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Mexico has a privileged geography and has exploited it through the continuous development of its traditional hubs, usually beach destinations flocked by charters full of travellers that prepaid the entire experience back home. I believe those days are over, not because those people will no longer consider Mexico as an alternative and will gradually rediscover its benefits, but because there are far too many options outside of Mexico where the exact same experience is available: blue waters, white sand, palm trees, cheap drinks and lots of sun. The quintessential beach vacation. As people are forced to try other options, they will find them [...]]]> If you’ve been to Cancun, Vallarta, Los Cabos, Ixtapa, Acapulco, Mazatlan or Huatulco chances are you don’t know Mexico. Yes, you’ve enjoyed the privileged beaches, the top-notch hotels, a first-class experience and you fell in love with these places and the people that live in them. But you are probably missing the best part. As Manuel was saying a few days ago: “I dare you to find Holbox”. In reinventing tourism in mexico, I implied that all these beach destinations are going to have a really difficult time getting back on track:

Mexico has a privileged geography and has exploited it through the continuous development of its traditional hubs, usually beach destinations flocked by charters full of travellers that prepaid the entire experience back home. I believe those days are over, not because those people will no longer consider Mexico as an alternative and will gradually rediscover its benefits, but because there are far too many options outside of Mexico where the exact same experience is available: blue waters, white sand, palm trees, cheap drinks and lots of sun. The quintessential beach vacation. As people are forced to try other options, they will find them and will have no problem in evaluating their loyalties.

But because of the “celebrity” status of these destinations, people tend to stop looking further or deeper into Mexico. And there is a lot of Mexico that you should know about.

A few days ago I did a short road-trip to a little town called Papalotla, not to far from Mexico City, but distant enough that you can enjoy the traditional country life style so characteristic of the region: horses, “charros”, “toreros”, “haciendas”. While I’m a frequent visitor to the area, I was pleasantly surprised that for the first time the road was paved, literally, all the way to the town. I was told that many of the little towns in the Central Valley were getting the same treatment. Now, that is some important signal. Certainly, infrastructure spending is in vogue these days, but maybe this effort is also the response of a visionary government agency that understands that road infrastructure was one of the bottlenecks to further develop regional tourism in Mexico (as reported by The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2009, page 273).

While “cultural tourism” may not be for everyone, I’m convinced the abundance of heritage destinations throughout the country could, one day, represent an important percentage of tourism receipts. Not only by targeting a different kind of tourist, but also by getting them closer to the people that enable the experiences. Without travel agents, global hotel franchises, charter operators and so on, the money spent on these types of trips is likely to help the people that live there.

So where is this unknown Mexico I’m talking about? Well, if you’re going to find it, I better put together a really good map. Luckily I know a couple of people that are very good at this. A few places that should be in the list: Taxco, Dolores Hidalgo, Janitzio, Tapalpa, Teotitlan del Valle, Bernal.

The tourist that never leaves the beaten path is likely only exposed to an esterile experience that has been washed out of all its original power.

One could argue that the splendour of any famous landmark is constantly diluted by the ongoing attack of mass tourism, misguided by a market saturated of travel guides that most of the times reference the same top 10 or 20 landmarks not to be missed, while telling us every snippet of knowledge that travellers must know about these places, cancelling every attempt to make that experience unique.

The age of discovery is over. Every corner of our planet has been documented ad nauseam… [...]]]> In The Art of Travel, De Botton suggested there are no more places left to discover. With the overwhelming amount of information available on each and every major destination around the world it is likely that I could discover the major landmarks just as well from my computer than walking through them. Of course travellers will argue that first-hand experience is what matters, even if millions of people have had the same opportunity. While exploring the best reasons to travel I had emphasized the quest for the “experience”:

The tourist that never leaves the beaten path is likely only exposed to an esterile experience that has been washed out of all its original power.

One could argue that the splendour of any famous landmark is constantly diluted by the ongoing attack of mass tourism, misguided by a market saturated of travel guides that most of the times reference the same top 10 or 20 landmarks not to be missed, while telling us every snippet of knowledge that travellers must know about these places, cancelling every attempt to make that experience unique.

