The first day of 2024 saw Acapulco’s beaches bustling with tourists and a hotel occupancy of 87.5%, according to the state of Guerrero’s Tourism Ministry. 

This statistic is based on the 4,534 available rooms that the port city managed to prepare for the holiday season despite the damage that Hurricane Otis caused to an estimated 80% of the city’s hotels in October.

The Tourism Ministry reported hotel occupancy rates for three areas – “Traditional” (60.6%), “Golden” (97%) and “Diamond” (89.3%). The beaches that recorded the greatest number of tourists were Icacos Beach, Caleta y Caletilla, Tlacopanocha, Hornos and Papagayo. 

On New Year’s Eve, hundreds of families gathered along the beaches and the Costera Miguel Alemán boardwalk to celebrate the arrival of 2024. They brought plastic chairs and tables to dine on, and a variety of home-cooked dishes including chicken, pasta, tamales, salad, corn pie and chilate, a cacao-based drink local to Guerrero.

Some others celebrated at the few restaurants that were open, such as the traditional eatery El Anzuelo, which is currently operating at a 20% capacity.

In her New Year’s Eve speech, Governor Evelyn Salgado Pineda encouraged everyone to approach the future with optimism.

“Once again, we demonstrated last year the resilience and strength that characterizes our people,” the governor said in her speech. “In times of challenge, we have found ways to stay united, to support each other and to move forward with hope and determination.”

After her speech, tourists and residents were treated to a fireworks and drone show that displayed messages of gratitude for those who chose Acapulco as their holiday destination in December. Some of these messages said, “I love Acapulco,” “Thank you for your support,” “Acapulco is a warrior,” and “Acapulco stands strong.”

Meanwhile, Guerrero’s Pueblos Mágicos of Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo and Taxco reported 94% and 98% hotel occupancy rates, respectively.

Acapulco is still in the process of recovering from the catastrophic impact of Hurricane Otis, the most powerful hurricane to ever hit Mexico’s Pacific coast. The hurricane caused significant damage throughout the port city when it made landfall on Oct. 25, resulting in the loss of 50 lives, with 31 people still missing according to government reports.

With reports from Reforma, La Jornada and El Sol de Acapulco