Cancun: post Hurricane Wilma recovery
When Hurricane Wilma slammed into Cancun and the Riviera Maya in October, she battered Mexico's tourism industry: 38% of arrivals visit this region, with its many all-inclusives (such as this Cancun beachfront beauty, right.) The highest levels of government made repairing the resorts a top priority.
So how do things look, so far?
Many resorts are open for business. Check Cancuninfo.com --the web site of the Cancun Convention and Visitors Bureau-- for ongoing updates, including a list of resorts that are open, plus expected opening dates for those properties not up'n'running yet.
Also: Funjet -- a major holiday packager-- has a blog of Cancun updates that includes photos of some popular spots
Definitely, you will notice many signs of damage as you drive through the hotel zone. Reportedly, a few properties will be torn down and completely rebuilt. And some resorts, though open, are in the middle of construction.
But the situation improves daily and many guests comment on the great attitude of the staff determined to make vacations enjoyable.
For conditions at particular Cancun resorts, best best is to read recent comments at TripAdvisor.com. For an overview of positive/negative ratings at a bunch of family-friendly options, check:
Cancun's beaches deserve a separate mention: even if a resort is open, the condition of the beach is another issue. A major beach recovery is underway... read more about beach recovery.
continued below...
Cancun: Beach Recovery post-Hurricane Wilma
Hurricane Wilma washed away a lot of sand from Cancun's beaches, and beach restoration was on the agenda from the earliest days of the Cancun recovery effort.
Currently a dredging project is underway to scoop sand from the sea floor off the coast and rebuild the beach where needed. The south stretch of the hotel strip was reportedly hard-hit, from from kilometers 10 through 24 of the Hotel Zone.
Vacationers will still be able to enjoy sun'n'sea: most of Cancun’s beaches are open to all, and the dredging itself takes place 600 feet off-shore. The goal is to complete the work by the end of April.
Condition of Cancun beaches not good on 2-1-08. Extensive erosion, some hotels have no beach at all with damange to post Wilma construction. The information on this webpage is not current. Storms the past fall caused further erosion of the dredged sand.
Please note that the date of this blog post is Thursday February 16, 2006; I should maybe emphasize this at the top.
This more recent page on Cancun Resorts- Tips has some links for checking the latest beach conditions, which continue to change, due to rebuilding, erosion, storms… And always check a site like TripAdvisor.com for most recent visitor comments about a particular resort.
Teresa
This blog entry either needs to be taken down or fixed. It is inordinately misleading, as it is written as though the damage caused by Wilma has been rectified. Few beaches change so much that comments like these are needed.
As of February 1, 2009, almost all of the beach between Sun Palace and Beach Palace is gone or has been rendered unusable by exposed limestone. Even walking between those two points at or near high tide is hazardous.
Kindly read the comment above yours, and the heading in the original blog: both point out that this blog post dates from 2006, and both give a link that leads to updated information. Beach conditions change constantly; that is the point. Vacationers can’t rely on the photos in brochures or at web sites, and should always read recent visitors’ comments for a particular resort.
If you have photos of the beach area you mention, you might want to post on
this site:
http://www.cancunbeachconditions.com/CancunBeachPhotos-B.htm
Teresa