The age of discovery is over. Every corner of our planet has been documented ad nauseam… or has it? The availability of super detailed guides and maps for every city in the world would certainly give us this illusion. But I bet that for every map which highlights 10 “points of interest”, there are another 10 not so interesting. And yet, I believe these are the places that will increasingly attract the independent traveller. The key to their rise will be their ability to offer new and unique experiences that may not include master art or landmark architecture, but showcase the modus vivendi of little known micro-regions and their people.

You probably remember that little neighbourhood in a foreign city that after an easy stroll made you comment “I could live here”. Some people will qualify them as charming and others will think of them as hip. I’ll venture a generalization and suggest that they’ve moved away from the pragmatism that governs every aspect of modern life and have found a way to decorate themselves with elements that seem superfluous or even luxurious. What sells us is the fact that their inhabitants have been able to transcend the mundane. Where are they? Well, that is where the discovery starts.

Just a few days ago I published a photo of Coyoacán in Mexico City, a wealthy neighbourhood in the south of the city that is often cited in travel guides. Most people will settle for visiting the main square, which is where all the action takes place. What few people have discovered is that just a couple hundred meters away there is a little public garden surrounded by cobblestone streets where the pace of life seems to slow down. I used to walk through these streets almost every day without giving credit to their splendour. The arrhythmic sound of shoes walking on stone was clearly heard in a city that is otherwise obnoxiously loud. I’m sure a few people have said they could live there. And yet the reviews found on the web about this corner of the city are sparse and uninviting.

Recognizing that the charm of these streets on their own is not sufficient to create a full experience and elaborating on the need to reinvent tourism, I suggest a well orchestrated effort is required to bundle all the various elements that will attract the visitor. In the same way that top hotels create an entire experience around their brand, these micro-regions need to be organized so visitors can immerse themselves into the perfect life-style balance achieved after centuries of fine tuning.

To support my last post about reinventing tourism in Mexico here is a shot of a small church in the south of the city. La Conchita is located in the Coyoacan area, but it is a few blocks away from the popular square, but it is a most sought-after location for weddings. This has me thinking about micro-tourism. More on that later.

Whether failures in policy-making, mass-hysteria, international press or just some random genetic mutation are to blame for the stampede the fact is that loosing its tourism edge, Mexico is posed for very dark times ahead. Suffice to know that its tourism industry is second only to oil.

In the midst of such a downturn the entire sector will have to rethink how it positions itself to re-engage with travellers. Yes, Mexico has a privileged geography and has exploited it through the continuous development of its traditional hubs, usually beach destinations flocked by charters full of travellers that prepaid the entire experience [...]]]> Travelling to Mexico in the wake of one of the worst tourism declines in recent memory, has been an eery experience: the occasional masked traveller, the non-existent line ups to check-in and a 319 with perhaps 20 passengers. But it isn’t the feeling of crossing some imaginary boundary to a forbidden land or the fear of catching some untamed virus awaiting at the arrival lounge. What makes this trip so uneasy is the realization that the millions of people that are not flying today may not be coming back to Mexico for a really long time.

Whether failures in policy-making, mass-hysteria, international press or just some random genetic mutation are to blame for the stampede the fact is that loosing its tourism edge, Mexico is posed for very dark times ahead. Suffice to know that its tourism industry is second only to oil.

In the midst of such a downturn the entire sector will have to rethink how it positions itself to re-engage with travellers. Yes, Mexico has a privileged geography and has exploited it through the continuous development of its traditional hubs, usually beach destinations flocked by charters full of travellers that prepaid the entire experience back home. I believe those days are over, not because those people will no longer consider Mexico as an alternative and will gradually rediscover its benefits, but because there are far too many options outside of Mexico where the exact same experience is available: blue waters, white sand, palm trees, cheap drinks and lots of sun. The quintessential beach vacation. As people are forced to try other options, they will find them and will have no problem in evaluating their loyalties.

Hopefully the prospects of such a decline will reenergize the sector and open the doors for a new generation of travel ventures that will restore the reputation of Mexico as a prime destination, not only a beach destination but a complex one that spans world-class historic sites, charming colonial towns as well as a very diverse range of cultures that cover its varied geography.

