Mexicana grounded

This weekend the new owners of Mexicana Airlines and its two affiliates, Click and Link, announded the suspension of all operations until further notice. Management said that it had been unable to reach an agreement with pilots and flight attendants unions nor with creditors. This probably means the end of one of the world’s oldest airlines. Mexicana traces its routes back to 1921, when what evolved into a major carrier was organized to fly payrolls to oil workers on the Gulf Coast, thus avoiding bandits who lurked on the highways.

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Jimm Budd

Reporting from Mexico City

Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

My favorite hotels around the world

Listed here are my top 10 hotels around the world.

1. The Ritz of London

2. Park Hotel Vitznau, Lake Lucerne, Switzerland

3. The Dorchester, London

4. Sonnenalp Resort of Vail Hotel, Vail, CO

5. Hotel Plaza Athenee, Paris

6. Le Meurice, Paris

7. Ritz-Carlton Club, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

8. Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, Banff, Alberta, Canada

9. Vail Cascade Resort & Spa, Vail, CO

10. The Jefferson Hotel, Richmond, VA

Retirement home sales tumble

Interviewed during the RCI Luxury Marketing Symposium, Eugene Towle, director of the Softec consulting firm, observed that sales of retirement homes to foreigners — primarily Americans and Canadians — have fallen from 18,000 units in 2008 to what may be 4,000 by the end of 2010. Builders of these homes previously employed some 4,000 workers, a figure that has dropped to 1,000. Blamed for the decline is the overall economic situation along with the soaring crime rate in Mexico.

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Jimm Budd

Reporting from Mexico City

Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

New attractions for Copper Canyon

The opening of the first phase of an adventure park for Copper Canyon has been delayed for at least a month. While work is advanced on the construction of a 2.8 kilometer long aerial gondola, it is still not quite ready. Delayed, too, is completion of five zip lines and a new train station at Divisadero, where the park will be located. Next month construction is scheduled to begin on an airport.

Copper Canyon, actually several canyons that are four times bigger than the one in Arizona, attracts an estimated 300,000 visitors annually. That area was opened with the completion of a rail line in 1961. Since then, it has become a favorite destination. Thus far, some $20 million have been invested in getting the park started. Goal is to increase visitor stays from one night to three nights.

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Jimm Budd

Reporting from Mexico City

Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

Airline insurance called for

In light of the difficulties customers are encountering when seeking reimbursement for tickets on cancelled Mexicana Airlines flights, the Tourism Ministry is urging that all airlines be required to carry insurance that will protect clients in such cases. The failures of Taesa, Aerocalifornia and Aviacsa produced similar problems — and similar calls for insurance protection.

As for Mexicana, its new owners have indicated nothing will be done to save the airline unless employees agree to massive concessions. Among the announced goals is terminating — with severance pay — all flight attendants and rehiring about 25 percent at half the salary they receive now. That would be what the newer, low-fare airlines are paying.

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Jimm Budd

Reporting from Mexico City

Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

Official policies criticized

The directors of Best Western in Mexico and the Misión Hotel Group have joined with a former tourism undersecretary in complaining that official policy is geared more toward increasing visitor numbers than in overall earnings. Francisco Madrid, who moved from the Tourism Ministry to head the School of Tourism at Anahuac University, pointed out that while average visitor spending in Australia is $4,571 and in the United States $1,700, Mexico takes in only $575. Australia, he noted, ranks only 40^th in visitor arrivals but is eighth in tourism earnings.

Gonzalo Brockman at Best Western lamented that so much emphasis has been placed on all-inclusive packages while Misión Hotels’ Roberto Zapata deplored the lack of infrastructure that limits mass travel outside of beach areas. They argue that Mexico needs to focus on attracting affluent visitors more concerned with value than with economy, people interested in traveling less traveled roads as long as these are paved.

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Jimm Budd

Reporting from mexico City

Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

Mexicana Sold

A group of Mexican investors organized under the name Tendora K has acquired 95 percent of Nuevo Grupo Aeronautica, the heavily-indebted holding company controlling bankrupt Mexicana Airlines and its two affiliates, Click and Link. The pilots union acquired the rest. Purchase price is reported to have been a “token amount.” Previously, the airline had been owned by the Posadas de México (Fiesta Americana and other hotels) plus some other investors.

If the airline is to survive, debts must be paid, additional investments made and operating costs substantially reduced. In recent weeks, Mexicana has been obliged to reduce its frequencies of service to the United States from 50 each week to 38. Under current conditions, Mexicana can restore these, but only if it uses the same equipment. The FAA will allow no other Mexican airline to take over these routes until Mexico improves air safety inspections.

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Jimm Budd

Reporting from Mexico City

Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

Escuinapa project outlined

Officials from Fonatur (the National Tourism Development Fund), outlined to residents of Escuinapa – which lies about 100 miles from Mazatlan – their program to create Mexico’s biggest master-planned development in the area. Among the goals is the construction of 44,200 rooms (twice as many as Cancun has), four golf courses and a marina. How many years this will require was not spelled out. Fonatur is still attempting to make its dreams come true in Ixtapa, Huatulco and Loreto.

