With a plethora of luxury hotels, the Cancun area in eastern Mexico has always been a popular destination for leisure travel and meetings. But planners seeking a different destination, especially for incentive travel, might want also to examine the western side of Mexico, particularly Los Cabos, located at the tip of Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula. Upscale luxury hotels on the strip of land between Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo (known as Los Cabos) are multiplying.
According to statistics reported by Jessica Montevago on travelmarketreport.com, the region has experienced a 14.7 percent increase in tourism in 2015 from 2014, welcoming more than 1.5 million tourists. Predictions are even more optimistic for 2016, with several upscale luxury properties expected to open. This includes a Park Hyatt, Hard Rock, Le Blanc Resort, VieVage Los Cabos and Mar Adentro by Encanto. Within the next two years, Los Cabos Tourism Board anticipates that nearly 4,000 new hotel rooms will be built.
Luxury Hotel Development is Welcome
In 2014, Los Cabos was hard hit by Hurricane Odile, which pummeled homes, hotels and businesses on the peninsula. Many of the damaged resorts resurfaced in 2015, including Hyatt Ziva—the brand’s first all-inclusive property in the region—which suffered destruction to 95 percent of its 591 suites. Hyatt Ziva reopened in Sept. with a new coffee shop, 24-hour deli and upgrades to its onsite restaurant.
Post hurricane, the infrastructure of the whole area has improved. Roads have been paved and Los Cabos International Airport (SJD) has been expanded. The relatively new and green Los Cabos Convention Center, situated 10 minutes from the airport and five minutes from more than 10 hotels , offers 72,000 sq. ft. of meeting and function space.
Beautiful destination
Although it lacks the calm turquoise waters that make Cancun so appealing, ruggedly picturesque Los Cabos is a beautiful destination that melds the desert and the sea. Easy to get to, especially from the West Coast, it has a lot to offer. After meetings, leisure activities include whale-watching, golf, touring historic sites in 200-year-old San Jose del Cabo and experiencing the lively nightlife, shopping and dining of Cabo San Lucas.
