Guadalupe Gomez Maganda. Tourism Secretary in the Mexican state of Guerrero

Q- Mrs. Gomez, what kind of policy is the state of Guerrero going to pursue in order to improve facilities and step up security, mainly in Acapulco?

A- Well, for the state of Guerrero, tourism stands for the number one economic activity, a source of income and funds, and its top job creator. This is a top-priority activity and we count on three world-class travel destinations here: Acapulco, Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo and Taxco. But as I was saying, for us Acapulco is the best-known destination and the one that put Mexico on the world travel map. It’s no doubt the country’s forbearing destination. Now all you need to do with a mature, well-developed destination is to branch out offers there, raise tourist standards every step of the way, improve service quality and deploy a good advertisement policy. Those are the four elements the state Governor has briefed us to work on harder.

Q- Are treatment of cesspool waters and water depuration top-priority elements, too?

A- Absolutely, though I must say that was an untimely and alarmist policy that was blown completely out of proportion. The fact of the matter is that our beaches are safe and pose no hazard to human health. That was even determined by SEMARNAR, the body within the federal government in charge of dealing with that kind of stuff.

Q- A new tourist fair has been born in Mexico, that is, the World Tourist Exposition (WTE), and now some people say the Tourist Marketplace is leaving Acapulco because there’s going to be only one fair. Is that true?

A- Of course it’s not true. First of all, we must draw a line between these two events. The Tourist Marketplace is an event organized by the federal government and historically based in Acapulco. The federal government has said so and it has no intention to change the host city. As far as the WTE is concerned, it was a good try and I wish it could grow on to become a fair where we can also showcase the samples of other countries. Some common ground here could be a watered-down version of FITUR. That’s the intention on many people’s minds. The Tourist Marketplace is Mexico’s offer to the world, and that by itself makes a difference.

Q- Is the Mexican government, more precisely the Tourism Department, going to sketch out a new policy toward congresses and conventions?

A- We’re highly interested in bringing more congresses and conventions, especially now that there’s new legislation in force banning the levying of taxes on all spending linked to congresses and conventions. We think this is a highly important modality when it comes to keeping tourist inflows running all year long. And that helps countries not to depend so heavily on high-peak seasons. We’ve got a conference center in Acapulco that despite being a 30-year-old facility, will continue to be remodeled and streamlined to be up to par with the international competition in that field. In addition to it, downtown Acapulco is dotted with many hotels that feature adequate installations for holding conventions. Anyway, we’ll be working all year round to step up that segment.

Q- What kind of growth in congresses and conventions do you expect to obtain in the next five years?

A- I cannot talk about specific goals or percentage figures, but I can tell you that we want to make headway in this particular field and we’re working on it. We’re opening up convention and visitor bureaus in every destination, and we’re in a position to even add funds to the promotional efforts, including some money coming from those local bureaus I’m talking about. Make no mistakes about the fact that we do want to grow and this is a great destination for the development of this tourist segment in the country. We want to welcome not only those who come to Acapulco to attend their meetings, but also those we’ll be focusing on in our expansion efforts. And this is the time for that in virtue of the legislative shift. This is something we must press on by showing up in specific forums dealing with convention tourism, by going to those events with the right materials in our hands, and by remodeling the Acapulco Conference Center, the fairgrounds of Mexico’s Tourist Marketplace for the last 29 years.

Q- Is any other city in Guerrero going to gain momentum as to congress and convention tourism?

A- Oh, yes. Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo is taking aim at it. There’re appropriate conference centers there and they’ve also got the hotels. There’re intentions to build a (conference) center outside the hotel beltway with the support of FONATUR. I wish it were so. Besides, there’s a humble but well-installed facility in Taxco that counts on an unmatchable advantage: it’s only a 45-minute drive from Mexico City.

Q- What kind of investment is the Tourism Department going to make to support hoteliers in renewing their infrastructure?

A- Well, that’s also up to the private sector, not only to the government. This could pave the way for getting a credit line, even though the government is in a financial fix. Therefore, federal funds alone won’t add up. We need to refurbish the facilities. We’ve got an economic development program for hotels that would provide support to the micro and small hotel industry. Nevertheless, everybody else must do what it takes and the government will help them out in that effort. However, the government is not going to carry out the remodeling or streamlining of hotels.

Q- Can you recall in figures right now the evolution of Acapulco’s tourism over the past three years?

A- In Acapulco, we receive an average of 5 million visitors every year. In 2003, though, we almost peaked 7 million tourists. That speaks volumes about the fact that this is not only a destination to remember, but also a vital travel destination that renews itself all the time.

Q- Spring breakers are part of this destination’s growth. Don’t they, in any way, paint a much blurrier picture of Acapulco?

A- Well, I think that, according to experiences in other places, people are afraid of the coming of spring breakers. Fortunately, that’s not been the case in Acapulco. They’re welcomed here and they, you know, kind of sow their own wild oats. But they do nothing wrong or unlawful. Would they get involved in some kind of criminal activity, you bet we do have laws and we won’t think twice to enforce those laws. We invite them to come. They like having fun and they never get kicks out damaging the destination’s image, as it has certainly happened in other places.

Q- Are you going to be on a hunt for European travelers or simply stick to American tourists?

A- We’re open to anyone. Of course, given our geographical location we do receive more visitors from North America, I mean, from Canada and the United States. But we’ve got an offer that could also meet the liking of both Europeans and South Americans. We want to be known not only for our sun-and-beach options, but also for being a destination that has what it takes to succeed in congress and convention tourism.