I’m sure the government is already planning how to spend millions of dollars on marketing its way to normal levels and all the major hotel chains are calculating how low they can go to compensate. But what is really needed is a grass-root movement that looks at each corner of the country as a potential magnet for a new kind of tourist: the kind that won’t run after the cheapest room, the kind that puts its heart into researching a trip for months because she knows it will be a life-changing experience. The eco-traveller that understands what kind of impact she can effect on a place, both physically and morally. The equivalent to the agro-tourism that has shifted attention to the Italian country. Reinventing tourism in Mexico will require the participation of people beyond the industry. I’m certain everyone will have something to say as we’ve all been to Mexico at least once. Haven’t we?

The original index data is available from Mastercard, and all I did was to reconfigure the weights assigned by the original methodology to assign more value to those dimensions that have a higher impact on the ability of a traveller to operate remotely from the region with fair access to a urban standard of living. These are the weights I assigned:

its not really about the Obamas – its about the context of our changing expectations of government

Berliners become an enigma – povo at home, increasingly affluent abroad

Just ignore the noxious skyline as you watch the GDP growth rates, still hovering near 9%

LA’s fashion scene has stagnated, and the city’s hold on entertainment is slipping to diffusion by web 2.0

the principles of kaizen (continuous improvement) are shaping a really cool new Japanese ecovibe

The general attitude down under appears to be one of distant concern

Here, ‘crunch’ is in the quinoa, not in the financial vocabulary

The city is rich enough to sit out the bust, and it can always rely on China’s neighboring Guangdong province to drive the local economy

Hunger breeds innovation, because people actually have to think, plot and [...]]]> As we struggle to find ways to survive the current crisis and look at the leaders of the world to provide guidance, the latest Hub Culture 2009 Zeitgeist Ranking will come in handy as a tour of the cities that are better positioned to sustain an acceptable quality of life while providing plenty of opportunities to rebuild for the future. A zeitgeist reflecting the drama of our times:

1. Washington,DC

its not really about the Obamas – its about the context of our changing expectations of government

2. Berlin

Berliners become an enigma – povo at home, increasingly affluent abroad

3. Beijing

Just ignore the noxious skyline as you watch the GDP growth rates, still hovering near 9%

4. Los Angeles

LA’s fashion scene has stagnated, and the city’s hold on entertainment is slipping to diffusion by web 2.0

5. Tokyo

the principles of kaizen (continuous improvement) are shaping a really cool new Japanese ecovibe

6. Sydney

The general attitude down under appears to be one of distant concern

7. Saö Paulo

Here, ‘crunch’ is in the quinoa, not in the financial vocabulary

8. Hong Kong

The city is rich enough to sit out the bust, and it can always rely on China’s neighboring Guangdong province to drive the local economy

9. New York

Hunger breeds innovation, because people actually have to think, plot and scheme to make a difference, and are more likely to do it on a shoestring budget.

10. London

With large infrastructure projects on the horizon for the Olympics, nimble currency moves and a general stiff upper lip, the mantra now is survival and sobriety

11. Shanghai

China is one of the last places in the world still experiencing growth, and that means that the party is still in progress here on the Huangphu River

12. Mumbai

Clearly the November attacks had a large impact on the mood of the city, but they can’t dent the can-do spirit of average Mumbaikars

13. Singapore

Private wealth and trading (two of the city’s biggest focuses) are giving ground to medical tourism, biotech and other homegrown industries taking root with support from the government

14. Buenos Aires

international markets and visitors that provide an international feel to the city began to dry up

15. Dubai

Dubai’s taste for showcases, whether luxury, architecture or design, make the remaining grand opportunities here very interesting

16. Paris

The current mood is about refocusing on priorities, living life more simply and thinking deep thoughts. Where better than Paris?

17. Toronto

Canadian globe trotters are heading back home to Canada’s most influential business city as they check out of their stints abroad.

18. Istanbul

Looking ahead, the story of Istanbul is about youthful opportunity.

19. México, D.F.

a young population works in Mexico City’s favour, creating optimism and opportunity for the future, generated by an increasingly well educated and global population.

