LOS CABOS — New tourism data released by the Los Cabos Tourism Board and the Hotel Association of Los Cabos show a strong rebound in hotel occupancy, visitor arrivals and RevPAR, three months after a Mexico travel warning was issued by the U.S. Department of State.

In October 2017 hotel occupancy in Los Cabos rebounded by 21 percentage points, climbing to 61% from 40% from the previous month. Additionally, following a 2% dip in September, the first decline in three years, visitor arrivals trended upwards once again, rallying by 8.8%.

“With repeat guests accounting for 70% of our visitors, Los Cabos’ resilience is in the destination’s DNA, and this new data illustrates that Los Cabos is still on the rise,” said Rodrigo Esponda, Managing Director of Los Cabos Tourism Board. “Our strategic growth in hotels, arrivals and occupancy has created a very favorable environment for both tourists and investors who are attracted to the destination’s diverse and distinct experiences and are also confident in the destination’s long-term potential as a premier destination of choice.”

Here are some of the key stats:

• Overall visitation grew by 8.8 % compared to the same period last year. Los Cabos welcomed 172,300 visitors.
• RevPAR (revenue per available room) performance year to date increased by 11% (January through October 2017). Following the traditionally slow September period for the travel industry, RevPAR returned to August rates, rising from $90 to $153 in October 2017.
• Los Cabos added almost 2,805 hotel rooms, representing 25% growth in hotel inventory from October 2016 to October 2017. New resorts opening soon (or open now) include Le Blanc Spa Resort Los Cabos, Krystal Grand Los Cabos and Montage Los Cabos. More big-name luxury brands opening properties in Los Cabos over the next few years range from Nobu to Ritz-Carlton Reserve, and Four Seasons to St. Regis.

Overall the number of international arrivals to Los Cabos continues to sustain its 17% year-over-year growth. Holding steady with previous forecasts, Los Cabos is expected to close the year 5% up in tourist arrivals for 2017. Los Cabos also remains on track to add another 4,900 hotel rooms by 2021, representing $900 million dollars in hotel investment alone.

In August 2017 the U.S. Department of State issued an updated travel warning for U.S. citizens heading to Mexico, telling visitors to exercise caution in popular beach destinations including Cancun, Riviera Maya and Los Cabos.

Since the travel warning was issued, Esponda says Los Cabos has taken “swift and aggressive measures” to intensify security measures across the destination, investing more than $47 million to increase security personnel, equipment and infrastructure this year alone.

The destination has also enacted a five-point security action plan in a joint private and public sector effort that includes the launch of a new marine base, more than 200 new cameras for its surveillance system, a new hotel security committee, implementing security training protocols aligned with Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) standards and activating a rapid response network for real-time communications between local hoteliers and businesses.