Mayor Looks to Sectur for Help with Spring Break Market

(Acapulco, El Sur 21 March) Acapulco mayor Manuel Añorve Baños, insists that the drop in Springbreakers in the port city is the result of a lack of promotion on the part of the Federal Secretary of Tourism, Gloria Guevara Manzo. The first group of college students from the US arrived over the weekend from Illinois, in a chartered aircraft. When interviewed on the subject, Añorve said that “we all need to be sure they are well attended to, as they deserve to be.” He was asked what the authorities are doing to counteract the effects of the violence on the arrival of foreigners, and the mayor said “This is a problem of national scope. The drop in this type of tourism was not felt just in the port, but also in various tourist destinations throughout the country to which the college crowd usually travels. For that reason, we need to light a fire under the federal secretary of tourism. Gloria Guevara needs to spread the word about Acapulco, its good qualities, so that it can be seen that there is a response to the acts of violence, which are so regrettable, and that the people of Acapulco loudly deplore such misdeeds. The best response is an occupancy rate of over 90%.

Añorve was asked about the resignation of US ambassador to Mexico Carlos Pascual. He said that they caused him to resign because he was giving out negative information about Mexico.

Other tourism-related subjects in the press interview included the long holiday weekend, the parking on the Costera and the upcoming Tourism Fair. Añorve congratulated those in the port for the high occupancy this weekend, more than 90%, which shows that the public sector is providing the security while the private sector tends to the needs of the tourists, and “that tourism is loyal and faithful, and returns every weekend.” The mayor reminded everyone of the Tourism Fair (“Tianguis Turístico”), which begins in Acapulco on Friday, attracting thousands of visitors from all over the country. Añorve revealed that international attendance is up 30% over last year. To critics of the “no parking on the Costera policy,” he responded that he was responsible for that decision, and it came in response to criticisms from visitors who found the traffic jams unpleasant. “We are not bothering anyone, just trying to generate a new culture so that residents of Acapulco and visitors alike will understand what needs to happen to make things pleasant for everyone.”

He concluded, “I have no doubt that Acapulco is Acapulco, and is much larger than its problems.”