Mexico’s Pacific Coast is bursting with new resorts, mixed-use communities and upcoming world-class hotels.
Acapulco
Anticipation is building for one of the largest projects to be developed in Acapulco in years. Mundo Imperial, set to open in spring 2008 in the new Acapulco Diamante district south of the hotel zone, will include Expo Imperial, featuring 250,000 square feet of exhibit space and 115,000 square feet of meeting space; Foro Imperial, a 4,000-seat performing arts theater and sports venue; and Fiesta Imperial, a 210,000-square-foot plaza surrounded by high-end restaurants, nightclubs and cultural venues.
Riviera Nayarit
Stretching 100 miles along the coast north of Puerto Vallarta’s International Airport, Riviera Nayarit is branding itself as Mexico’s Pacific Treasure.
“There are little pockets of development going on all over. We expect in the next five years 8,000 to 9,000 additional hotel rooms,” says Marc Murphy, director general of the Riviera Nayarit CVB.
The region, formerly known as Nueva Vallarta, will add to its already full roster of hotels with the St. Regis Resort and Residences, slated to open this December or early January in Punta Mita. The hotel will have 7,000 square feet of meeting and function space, a 10,000-square-foot spa, 65 luxury villas, and 120 guest rooms.
Another addition to Riviera Nayarit will be Los Veneros, a new resort area on the Banderas Bay coast between La Cruz de Huanacaxtle and Punta Mita. The $126 million investment entails 251 condominiums, a small boutique hotel, beach club, spa, and conference rooms. The resort area is due for completion by the end of 2009.
Mazatlan
Mazatlan itself is undergoing a facelift, with continued renovation of its downtown corridor, as well as the addition of several hotels and an upcoming convention center.
The $20 million Crowne Plaza Marina Mazatlan will debut in winter 2008, with 161 guest rooms, comprised of 90 regular guest rooms, 66 condominium apartments, three penthouses, and meeting space for 400.
The Crowne Plaza Marina Mazatlan is the first hotel scheduled to open in the Marina Mazatlan complex, which will become the largest tourism community on the Mexican Pacific coast, including an 18-hole golf course, a 1,000-boat marina, shopping malls, office buildings, and residential areas.
Several other hotels are in the works, as well. Costa Palms will be built south of the airport with an investment of $900 million; the Diamond Beach is planned for a 560-acre site north of Emerald Bay, with an investment of $600 million; and a 17-story Crown Bay Hotel will feature 100 rooms at an investment of $117 million.
Los Cabos
Two new properties with meeting space are slated to open this year in San Jose del Cabo: Cabo Azul Resort & Spa and Grand Mayan Resort. Cabo Azul Resort & Spa will debut as a luxury all-villa resort in late summer. The property, spread over 12 acres, will feature 332 villas, including an adjacent boutique hotel scheduled to open in 2008.
The Grand Mayan opens in early September and will feature a spa and ocean views.
