Friday, September 9, 2011

850,000 Visit Puerto Peñasco?


-by El Gitano Peñasco, "The Peñasco Gypsy"

That number (850,000) is apparently the official visitor count for “domestic and foreign” travelers who have visited our fair seaside community in the past 12 months according to the Commissioner for Tourism Development in the State of Sonora, Javier Tapia Camou.

Further, it is suggested that those visitors “generated an economic impact exceeding $30 Million”; and regardless of what is meant by “exceeding” or that “economic impact” is somewhat ambiguous, I find myself once again having issues with ‘reported’ numbers.


So, taking it from the top: 850,000 visitors over a 12 month period, or 52 weeks per year, would mean that each week we’ve had about 16,346 ‘guests’ roaming our streets, hitting the restaurants, shopping in the stores and enjoying the beaches etc.

Personally, week in and week out I must have missed ‘em because over the past 12 months I’ve seen an awful lot of empty hotel/motel rooms as well as condos etc. and there certainly has been no shortage of real estate agents and companies trying their best to rent out a plethora of vacant homes/condos at bargain prices…

Anyway, in those ‘stats’ released by the office of Tourism Development in the State of Sonora the other number that is a bit challenging to accept is the “exceeding $30 Million” because if that number is Pesos and at an average exchange rate of 12.59 (Pesos to dollars) that would mean that impact was around $2.38 Million dollars or each visitor spent $2,800 (USD)…

The information did not say what the average length of stay was (here) but so help me God, I’m not convinced. Check my math in case I had too much Tequila last night but for the life of me, I can’t imagine that (e.g.) John and Mary from Phoenix spent that kind of money on a recent 3-day Holiday while here nor am I persuaded that a (e.g.) couple from those Charter flights out of Ciudad Juarez did either…

And all that leads me to one inescapable conclusion-- but I’ve decided not to post my opinion (rant) here today (and the crowd cheers) and instead leave that deduction for others to ponder as I close this week with my usual tag!

A Gypsy can always dream!

¡Viva Puerto Peñasco y México!

Gypsy

elgitanopenasco@gmail.com
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. -Mark Twain