Travel: Private in Mexico

Barbara Beckley
One vacation choice that has consistently gained the favor of discriminating travelers in recent years is the rental villa in Mexico.
This is a concept that can offer privacy and convenient location, the homelike amenities that appeal especially to large family groups, and usually significant luxury to boot.
"People like having all the comforts of home, plus the privacy of their own space to relax in and share time with family and friends," says Pascal Jesus de Santana, director of Acapulco-based Acapulco Luxury Villas.
Throughout Mexico, rentals are available in the center of the most popular resort towns, or far from the madding crowd on private estates. Stays can be as brief as two nights or last for weeks, and amenities may be as simple or lavish as you wish. But "don't assume a villa has something if it's not listed," cautions Caroline Griffee, owner of Cabo San Lucas-based Cabo Villa Rentals. "Always ask to ensure you'll have the experience you expect."
Here's a small sampling of the exclusive "homes away from home" you can enjoy in a few of Mexico's top tourist destinations.

Acapulco
Acapulco Bay is the backdrop for the infinity pool and large terrace of Villa Alfin, an elegant six-bedroom, seven-bath home at the top of the exclusive gated Las Brisas residential area. Amenities include a chef and a professional Paddle Tennis court. The rate is $1,200 per night. Visit www.acapulcoluxuryvillas.com or
call (877) 225-9197.

In the bustling Condesa district, the 10-bedroom, 18,000-square-foot multilevel Mexico Mansion features two swimming pools (one of which boasts a 15-person bar) with Acapulco Bay views, four Jacuzzis, and a steam room. Rates begin at $1,795 per night. Visit www.acapulcoluxuryvillas.com or call (877) 225-9197.

Cabo San Lucas
A prime perch on the cliffs of Pedregal and a pool cantilevered over the beach gives the guests of Villa Stein unparalleled views of Lands End, the Pacific Ocean, and the Sea of Cortez. A palapa-covered swim up bar and Jacuzzi, spacious living and dining rooms, two bedroom suites, and a guest house make it fun for two to eight people. Rates range from $700 to $1,000 per night. Visit www.villasteincabo.com or call (866) 783-0518.

Between Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo, The Beach House offers six bedrooms and baths; family, living, and dining rooms; and an infinity pool on the beach inside the gated Costa Brava development. Rates range from $1,800 to $2,000 per night and $12,600 to $14,000 per week. Visit www.bajasurvacationrentals.com or call (888) 332-8477.

Travel website with online booking engine offers hot ticket to Mexico's Pacific Coast - Mexican Pacific Marketing

PRLEAP.COM) MANZANILLO, Mexico – MexicanPacific.com has refocused attention on its online reservations system that connects the region’s top resorts with the more than 20,000 monthly visitors who visit the site. The website has already been acknowledged as an industry leader from the Mexican Tourist Board (SECTUR) when it won the prestigious “Lente de Plata” (Silver Lens) for the best travel Web site last year.

The independent boutique company celebrated its third year of operations in March and has grown into a dynamic media group specializing in website design, creative services, public relations and e-marketing for destinations and resorts in Mexico’s tourism sector. Earlier this year, the company opened offices in Los Cabos at the tip of the 1,000-mile Baja California peninsula, including San Jose del Cabo, Cabo San Lucas, East Cape, La Paz and Todos Santos in a revamped website and creating a second destination magazine of the EcoAdventure Guide that covers the Baja region. The combined annual circulation of the EcoAdventure Guides now totals 200,000.

Currently nearly 30 hotels from Manzanillo and the Costalegre to Puerto Vallarta and Los Cabos are represented on the online booking engine that allows users to browse dates, reserve and pay in real time easily and quickly. Unlike other online travel sites which advertise a low rate and add as much as 22 percent in taxes and services, rates on MexicanPacific.com are transparent and include all additional fees.