20. Copenhagen

the Danish way of life, from design to food, with a focus on streamlined simplicity, makes more sense than ever.

and the rest of the list.

With the recent opening of the Art Gallery of Ontario, a controversial renovation of the Royal Ontario Museum and a brand new Centre for the Performing Arts, us Torontonians have forged our way into the top 10. But it makes you wonder how much this type of top 10 lists can fluctuate when you start adding other factors as part of the ranking such as:

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The further North this highway goes, the less urbanized the region is, until it connects with the main highway heading to the North. Of course, the advance of urbanization is such that it will only be matter of time before the city has surpassed this new limits. In the same map I’ve indicated in blue what is known as “Anillo Periférico” and in green [...]]]> Mexico City is such a big city that most inhabitants would have problems defining its boundaries. Most people could probably name 2 or 3 access routes, but defining its boundaries is an exercise better left to city planners. A couple of months ago, I had the opportunity to transit through a new highway connecting the East of the city with a point far to the North. This highway is so new that in most cases the view was occupied by farmed land on one side and a clear urbanized area on the other. For those who have been to Mexico City you’ll appreciate how strange this is, as the city always seems endless in all directions. In the map below, this highway is marked in red.

View Larger Map

The further North this highway goes, the less urbanized the region is, until it connects with the main highway heading to the North. Of course, the advance of urbanization is such that it will only be matter of time before the city has surpassed this new limits. In the same map I’ve indicated in blue what is known as “Anillo Periférico” and in green the “Circuito Interior”, both high-speed avenues that were built at the edge of the once smaller city. Infrastructure has a way of attracting dwellers and making it possible to sustain edge neighborhoods.

Defining city boundaries can’t be done based on administrative divisions. Mexico City, for example spans two different states and there is absolutely no indication on the ground that you’re crossing any division. Real boundaries are probably better defined by what is practical and possible with the given infrastructure of the city. That is, if a person can make a daily commute (as hard as it is) using public transport or infrastructure, it is likely the economic output of that person contributes to the overall output of the city. Therefore the practical boundaries of a city should be defined by the availability of infrastructure nearby (subways, trains, highways).

One can only imagine what effects will better transportation systems have on urban sprawl. Are the gigantic sprawling areas often referenced by science fiction authors a necessary consequence of better and faster vehicles? Or is there a way to promote really long commutes that would effectively allow people to participate in the economy of a city without living anywhere near. Trains reaching 400 km/h are a reality and a commute of half hour could effectively take you far enough.

One thing is certain, Mexico City planners don’t share this vision as they are already delimiting the new boundaries of the city and it would seem they just picked an area where there are plenty of opportunities to urbanize. I have no doubts that people will follow. Too bad.

In some ways, the doom and gloom LA has experienced recently has presaged the general red alerts now being felt elsewhere – from environmental crisis to economic lapse, LA seems to have arrived in the shits just before everyone else.

As the cutting edge vibe in London wanes, Berlin continues to draw the young and the restless, and its ties to a resurgent East (i.e. Moscow, Warsaw) are really showing dividends.

Even as Mumbai gridlock threatens to become a 24/7 state of affairs, India in general and Mumbai in particular continue their assault on the global consciousness. It’s hard to argue against Mumbai, especially with so many [...]]]> Every year Stan Stalnaker and his team of global citizens gather their experiences around the world and summarize in this, their now famous Hub Culture’s Zeitgeist Ranking, the cities that for a variety of reasons seem to be at the center of the Universe. An elusive classification that doesn’t get impressed with economic power, flawless life-styles or centuries-old traditions, is mostly based on heuristics that related to the needs and desires of global citizens hoping from hub to hub networking their way into urban authorities. This is their veredict:

1. Los Angeles, United States

In some ways, the doom and gloom LA has experienced recently has presaged the general red alerts now being felt elsewhere – from environmental crisis to economic lapse, LA seems to have arrived in the shits just before everyone else.

2. Berlin, Germany

As the cutting edge vibe in London wanes, Berlin continues to draw the young and the restless, and its ties to a resurgent East (i.e. Moscow, Warsaw) are really showing dividends.

