What a difference a year makes.
In early 2013, Mazatlan was trying to put the lingering tourism slump
behind it and finding it a challenge, like the rest of Mexico and
indeed the world. On top of that, the city was burdened by the pull-out
of five major cruise lines that had scratched it from their itineraries
because of the faltering economy and some scary crime reports coming.
(It is only fair to note that some incidents attributed to Mazatlan
actually occurred not in the city but in the surrounding municipio—a
political subdivision just below the state level, roughly corresponding
to a U.S. county. These cities may be 20 to 25 miles distant from
Mazatlan, and I don't think anyone living or visiting California
analyzes crime blotters in Hayward or Fairfax or Pinole, let alone the
much closer Oakland and Richmond, before deciding whether to venture
into San Francisco.)
But on a visit to Mazatlan that spring, I wouldn't have known the
city was coping with a downturn if I hadn't just read the numbers.
To be sure, it wasn't crowded the way Mexico's beach resorts can
get—I felt a little guilty for enjoying that so much, since it wasn't
great news for a city I am quite fond of—but at least in the Centro
Historico, my favorite part of this or maybe any city, it looked like
they were getting ready to host the Olympics. Overhead wires were being
buried underground, the streets were getting fresh new surfaces of
adoquin (flat stone pavers reminiscent of cobblestone but providing a
smooth surface much easier for walking and driving), and creating a new
pedestrian tourist corridor that would allow cruise passengers to walk
along a newly paved walkway along a "cobblestone" street lined by
restored houses and shops from another century, leading from the port
straight into the historic district.
"We're not standing still," Secretary of Tourism Francisco "Frank"
Cordova said during an interview, declaring that every building in the
Centro Historico eventually will be restored. "We're still investing a
lot of money in technology, infrastructure, restoring our
neighborhoods."
At the time, he was busy securing more flights into the city, wooing
the cruise lines back, and making sure the world—including his own
staff—knows Mazatlan is a rarity: a gorgeous colonial city as well as a
beach resort. The crime problem, though never as dire as it was
perceived to be, had already been addressed with multi-pronged security
measures, which had caused the crime rate to plummet.
The transformation of Mazatlan's historic center was sparked by
restoration of the magnificent Angela Peralta Theater in 1992 and began
in earnest in 2002 with restoration of Plazuela Machado, where the city
was born. It is still a work in progress; restoring every building in
the historic heart of the city is an ambitious undertaking. But
travelers headed to Mazatlan this winter will find a lot that's new.
Planes: I liked flying into Mazatlan's old Rafael
Buelna Airport, a small, old-school facility that felt homey,
straightforward and accessible. The expanded terminal's new facade has a
sleek, big-city look, while the interior has been remodeled to provide
improved check-in areas, bright new restaurants and specialty shops,
more health services, electronic information stations, bathrooms, and an
entertainment area with video games. New jetways eliminate walking
across the tarmac and climbing stairs to the airplanes. All the better
to accommodate the expected 40 percent increase in available seats to
Mazatlan, largely from new, seasonal nonstop service from Los Angeles by
Delta and double the number of last year's seasonal flights out of
Minneapolis from Sun Country. Aeromexico also opened a new
Tijuana-to-Mazatlan route in December.
Ships: Those cruise lines that pulled out of
Mazatlan? They're back, stacking up three and four strong at Mazatlan's
cruise terminal on some days. Norwegian opened the 2014-2015 cruise
season in September; other lines that will call at Mazatlan during this
season include Carnival, Princess, Holland America, Azmara and Prestige.
It's reasonable to assume a higher percentage of passengers now will
visit downtown during their port calls, taking advantage of the new,
picturesque cobblestone promenade.
Boardwalk: Mazatlan's
malecon, the seafront
walk tracing its long crescent beach, is one of the world's longest at
more than 14 miles. It's a delight all on its own — especially when
traveled on one of the open-air
pulmonias built on modified VW
bodies — but it has the added virtue of being a pathway to restaurants,
the city's cliff divers, the aquarium and baseball stadium, and the
lighthouse. Baby sea turtles are released along here each year, and it
is the official staging ground for Mazatlan's Carnival celebration, a
family-oriented version that is counted among the largest in the world
as well as the Festival of Lights at the end of November.
This isn't the first time the
malecon has gotten a facelift,
but this go-round has one of the most eye-catching ever, with a phalanx
of tall palm trees, which are lit up at night. It looks more tropical
than ever now. New benches also have been installed along the entire
length of the
malecon. They've also restored the surfaces,
which makes it cleaner looking and easier to walk, and installed new
benches spanning the length of the boardwalk.
It can't be a coincidence that the malecon's makeover was completed in time for Mazatlan's 117th Carnival celebration, which will be celebrated Feb. 12-17. Right after that, the Spring Cultural Festival has
a program of 75 performances of ballet, contemporary, classical and
folkloric dance, song, opera, music, literature, film, documentary and
theater. The Day of Music, Jose Limon International Dance Festival,
Children's Cultural Festival and the Festival of Youth are all under the
umbrella of the cultural festival, which runs from March to July. You
don't need to look far to find an excuse to head down and have a look at
Mazatlan's latest facelift.
