It's been a rough couple weeks for the travel community. In the U.S., one man's reckless actions with a lighter in Chicago has caused weeks worth of air travel delays.
To the south, Hurricane Odile has caused hundreds of millions of dollars worth of damage to the Baja Sur tourism economy, shutting down airports and resorts for weeks.
Much of the focus has been on the region of Los Cabos, where this is the worst damage the region has seen in 50 years.
The pace at which Los Cabos is recovering and rebulding is impressive and encouraging. The help that the Mexico Tourism Board is giving, via a planned marketing and social media blitz, will further help get the word out that the region is open for business.
We in the media tend to get a very narrow view in moments like this. Los Cabos has become so much the focus of the devastation of Odile that it's easy to forget that an entire region's economy has been crippled.
That's why I appreciated the polite wake-up call from La Paz, Baja California Sur Board of Tourism Director Sandra Felix.
She was raised in Cabo, so she feels for her hometown very deeply. But she is also working diligently to get the word out that many other towns were hit by the hurricane and are just as reliant on tourism dollars to keep their economy rolling.
When a crisis like this hits, the on-the-ground damage is horrific, but there is a process and tangible ways to repair the damage. The public relations fallout is much harder to fully assess and recover from.
Travelers are compassionate, but they also want to get the most bang for their vacation dollars. So in these situations, it's very easy to hit the eject button on the Los Cabos or La Paz vacation plans in favor of somewhere that wasn't hit by a hurricane.
The reality is that because of the hard work of locals and the swift actions of the local and national governments, the entire Baja California Sur region is on the mend quickly.
"I also wish that people would turn around to look at the other cities and towns that Odile damaged, such as La Paz, Mulege, Los Barriles, Loreto and Todos Santos," Felix wrote to me. "We also rely on tourism and it is very important that the world knows that thanks to the La Paz community and the local government we were able to get back on our feet and start working again in less than one week after the natural disaster."
Yes, there are plenty of relief efforts going on -- and if you're in a donating mood, the region needs all the money it can get. Here's one of the many relief efforts that you can donate to.
I, like my colleague Barry Kaufman, have been in the eye of these storms before. We used to live next door to each other in Bluffton before I recently moved to Chapel Hill, N.C. Thankfully, we saw way more near misses than direct hits in the South Carolina Lowcountry.
But I've lived through hurricanes. I've witnessed the aftermath of earthquakes. I saw the recovery and was part of the efforts first hand after 9/11 in New York City.
Whether it's natural or man-made disasters, we as a society are programmed to rebound. And that's just what they're doing in Baja Sur.
Yes, their livelihoods depend on that rebound. But their heart and their work ethic is bringing the region back faster than anyone could have imagined.
So beyond donating and sending prayers their way, most of all, Felix and the people of the region need you to believe in them and invest in that recovery.
"We need tourists to know that they can come and enjoy a different type of vacation, where they probably won`t see celebrities walking around, but they will see whale sharks and sea lions - not only see, but swim and mingle with them," she said. "A vacation in which they´ll get in touch with nature and their most adventurous side and where they`ll discover the true meaning of a 'Mexican Town'."
Here's where La Paz is at, according to Felix:
- La Paz International Airport is operating normally.
- Water and power services have resumed complete functionality.
- Debris has been removed.
- Normal business hours have returned.
- Domestic and international visitors are welcomed with arms wide open.
"It is with pride that we announce the capital city of Baja California Sur is standing, after the damages caused by Hurricane Odile, thanks to the coordinated work of federal, state and local government, service providers in general and especially, the efforts of the La Paz citizens," Felix said.
Are funds still needed? Of course. Is there plenty of work to be done? For sure.
Listen, the Mexico Tourism Board believes so much in the rebuilding efforts in Baja Sur that they are making a guarantee: if you've already booked in Los Cabos, they are guaranteeing that you'll have an amazing trip or they'll refund your money.
Some might say that's desparation speaking, to try to stem the tide of bad PR. We say that's confidence in your product.
We're going to do our part from our side. We'll focus on the success stories and the positives to come out of the rebuild. And we'll keep sounding the trumpets on why you should be planning your next trip to the region. If one good thing comes out of this tragedy, maybe it is that more people discover just how magical an escape this region is.
There are deals aplenty to be had. The airlines like Alaska and United are running fantastic deals to get people back to the region. Here's a great read from our boss, Mark Murphy, on why you should spend your holidays in Los Cabos and the surrounding region.
My father has pounded this concept into my head from preschool right through today: The true measure of a person isn't how they handle the success, but how they handle the mistakes, failures and tragedies.
Thanks to Sandra for the gentle reminder of how the people of Baja Sur are fighting back. If we as travelers have the same resolve and belief in the region, Baja Sur's tourism economy may be stronger than ever after this tragedy.
Here's hoping.
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