Los Cabos Is The Perfect Destination For American Travelers Despite Recent Dip In U.S. Visitor Numbers

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Last Updated 9 months ago

Despite the fact that airlines seem to be adding flights to Cabo from U.S. cities on a regular basis, the number of Americans that have traveled to the destination has decreased by 8% compared to last year at this time.

Local tourism company leaders had more or less anticipated this decrease in the number of American travelers.

With COVID lockdowns coming to a complete end all over the world, American travelers are looking to different destinations that they would not have traveled to in the last 3 years. 

Cabo is actually among the Mexican destinations that’s seen the lowest drop in American tourism. Some estimates show that places like Puerto Vallarta have seen up to a 23% drop in the number of American tourists that are arriving at that destination.

The recent dip in the number of American travelers to the destination may actually be good news for tourists who do want to come to Cabo. 

Local Businesses Blame The Dip On The Lack Of Promotion

Local businesses are somewhat worried about the recent drop in the number of American tourists arriving in Cabo.

In a recent interview, the leader of the local Tourism Company Council talked about the 8% decrease in the number of American travelers arriving to the destination.

He mentioned that the lack of marketing efforts to promote Cabo within the U.S. is one of the main reasons why there’s been a dip in American arrivals. 

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In a sense, the American tourism crowd that is headed to Cabo is largely made up of people who’ve been to Cabo before.

This is actually reflected in the big-name celebrities that choose to vacation in Cabo. Britney Spears, for example, has been in Cabo multiple times over the last year.

The same can be said about members of the Kardashian-Jenner clan. 

Some of the other celebs that are Cabo regulars, such as Sammy Hagar, have investments in the region and therefore spend part of their year in the Mexican Pacific.

While it may be a bit of a concern for local companies that the number of tourists won’t grow as expected and therefore the entire tourism market won’t be able to expand as much over the coming years, this could be good news for Cabo regulars who will find the destination not as crowded.

The Strengthening Peso Could Also Be To Blame For The Decrease

Apart from the lack of marketing that local companies in Cabo are concerned with, the strengthened Peso (Mexico’s local currency) can also be cited as one of the reasons why Americans are choosing to skip Cabo this year.

For comparison, other popular beach destinations for Americans like Jamaica and the Dominican Republic actually feature more favorable exchange rates between the US dollar and their local currencies than they did at the beginning of the year. 

Local hotels in Cabo have made an effort to freeze prices for travelers who do decide to make the trip to the Mexican Pacific.

The rapid increase in hotel prices within Cabo over the last year can almost be directly blamed on the exchange rate situation.

This has led local hotels to make adjustments to ensure that primarily American tourists are not feeling the full effects of the situation. Prices are also expected to drop even further for the upcoming fall season which is typically not one where Cabo gets overly crowded.

The Best Of Cabo With Fewer Crowds?

Although there has been a decrease in the number of American tourists arriving at the destination, that doesn’t mean Cabo is going to be completely empty. Domestic tourism to Cabo, for example, has picked up quite a bit over the last year.

Even without this decrease in the number of travelers, this upcoming short fall season is typically where Cabo hotels see their lowest occupancy rates. 

In a sense coming to Cabo during this time may allow tourists to experience things like the Los Cabos arch in a more private manner without as many neighboring tour boats.

Smaller beaches like Lover’s Beach can feel considerably less crowded in part because of the lower arrival numbers but also because some of the most popular sites aren’t necessarily frequented by tourists who’ve already been to Cabo multiple times.

As previously stated amongst the American market, Cabo regulars seem to still be making their trip down to Baja California Sur.