With the last vacation period of the year about to start, the state government says it is prepared to provide an enjoyable and orderly experience for local, national and international travelers when the season begins Dec. 16.
Tourist activity is expected to start its rebound a week earlier, on Dec. 8, when a large number of religious tourists make their yearly pilgrimage to Santa Catarina Juquila, located about 3 1/2 hours from Puerto Escondido via Highway 131 to Oaxaca.
The government estimates that over half a million people will visit Juquila, considered to be one of the most important centers of religious pilgrimage in Mexico, either on foot, by car or bicycle.
More than 360,000 tourists are expected to visit Puerto Escondido, Huatulco and Oaxaca city, representing expected revenue of more than 1.4 billion pesos (US $71.1 million), during the three-week vacation period.
To achieve the goal of orderly and enjoyable holidays, the Ministry of Tourism has held meetings with tourism sector businesspeople, as well as municipal, state and federal security forces in order to coordinate efforts and ensure that order prevails in the sun and beach destinations, as well as in the magical towns of Oaxaca.
“We have organized the holiday season . . . for which we are prepared and ready to welcome our local, national and international visitors,” said Tourism Minister Saymi Pineda Velasco, who took office with the new state administration this week.
On that note, she invited the families of Oaxaca to participate in the recreational and cultural activities programmed as part of the 2022 Christmas Festival, to be held in the zócalo of the state capital.
“The zócalo has a new splendor and there will be effective coordination with the municipal government so that the activities are carried out in harmony and wellbeing, which translates into better income for Oaxacan families who depend on this productive activity,” she said.
Pineda remarked that similar events are scheduled for the Coast region destinations, “as a commitment of Governor Salomón Jara Cruz to foster bonds of coexistence after two years of confinement due to the pandemic caused by Covid-19.”
The three-week-long vacation period for Mexican families starts on Dec. 16.
With reports from RIOaxaca
