Hotels and beaches in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, are set to open Monday, Governor Enrique Alfaro announced, as coronavirus restrictions are eased in Jalisco and 15 other states. 

Hotel occupancy levels will be restricted to 25%-30% in the popular Jalisco destination as well as in neighboring Bahías de Banderas, Nayarit.

Jalisco is one of 16 states where the coronavirus risk level has been moved down a notch from red to orange, allowing a resumption of nonessential activities.

Health authorities will make inspections to ensure coronavirus protocols are being met, with an eye to opening golf courses, public spaces and shopping centers in the near future. 

Employers will be responsible for monitoring the health of their workers, and municipal governments will oversee health protocols at beaches. 

“We have taken decisions that have allowed us to adjust the definitions of what can be done in these two municipalities so that hotel and tourist activity can begin their recovery process,” said Alfaro. 

“We have to learn to live with fear because we cannot stop the economy any longer, because instead of dying of the virus, people are going to starve,” Alfaro added, imploring residents to continue to be mindful of social distancing and other coronavirus guidelines. 

The reopening comes as Puerto Vallarta prepares a multimillion dollar marketing campaign aimed at enticing tourists from the United States, Canada, and large cities in Mexico to the beach destination with a goal of reaching pre-pandemic levels of visitors by the end of the year.

As of Friday, Jalisco had 3,704 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and had seen 319 deaths.

Source: Informador (sp)