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Cruising to rediscover a West Coast Jewel: the Mexican Riviera
The Mexico Tourism Board - Photos by Jesus de Avila
Looking to sail into a sea filled with bright sunny beaches, distinctive flavors, endless scenic vistas, and an insatiable rich culture? The Mexican Riviera is one of the leading destinations where each year more than 10 million tourists arrive at Mexico’s coasts aboard international cruise liners.
It is a fact that one of the most popular coastsof Mexico is the Caribbean coast where it stands out as an attractive stop bustling with culture, history, ancient traditions and a vast array of white sandy beaches and natural resources,and where 65 percent of cruise ships arrive. But, the Pacific Coast is growing steadily in terms of attracting cruise ships, from the ports of Ensenada and Los Cabos in the Sea of Cortes, to Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan on the West coast.
In fact, Carnival Cruise Lines recently announced a new unmatched offer of a year-round seven day Mexican Riviera cruise vacation experience starting on March 29, 2009. The Carnival Splendor, one of the largest ships ever built, will depart from Long Beach, California, with a total capacity of 3,006 passengers on board.
This unique itinerary includes three popular seaside towns as ports of call: Puerto Vallarta, with its gorgeous beaches, picturesque town, gourmet Mexican restaurants; Mazatlan, with its discrete charm beaches, rich local culture, dining and shopping offers; and Cabo San Lucas where visitors will encounter spectacular desert landscapes, dry weather and natural beauties with first class hotels and spas.
The west Mexican Riviera is becoming a very attractive destination for Cruise lines thanks to the array of pre- and post-cruise land stays, as well as the attractive excursion opportunities it has to offer, such as snorkeling, canopy tours, deep-sea fishing, scuba diving, kayaking, golfing and off-road adventures.
 In the last few years, Mexico has been upgrading its more popular ports of call to better suit the needs of the increasing number of passengers and to accommodate more larger ships at a time. A tangible example is Puerto Vallarta, which recently overcame a major renovation and now is ready to receive larger ships such as the Carnival Splendor.
The launching of the west Mexican Riviera cruise experience is a tempting alternative for people of Southern California, offering the option to depart from Long Beach or San Diego in a three to eight days cruise with visits to exciting ports in Baja Mexico and the beautiful ports of the Pacific Coast.
Nowadays, around 30 new cruise ships under construction will add to the 198 already sailing around the globe.
The fast development of the cruise industry is amazing. The original boom started in the 80’s with the launching of the first fleet of giant cruise liners. The cruise ship option is a relatively affordable and all inclusive way of travel that offers two sorts of “experiences”: on-board experience, with all its entertainment and the relaxation passengers seek; and what the actual port of call offers: beaches, villages, culture and tours.
Source: The Mexico Tourism Board
Website:
www.visitmexicopress.com
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