Mexican resort responds to cruise ships pulling out
The director of Puerto Vallarta’s tourism board has assured travellers and tour operators the resort is safe to visit, despite three cruise ships cancelling port calls in the last few days.
Agustin Alvarez said the violence, as law enforcement battle with local drug gangs, was localised and did not impact tourism in any way.
"The city of Puerto Vallarta and other areas in the state of Jalisco experienced disturbances on Friday morning May 1. The local city and state police quickly responded and put an end to the situation within a matter of hours. Peace was restored and no further events have occurred," Alvarez said in a statement.
"No harm came to any residents or visitors to Puerto Vallarta and no disturbance, restriction or limits have affected tourists in Puerto Vallarta. All tourism infrastructure and services including the port, marina, airport, convention center, hotels and resorts, tours, and transport remained fully operational."
The Celebrity Infinity, Disney Wonder and Royal Caribbean’s Jewel of the Seas all scrapped port calls this week due to the fears of the violence escalating.
However Alvarez said it is business as usual with hotel occupancy more than 95% last week.
"Please rest assured that visitors to Puerto Vallarta continue to enjoy the tranquility, warm hospitality and security it is well known for, and the incidents that took place last week have in no way affected or altered this," Alvarez added.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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