“Unlike some of our competitor’s offering online reservations, we have personal knowledge of the resorts we book. Our local knowledge and dedication to offering the most competitive prices ensures that making a reservation is quick and efficient,” says Mexican Pacific Marketing President Robert Oveson. “We operate on an ‘honesty code’ of ethics where we are completely upfront with our hotel rates. Our rates include all taxes and charges so what you see is what you get, no hidden charges, booking fees or extras.”

Mexican Pacific will send out biweekly e-newsletters to a network of 2,500+ national and international travel agents updating them on current specials, promotions and packages, as well as its personal database of club members to ensure participating hotels maximize their exposure and sell room nights.

In addition to its online reservations system, MexicanPacific.com has developed a personalized travel program. Customers email their requests and questions to a Mexican Pacific travel representative and a custom vacation is designed including transfers, hotel reservations, tours, activities and even personal recommendations on things like where to shop and eat.

“Our clients have the option to quickly and simply make a hotel reservation or to have someone personalize a vacation for them. Different types of customers have different necessities and our primary goal is to provide services that address all their needs,” says Robert Oveson.

MexicanPacific.com is continuing to bring this undiscovered part of Mexico closer and closer to the traveler who is looking for a little taste of the real Mexico.

ABOUT MEXICAN PACIFIC MARKETING
Mexican Pacific Marketing (MexPacific.com) is a one-stop shop offering scalable turn-key solutions and personalized marketing campaigns, graphic design services (from print sales material to websites), and public relations to resorts, hotels, destinations and local businesses seeking to meet their goals without breaking the bank.

For more information contact:
Mexican Pacific Marketing
press@mexicanpacific.com
US: (949) 340-2602 / MX: +52 (314) 335-3207

Wilma leaves clouds over peak-season tourism

Laura Bly and Jayne Clark

Days after Wilma pummeled Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and tore across Florida, the strongest Atlantic hurricane on record has become an ominous cloud on the regions' tourism horizons.
As storm-tossed destinations from Cancun to Palm Beach gear up for the peak winter season, some already are trolling for visitors, and others will be out of commission for months.
Because communications and power are still down or spotty in many of the affected areas, detailed damage assessments for hotels and tourist attractions remain elusive. Visitor evacuations continue in Mexico, where devastated Cancun, Cozumel and the lesser-damaged burgeoning coastal resort area to the south known as the Mayan Riviera account for a third of the country's $11 billion annual tourism revenue.
Most Cancun hotels will need repairs. Airlines and tour operators are scrambling to re-accommodate travelers, and some airports are still trying to return to normal operations.

Expedia.com is waiving cancellation fees for bookings to the Yucatan through Dec. 15 and to Florida cities including Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Key West through Sunday. Milwaukee-based Funjet Vacations is canceling trips to the Yucatan through Monday and letting passengers rebook without penalty on departures through Dec. 16.
In Mexico, tour companies are redirecting travelers to such Pacific Coast resort areas as Cabo San Lucas and Acapulco. In Florida, popular tourist spots including Orlando and Amelia Island had little or no damage from Wilma's ferocious dash across the southern part of the state.
Expected detours to other destinations already have sparked incentives in storm-damaged areas and speculation about high-season deals, as well.

For example, in Miami's South Beach -- where 85% of hotels are open -- the Clinton Hotel and Spa is offering a weekday Wilma Special at $125 a night. In Mexico's Mayan Riviera, the Turquoise Reef Group, a reservations agent for several small hotels, is offering a free night's lodging to guests who already have made a deposit on a future stay.

With this week's reopening of major ports in Miami and Fort Lauderdale (which expect to be back today or Saturday), most South Florida cruises are due to depart this weekend as scheduled. But storm damage has forced lines to cancel calls at Cozumel, a mainstay on Western Caribbean runs.
Meanwhile, in the final weeks of what has been a record-breaking hurricane season, tourism officials are putting on a sunny face: "The trees grow back, and you fix up what needs to be fixed," says William Talbert, head of the Greater Miami tourism bureau. "The good news is, we live in paradise. And, sometimes, the bad news is, we live in paradise."