Yucatán continues with firm steps in the recovery of air connectivity after the start of operations of the flight of the international route Mérida-Oakland of the Volaris airline, which will allow the arrival of a greater number of visitors, and at the same time it will serve as a bridge for thousands of Yucatecans who reside in California, United States, so they can come to their home state to meet their relatives.
On the instructions of Governor Mauricio Vila Dosal, the head of the Tourism Development Secretariat (Sefotur), Michelle Fridman, went to the “Manuel Crescencio Rejón” International Airport in this capital to witness the departure of flight 200 bound for that American city, with 136 passengers on board. In this context, he stressed that to date Yucatan maintains an air recovery of 70 percent on national routes and 75 percent on international routes.
It should be remembered that Oakland is located in California, which is one of the most populated states and with one of the strongest economies in North America, and according to reports from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), it is estimated that there are 180 thousand Yucatecan migrants abroad, and 87 percent of them are living in one of these three cities: San Francisco, Los Angeles and/or Oakland, cities that have immense tourist and economic possibilities to detonate commercial exchanges with the Yucatan, in the medium and long term.
The flight has four frequencies a week, on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday throughout the year; and tickets are priced at $ 89.99 USD each way plus tax, as a special for the inauguration of this route.
The head of the Sefotur, stressed that a state with connectivity is a better-communicated state and with more opportunities for tourism, economic, social, and commercial development.
“In Yucatán, we are very happy to be able to materialize what we announced at the end of last year with a new route to Oakland that now connects us with northern California and which, added to the route with Tijuana, will give us a prominent presence in such an important market, ”said Michelle Fridman.
For his part, Miguel Aguíñiga, Director of Market Development and Distribution of Volaris, commented that for the airline it continues to be a priority to bring more Mexicans to their destination safely with the best rates in the market, so that, when connecting Mérida with the city of Oakland, in California, we strengthen our leadership in the market of visitors, friends, and family, in addition to promoting economic recovery in Mexico and the United States.
The manager pointed out that, in the midst of an unprecedented economic scenario, promoting Mexico abroad should be an opportunity for local communities and investments, while highlighting that the launch of this route meets the objective of converting the industry into a pillar of fair and balanced development between regions, as well as a tool for social reconciliation, through the sustainable use of the national tourist heritage.
Volaris is the airline with the largest number of routes to and from Yucatán with other major airports in Mexico, with Mérida-Oakland being the first international route operated with the state, with a stopover in Mexico City, which will also help complete the quota of the 178 seats that this aircraft has. Since 2007, Volaris has transported more than 3.5 million customers in and out of the Yucatan.
In turn, the Director of Regional Airports of Grupo ASUR, Héctor Navarrete Muñoz, indicated that ASUR is a company committed to the airport industry, which is an engine of development in the world and, that is why they have taken all the necessary measures to help prevent infections and allow safe transit at airports, we have acquired the material and human resources necessary to address this pandemic since March 2020.
In addition, the Mérida International Airport has a health management team, we have a certified brigade to monitor compliance with all COVID-19 infection prevention measures, who are also in charge of providing assistance to all passengers to comply with the completion of the traveler risk assessment questionnaire established by the aviation authority.
The Mérida Airport and, in general, the arrival of visitors to Yucatán maintained favorable increases until the first two months of 2020, derived from the management by the State Government with the airlines, shipping companies, and carriers, as well as the promotion strategy implemented by this agency that positioned Mérida, in the first place in hotel occupancy nationwide in its category, according to data from DataTur in 2019.
Source: La Jornada Maya