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Photos of the Yucatan, Mexico
Below are links to pictures from the Mexican Yucatan.
caribbean | reefs | cenotes biotopes | cenotes caves | lagoon | tulum | cancun region
Except where noted, all images are the property of Rhett A. Butler, copyright 1994-2004. Contact me with questions regarding use, reproduction, or purchase of any of the pictures.
Rapid growth
The 80-mile stretch of coastline south of Cancun on the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico -- now called the Riviera Maya -- has undergone a remarkable transformation over the past decade, becoming Mexico's fastest-growing resort area. Places like Playa de Carmen and Tulum have gone from small towns to booming resort developments as developers bypass bureaucratic approvals to buy and build up beachfront lands as fast as possible. Mangrove swamps, which are largely responsible for the region's sparkling clear waters and biologically rich coral reefs, are the primary victims of land clearing for hotels and condominiums.
High profitability
According to a study mentioned in the Wall Street Journal, an 800-room hotel on the Riviera Maya can be built for "about $60 million, compared with about $100 million in Cancun. Because of cheap labor, operational costs come to about $18 per person per day, while the average room tariff is $125 per person per day. Assuming a 90% occupancy rate -- slightly higher than the current 86% norm on the coast -- annual net profits could amount to around $15 million. That rate of return would allow the developers to recover their investment within four years, very fast by industry standards."
Backlash
The tide may be shifting as resentment towards unchecked development grows. In the past couple of years authorities have shut down construction on two hotels that threatened a sea turtle nesting beach at X'cacel and illegally cleared mangrove swamp for building an access road. Environmentalists and local authorities have increasingly turned toward the National Fund for Tourism Development (Fonatur), the agency that built Cancun, to help manage development in the region.
Source:
The Wall Street Journal
Fast Tourism Growth, Hotel Boom Threaten Balance in the Yucatan
By JONATHAN FRIEDLAND
August 20, 1999
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