Princess Cruises canceled calls in Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas. Earlier this year, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Disney Cruise Lines, Norwegian Cruise Lines and Carnival Cruises canceled calls to Mazatlan throughout the winter/early spring due to a handful of violent incidents that occurred in tourist districts.
“Cruise business to Mexico has really suffered lately so these cruise lines decided to cancel calls,” he says. “But we are constantly in discussions with all of them.”
So what are the chances that Mazatalan, Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas will get back the major lines that canceled this year?
“As travel to Mexico continues to pick up again, we expect these cruises to come back as well," he says. "I don’t think there is any reason to think they will not be back next year."
Visit www.visitmexico.com