Cancun: If Anyone Asks, We're Not in Mexico

Fed up with having to deal with negative press about rising drug violence in Mexico, Cancun’s tourism board decided just to not mention it’s in Mexico. Who knows? Perhaps it will work – Americans aren’t known for their geography skills.

The negative press, released right before the lucrative Spring Break rush, stems from a U.S. State Department advisory on travel to Mexico, where drug violence along the border has intensified. Cancun, on the Yucatan Peninsula, is far from the cities of Ciudad Juarez and Tijuana, but nonetheless have been tarred with the same brush.

Now promoters and tour operators are just highlighting Cancun’s beautiful beaches and nightlife, without mentioning that it’s part of Mexico.  Its hotels are expected to house one million foreign and Mexican visitors during spring break, with the largest number of hailing from California. According to the Los Angeles Times, officials will downplay Cancun’s relationship with Mexico. “The Mexico brand, in terms of tourist marketing, has weakened,” Sara Latife Ruiz, tourism secretary for the surrounding state of Quintana Roo, said in the Times.

Drug violence in Cancun does exist — drug traffickers recently killed a retired general, several police officers are being investigated for ties to drug lords and a former governor was jailed for drug crimes. But is it any less safe than Miami? Probably not. (Its stretch of beach resorts and hotels are tightly regulated by a special force called Tourist Police.)

Cancun, Mexico’s largest resort town, is attempting to downplay the violence and promote itself the best way it can. If that means mentioning their Caribbean beaches, without uttering the word “Mexico,” it’s their prerogative and may be the only short-term solution left to combat negative press. How effective will it be? I’m thinking not much, since most Spring Breakers (hopefully!) know about the destination already, but Mexico’s tourism industry is thriving and no one can blame them for not wanting to take any chances.