Why Traveling To Mexico Just Got Way More Expensive For Americans
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Mexico remains one of the hottest vacation destinations in the world for American travelers.
In 2019, the last year before the pandemic, some 40 million Americans visited Mexico.
Now demand for Mexican travel continues to increase, and many airlines are scheduling new flight routes to Mexico to meet this demand.
But while demand continues to increase, traveling to Mexico just got way more expensive for American travelers.
This is because the Mexican economy and the value of the peso are currently skyrocketing against the American dollar. At the time of writing, $ 1 USD is valued at 17.21 Mexican pesos.
The value of the peso now sits at its strongest rate against the U.S. dollar for just over seven and a half years. In the past year, the Mexican peso has strengthened by approximately 12.6% against the dollar.
The peso hasn’t been so strong against the dollar since December 2015.
Here’s what this means for travelers planning to visit Mexico for their next vacation:
The High Value Of The Peso
In real terms, when the value of the Mexican peso is high, this means that your dollar will buy less on your vacation. Your dollar will have less purchasing power, and therefore you should expect to spend a little more on typical tourist purchases on your Mexican vacation.
This may come as a shock to many American visitors because the American dollar has historically been so strong against the peso.
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While many budget travelers visit Mexico because it is an affordable vacation destination, this shift means that Mexico’s top tourist destinations are noticeably more expensive.
In price terms, many of these Mexican destinations are now on par with the most popular vacation destinations in the United States.
What Does This Mean For Travelers?
Over the last few years, the Mexican currency has mostly hovered around 20 pesos per dollar, but now each dollar is worth just 17 pesos.
That figure might not sound significant, but it will make a big difference to your spending money.
For example, the cost of an average taxi journey from Cancun airport to downtown Cancun is 1,400 pesos. Based on the lower exchange rate, that taxi would have cost you $70. Using the new improved rate, you will pay $82.
The price of a cocktail in a club in downtown Mexico City is around 185 pesos. Last year this cocktail would have cost $9.25. Now that same cocktail would cost you $10.80.
And this will apply to anything that you pay for in pesos.
The average price per night for a luxury hotel stay in Mexico is 3,700 pesos per night. Therefore, last year this would have cost $185 per night. But thanks to the skyrocketing peso value, you can now expect to pay $217 per night.
A Post-Pandemic Surge
The value of the peso isn’t the only reason why taking a vacation to Mexico is noticeably more expensive than it has ever been before.
In a bid to stimulate their economy post-pandemic, more and more destinations in Mexico are investing in luxury hotel and resort development rather than focusing on mid-level tourism.
This means that prices, particularly for hotels and resorts, will only continue to go upward.
What’s more, the number of people choosing Mexico as their vacation destination has only grown since the pandemic.
When American travelers were unable to travel further afield, they headed to Mexico and discovered what a beautiful, historical, and welcoming vacation destination it is.
Whenever demand is high, prices go up. And this is certainly true in Mexico, where travelers are paying higher prices for their vacations than ever before.
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This article originally appeared on TravelOffPath.com
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