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Jimm Budd

Reporting from Mexico City

Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

Statistics

As a result of a poor economy, Americans are traveling abroad less than during more prosperous times, according to Euromonitor, which keeps an eye on such matters. The decline is expected to affect Mexico, since the United States accounts for more than 80 percent of its international visitors. Nonetheless, according to the Tourism Ministry, foreign tourists left behind $6.4 billion during the first six months of the year. This was an increase of 7.3 percent over 2009 (the worst year on record for tourism in Mexico).
In spite of all this, hotel occupancy is down somewhat compared to last year. The summer vacation season was not as sunny as many hoteliers had hoped for. Ah, but points out the Tourism Ministry, there are nearly 10 percent more hotels operating this year. All that is happening is that the pie is being sliced into smaller pieces.

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Jimm Budd
Reporting from Mexico City
Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

Scenic Photos By Stan Wawer

Yosemite Valley following a snow storm.

Yosemite Valley on a clear day.

Skyline Arch in Arches National Park.

Park Avenue at Arches National Park.

The Merced River and El Capitan in Yosemite National Park.

Landscape Arch in Arches National Park.

Beautiful Lake Tahoe.

Kissing Camels Rock at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs.

A morning scene on Lake Windermere in England’s Lake District.

Delicate Arch in Arches National Park.

Mexicana too big to fail?

Should Mexicana crash and burn some 8,000 employees would lose their jobs and another 35,000 people would be affected, according to something I read somewhere. Travel agents, hotel associations and tour operators all are expressing concern. Should the airline stop flying to the United States, no other Mexican airlines could replace it until the FAA says so. What was the Mexicana Group has been absorbed into a new corporation, Nuevo Grupo Aeronautico, and nobody is quite sure who owns what. The bankruptcy court has sent in a team of optimistic accountants to study the books. The accountants are optimistic because the company, not the court, must pay them. Mexicana could not meet its payroll last week.
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Jimm Budd
Reporting from Mexico City
Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

Tourism up

The Tourism Ministry has announced that 6.7 million international visitors arrived in Mexico during the first half of the year, an increase of 2.6 percent over 2009. Earnings were up 7.2 percent. Last year, however, was the worst year on record for the hospitality industry in Mexico.

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Jimm Budd
Reporting from Mexico City
Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

Oasis chain barred

A federal judge in Atlanta has ordered Spanish hotel chain Oasis to cease and desist advertising in the United States. Oasis operates 3,900 rooms in various properties along the Mexican Caribbean. The ruling came as the result of a lawsuit involving a marketing contract.

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Jimm Budd
Reporting from Mexico City
Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

How safe is Mexico?

Tim Johnson addressed this question recently in an article for McClatchy Newspapers. He went on to inquire about this in an interview with Rodolfo López Negrete, deputy director general of the government’s Mexico Tourism Board.
"Our job isn't to talk about security. Our job is to talk about the assets we have as a country," Lópe Negrete told Johnson.
Johnson then took a look at the 10 “Tourism Routes” the board is promoting: “Here's a brief safety review of the routes, based on recent news reports and the State Department warnings. The rating uses green, cautionary yellow and a "don't-go" red, and errs on the side of caution.”
Among the areas listed as red were Acapulco and Copper Canyon, the latter reached by a rail line that runs from Chihuahua into Sinaloa, two states hit hard by violence. Although Johnson reported 22,700 deaths attributed to the narcotics wars since 2006, Mexican officials recently said the number was more than 28,000. What Johnson did not mention is that no tourists are among the dead.

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Jimm Budd
Reporting from Mexico City
Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

More Airline Problems

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has downgraded Mexico's safety ranking, effectively restricting its airlines from partnering with American carriers or expanding service between the two countries. Mexico does not comply with international air carrier safety standards and has been downgraded by category, meaning it cannot open new air routes to the United States, the US Federal Aviation Administration said Friday.
Problem seems to be a lack of sufficient inspectors. Mexico has announced that more are being hired, but recruitment and training will require some months.
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Jimm Budd
Reporting from Mexico City
Member of the Society of American Travel Writers

Canyon De Chelly a well-kept secret

Living in the shadow of the Grand Canyon, nature’s No.1 Wonder of the World, can be daunting. Just ask Canyon De Chelly (du Shea). About three hours from the Grand Canyon, this beautiful and stunning canyon is tucked away in a remote northeast corner of Arizona in the Navajo Reservation town of Chinle.
Canyon De Chelly is so remote, you drive along Highway 40 from Flagstaff east for about 155 miles before you get to 191 north. There are no signs for Canyon De Chelly. You just have to know it’s there. You keep driving on 191 and finally you arrive in Chinle.
Canyon De Chelly is a mini Grand Canyon. It has a lower case “wow” factor. It’s a place that needs to promote itself more. If you plan on going — and if you love natural beauty, you must see this place — get a trip ticket from AAA or Google online.
I never expected to see what I saw — red rocks, rock formations that looked like kneaded dough, cliff dwellings of the Anasazi Indians dating back almost 2,000 years. My 4-year-old granddaughter and I walked along the rocks above the canyon — she looking out for lizards, me looking around in awe.
Thunderbird Lodge is just outside the national monument. Unbelievably, it had free WiFi in the rooms. It’s rustic and it doesn’t have a pool, but it is clean and comfortable. The lodge also has a nice restaurant with good food and a gift shop. The restaurant is in the original trading post, which was built in 1896. An all-Navajo staff prepares the meals. It’s pretty much a dead zone for cell phones and there is no alcohol available on the reservation (for those of you who like a cocktail or a glass of wine with dinner).
Remote or not, Canyon De Chelly is more than worth taking the road less traveled.