Analysis of hospitality efficiency in the main Mexicantouristic centers

Tourism plays an important role in the Mexican economy, representing approximately 8.8% of the Mexican GDP and producing 4.1 million of direct and 6.5 million of indirect jobs. Although a positive trend in arrivals of international tourists to the country has been reported, the whole industry can be quickly negatively affected by the level of insecurity, lower economy performance, as well as by insufficient infrastructure. Therefore, it is important to search possible areas for improvements. In this article, hospitality efficiency of 67 main touristic centers in Mexico is analyzed for the period from 1992 to 2017. The results reveal low efficiency of in-land touristic centers in case of foreign tourists, as the foreign tourism is concentrated in limited number of on-cost centers. On the other hand, national tourism is less centered, although on-coast centers remain within the most efficient. Therefore, there is clear opportunity for in-land tourism in Mexico, which would stimulate the whole industry, as well as the Mexican economy.