3. Mumbai, India

Even as Mumbai gridlock threatens to become a 24/7 state of affairs, India in general and Mumbai in particular continue their assault on the global consciousness. It’s hard to argue against Mumbai, especially with so many new innovations popping up here. That includes the arrival of the TATA Nano, which will soon change the economics of transport across the developing world. Add in booming hotels, real estate and a stronger rupee, and Mumbai holds the course.

4. Beijing, China

2008 is Beijing’s year, and not just because of the Olympics. The financial meltdown occurring in other capitals has cast Beijing in a new light as the Chinese continue to show fiscal reserve while strengthening their own position.

5. Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo is steaming! A combination of low prices, an awakening in the real estate sector, smart yen plays and new innovation in the music scene have breathed new life into Asia’s sleeping Godzilla.

6. London, United Kingdom

Overpriced by any measure and past the crest in nightlife, London seems to have dulled in line with the smaller bonuses being handed out in the City.

7. Buenos Aires, Argentina

BA has problems, but Argentina’s cheap prices are attracting legions of globalized people, especially financial types looking to make investments in everything from wine to hotels.

8. Dubai, U.A.E.

Global investment capability and a city awash in cash and construction make Dubai one of the world’s few economic bright spots in 2008.

9. New York, United States

While not great for the locals, that makes for a wonderful hub moment in the city: a bargain for visitors and a place more remarkably open and international than it has been for a long time.

10. Hong Kong, China

The scene remains predictable, but predictably fun, and Hong Kong’s leadership in fashion and Asian pop culture is steady – even if everyone is increasingly obsessed with Korean daytime TV.

11. Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul has dropped from last year – not because it is any less hot, just because other locations are now taking up more mind space. As the Islam threat feels like its cooling Istanbul continues to set the leadership example for the region while integrating ever closer to Europe.

12. San Francisco, United States

San Francisco continues to punch above its population weight, mostly because it continues to reinvent itself. From the technology space it is now leading the global green charge, spearheading investments and opportunity in the sector.

13. Sao Paolo, Brasil

Brazil’s macro success is manifesting in booming design, nightlife, and real estate in South America’s largest city with a young, increasingly educated, party population.

14. Shanghai, China

The city has recently blossomed and is now genuinely a fun place to live, filled with interesting people, a cosmo scene and true cultural innovation.

15. Moscow, Russia

Putin was named TIME’s Man of the Year for a reason: Moscow continues to grow its sphere of global influence, and instead of saber rattling the new vogue is suitcase rattling: as in suitcases of cash.

16. Madrid, Spain

Sunny Madrid is benefiting from stability and language. As South America continues to do well, Madrid benefits back in Europe, and a continuing influx of Northern Europeans adds to the cultural mix. Add in some of the best nightlfe in Europe, a hot art scene and lower living prices than other regional hubs, and Madrid looks ever more enticing.

17. Singapore, Singapore

Whether stepping up to the financial plate globally or announcing another outlandish designer building project, the tiny city state continues innovation at the macro level, providing economic security and iced whipped chai for its people in an ever more turbulent world.

18. Sydney, Australia

Sydney is the terrycloth towel of urban hubs – rich, beautiful and soft enough to feel comfortable. In a land aloft in buoyant commodity prices and closer ties with the economic engines of Asia, some would argue Sydney never had it so good.

19. Mexico City, Mexico

The worlds largest city remains a study in contrasts, but times are so good that Mexican immigrants are even returning from California to seek opportunity in Mexico City. The city elite are still preoccupied with gringonomics to the north, but local growth and development auger well. Add in the city’s super young vibe, and one gets the feeling anything is possible.

20. Vancouver, Canada

Vancouver gets this year’s wild card, in the spirit of No. 10 Geneva last year. A combination of factors are benefiting this coastal hub, ranging from preparations for the 2010 Winter Games in nearby Whistler to an avalanche of business in the film industry on the heels of LA woes. Clean and pristine, Vancouver sums up the new environmental feel, and that strong Canadian dollar has Vancouver strutting its stuff in a newly confident way, from Seattle all the way to Shanghai.

A year is a long time and many cities have fought battles for the attention of this elite crowd. Take a look at the now obsolete 2007 ranking.