Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta and Cancun, in the Top Ten of global destinations that grew the most

The global demand for sun and beach destinations skyrocketed in 2022. In this trend, three Mexican cities were in the global Top Ten of destinations with the highest growth, taking 2019 figures as a reference. San Jose del Cabo ranked second, with a growth of 22% compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Puerto Vallarta was in third place with an increase of 13%, compared to 2019. And Cancun is in sixth place, with a positive differential of 9% compared to three years ago.

The list that considers arrivals of tourists by air was released in the context of the WTTC and was prepared by a firm specializing in data analytics, Forward Keys. It is significant that of the first six places, five are from destinations that correspond to Latin America and the Caribbean.

The only exception is Anatolia, a sun and beach destination located in Turkey. This city ranks first on the list with a growth of 66 percent. In addition to San José del Cabo, Puerto Vallarta and Cancun, there are Punta Cana and San Salvador.

The excellent position of the destinations in this region is “a testimonial to the success of the open door policies and the demand for sun and beaches,” says the report, which mainly uses two data, the arrival of tourists and the seating capacity of the airlines.

In this category, the Dominican Republic had the highest growth, with 13%, followed by Bangladesh. In third place, Mexico and Colombia are tied, registering increases of 10 percent.

The Forward Keys 2022 balance defines four facts or events that marked the year in tourism. The Omicron variant of Covid-19, in the first two months of 2022. The beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine between March and June; airport chaos due to lack of staff, between June and November; and the World Cup in Qatar, which is impacting the last two months of the year.

The Middle East, along with Central America and the Caribbean are the most dynamic regions. The Asia Pacific region appears as the most complicated. It is influenced by the restrictions that China has imposed, although it is partially offset by the large number of people who have traveled to visit their relatives and friends in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.