Puerto Vallarta on Friday was named the ‘Best Leisure Destination in Mexico’ by Global Traveler, a U.S.-based publication for affluent international travelers. This annual survey honors the best in the world of leisure and lifestyle travel, awarding goods, services, destinations, hotels, airlines and cruises.
The winners of the 2020 survey were announced via Global Traveler’s website, which said, “There’s no doubt 2020 has been an unprecedented year for the travel industry. As borders begin to reopen and destinations, hotels and airlines around the world prepare to welcome travelers once again, we’re celebrating travel and looking to the future as we congratulate the winners of our eighth annual Leisure Lifestyle Awards.”
In the 2020 edition of the Leisure Lifestyle Awards, Puerto Vallarta topped the list of Mexican beaches and cities that are favorites of the American public and Global Traveler’s more than 300,000 readers, 50 percent of which are CEOs or company owners.
The complete list of the Best Leisure Destinations in Mexico is as follows:
1. Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco
2. Cabo San Lucas, BCS
3. Cancún, Quintana Roo
4. Guadalajara, Jalisco
5. Mérida, Yucatán
6. Isla Holbox, Yucatán
7. Mexico City, CDMX
8. Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo
9. Cozumel, Quintana Roo
10. San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato
This award is one more vote of confidence in the traditional attractions offered by the most Mexican beach destination.
Promoted as the “Mexican beach with the heart of a pueblo,” Puerto Vallarta offers an unrivaled combination of simple pleasures and sophisticated charms. Fine dining restaurants, art galleries, upscale shopping centers, internet cafes and nightclubs peacefully coexist alongside taco stands, street vendors and open air markets selling Mexican handicrafts, and strolling Mariachi bands.
Our city has always been a popular vacation destination due to the beauty of the Sierra Madre Mountains and the idyllic beaches along Banderas Bay, as well as its diverse lodging options, ranging from 5-star and all inclusive resorts to leading hotel chains and luxurious boutique properties.
For Luis Villaseñor, in charge of the office of the Public Trust for the Promotion and Tourist Advertising of Puerto Vallarta, the recognition comes at an extraordinary moment for this destination, just when the tourism industry is reactivating – with due prevention measures – with the reopening of the majority of hotels (operating at 30 percent of their capacity) and all of their amenities, the creation of a restaurant corridor on the Malecón, the June 15 reopening of public beaches and activities on the Bay of Banderas, and more businesses and public spaces opening up as government health and safety protocols are met.
GLOBAL TRAVELER READER PROFILE
Data from the page reports that site readers take nine domestic flights per year and 93 percent travel abroad frequently, primarily in First and Business class. More than 55 percent stay in 4 and 5 star hotels for an average of 60 nights per year.
THE PROCESS
Global Traveler conducted a survey of its readers Oct. 1, 2019—Jan. 31, 2020, with open-ended questions for the best in many categories of leisure, luxury and lifestyle travel. This survey ran in the magazine, as an insert to subscriber copies, as a direct mail questionnaire, online at globaltravelerusa.com and emailed during the period in question. Only those questionnaires with more than 50% of the questions completed were counted. Those with fewer than 50% of the questions answered were discarded. Submissions from employees of the magazine or individuals associated with the travel industry were not accepted.
For the complete list of 2020 Leisure Lifestyle Award winners, visit globaltravelerusa.com.
Source: Puerto Vallarta Tourism Trust news bulletin.