Quintana Roo Welcomes The World

In this week’s issue of Canadian Travel Press, western editor Ted Davis reports that the state of Quintana Roo — home to Mexico’s No. 1 tourist destinations Cancun and the Riviera Maya — recently hosted the Tianguis Turistico travel trade mart and conference for the first time ever. And organizers celebrated by posting numbers that far exceeded the targets for this 39th edition of the conference.

The buyer count was a particular point of achievement, having reached 847, sourced from 61 countries. That represents a 45% increase over countries represented at the Tianguis Turistico held in Puebla last year, said Mexican Secretary of Tourism Claudia Ruiz Massieu.

This year’s Tianguis was notable for its greater diversity of markets and regions present, marked by the attendance of high-growth potential markets. There was, for instance, 31 buyers from 12 Asia Pacific nations, as well as 45 buyers from 11 Latin American nations. The more established markets came out in force, including 174 buyers from the US, 35 from Canada and 110 from 25 European countries.

“It was a record turnout for Canadian buyers,” said Rodrigo Esponda, the Mexico Tourism Board director for Canada. “All of the key Canadian companies are here,” he said, during a break at the trade show.

But while buyer numbers were up markedly, so too was road trip mileage logged by all delegates at Tianguis, prompting some complaints by delegates. The location of the conference venue at the Lakam Convention Centre, on the road between Cancun and the Riviera Maya, meant that transfers for attendees from their hotels were up to an hour or more in length.

However, a ride that no one regretted was the 80-km. journey to the Xcaret eco theme park for the opening night welcome party, which included an impressive music and aerobatic show depicting Mexico’s history and elements of Mexican culture.

For the full story on the 2014 Tianguis Turistico in this week’s issue of Canadian Travel Press, click here.