In this context, Travel2latam spoke with Rodrigo Esponda, Director of the Los Cabos Tourism Trust.
What's new in the destination from the point of view of tourism, infrastructure and connectivity?
We have some very interesting news in Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, Mexico. The first is gastronomy, since the Michelin guide for Mexico is about to be published. A project that has been worked on for many years. They sought to include the Cabos region because of the diversity of natural and fresh products based on gastronomy, and because of the world-class chefs or cooks that we have. Indeed they found that in Los Cabos there is a diversity of chefs and cooks who come from different parts of the world, from Mexico and from local towns. Obviously this is focused on luxury hotels that have brought in well-known chefs from around the world.
The local product is a fresh product from zero kilometers, which is something that we ourselves have not even been that aware of, because at the local taqueria they make your taco with the catch of the day. This speaks of a cuisine based on zero kilometers, which varies depending on the seasons and the specialty, but that always preserves that regionality that is so important today and that is not even a conscious work, but rather something that has been has been showing naturally.
Does the destination have new hotel offerings opening soon?
Yes, always five stars. This has allowed Los Cabos to position itself worldwide as a luxury destination, understanding luxury not as cost, but as experience and quality. It is not inaccessible, but what they offer is that luxury of staying in one place, and for example, waking up and seeing a whale jump in front of where you are staying. It is a luxury to be able to stay in a bay with a completely deserted beach on the Sea of Cortez and watch a whale jump at dawn. These types of experiences that can be offered in the destination are what continues to differentiate us. So we will be within the framework of the Tianguis having some very interesting negotiations focused on gastronomy, nature, and the luxury of the new openings that Cabos have, where we always seek to offer the highest quality to our visitors.
What can one find culturally in Los Cabos?
We have the largest art district in Mexico, with 34 galleries, all within walking distance, in the historic center of San José. We have historic towns that were founded by European missionaries in 1700, which have maintained all the tradition and culture, and have been recreated, where there has also been a recovery of gastronomy, not only in San José del Cabo, but in Santiago, Miraflores, Triunfo, Todos Santos. They are very different towns, some located within the mountains, others very close to the Sea of Cortez and some others within the Pacific, with interesting climates and a unique mix of European influences with local groups. In addition, there are cave paintings that were made by pre-Hispanic groups, the Pericúes and the Waikuras.
What distance are you talking about when you refer to knowing these places?
We are talking about a distance range of 400 kilometers, which can be traveled perfectly in a week, either with private transportation, with a vehicle or simply by bus from San José del Cabo to Todos Santos, and from there go to La Paz. , and return in complete safety. In addition, the climate is very stable, it rains less than 10 days a year. It is a dry climate that is much more bearable than in the rest of the Caribbean and, for example, we do not have mosquitoes.
What's new in terms of connectivity?
We have several new routes. The destination has 59 cities with direct connection after Cancun, the Cancun Airport, which is the second best connected airport in the number of cities that connect directly to Los Cabos. Within Mexico we have 16 cities with a direct flight to Los Cabos, in the US we have 30 cities, and we are the second best connected airport from the US. In Canada we have 11 and we have a direct flight from Germany, Frankfurt, two times a week, which will be starting in November with Cóndor.
We went through the European market and we found the German market, which has a lot of interest in the natural part of the destinations, goes and travels and is interested in the whales, the mountains, the desert, and in a safe destination like Los Cabos. . We are sure that the German market and the European market in general will find a destination that cannot be found anywhere else in the world.
What is the situation of the charter with Iberojet and the Spanish market?
Iberojet is the largest vertically integrated group in Spain and its business model is very focused on selling tourist packages. At the time of having the charter, the option of flying once a week to Cabo was only offered, and that was restrictive, because the tourist packages that people were looking for were with greater flexibility in extension, to be able to have combinations with other areas of Mexico.
Los Cabos is a very safe region to travel to, it is not a destination where you have to go to stay in a hotel for seven days, but you have to discover it, go to the Sea of Cortez, the towns, the traditions, the mountains, and the Pacific. We are having a very strong focus on the tourist packages that can be offered with combinations in the region and offering all the diversity there is. People saw the charter and the package, and thought it was just to stay in a hotel, and then they saw in reality there were many options. This was not aligned with their interests, nor with what was happening in the destination for the Spanish visitor who toured the entire area. We decided that we must offer more flexibility in the packages, beyond the route that can only be direct, but we will review it next year, depending on how the numbers turn out. The Spanish market is very relevant, it has tripled in the last two years.