Remaining a vital part of the Mexican economy, tourism ranks just below oil and manufacturing. It is the third largest industry in terms of generating foreign income, amounting to over US$12.9 billion dollars in 2007.

Recent travel trends indicate that Americans are opting for more accessible vacation destinations; long distance travel is on the decline while short distance travel is increasing in popularity. Due to its close proximity to the U.S. and Canada, the Mexican Pacific region capitalizes on its infrastructure and natural beauty to attract record numbers of travelers. Some statistics to be aware of include the following:

• Mexico received 13.62 million international visitors from January to July in 2008, a 5.2% increase from the same period in 2007.
• Revenue generated by international tourists reached US$8.475 million from January to July of 2008, signifying a 6.3% increase from the seven-month period in 2007.
• The airline industry transported 26.5 million passengers in the first seven months of 2008, a 6.1 increase from 2007.
• Over 2.23 million people were employed by the tourism industry by the end of July 2008, a 2.3% increase from July 2007.
• Mexico currently has over 300 projects under construction or renovation; projections from 2007 indicate Mexico attracted US$10 billion in new tourism investments.
• Tourism is the third most important economic activity in Mexico, representing approximately 9% of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP).
• Mexico ranks 8th in the world in number of international visitors and 10th in the world in international tourism revenues

All of these factors strongly indicate the strength of a potential U.S. rental market for property in Mexico.