Saving Zihuatanejo

Regarding the large hotels in Ixtapa, while they do provide employment for many locals, they also import the majority of their better paid employees and tend to give more menial jobs and definitely underpaid jobs to locals. They pretty consistently receive huge tax breaks and return very little except for wages and a lot of refuse to the local economy (refuse we also can't seem to properly dispose of). So they don't really need my help and I don't really care to promote them, and my listing their websites in my Directory of Ixtapa Hotels is more of a courtesy to visitors than to help those hotels find guests. Some of them don't even seem interested in making money but instead losing money so as not to pay taxes for huge profits generated elsewhere, such as places like Cancún. I much prefer to promote smaller hotels, guest inns and rentals in our region, especially those owned and operated by local families. Many born locals are still looking for the more adventurous less demanding tourists that put Zihuatanejo on the tourist map to begin with, while our mostly non-local tourism authorities seek any warm body with a few bucks to spend, an approach to tourism that I definitely don't agree with and that I see as only contributing to the proliferation of all types of growing problems that we seem unable to cope with much less resolve. Those same authorities seek more and more cruise ships and megaprojects as well as the approval of casinos. Maybe some of you agree with this type of tourism development, but I and many locals don't and hope we can reverse these ugly trends before our paradise is truly lost forever. Many of us still believe the old Zihuatanejo with its green hills, clear waters, unspoiled natural attractions, simple culture and its respectful repeat visitors, those who didn't need a bar on every corner or a swim-with-the-imprisoned-dolphins "attraction" or the proliferation of "table-dance" entertainment (Ixtapa is getting a new one right in front of Ixtapa Palace) is worth preserving and is more beneficial for future generations of visitors and locals alike.

So if visitors are really seeking to save money then I can simply recommend they do business with locally owned and operated lodgings. The locals are definitely friendly, especially much more so than the faceless "hospitality" corporations and their Machiavellian money-generating enterprises.

I don't mean to offend anyone, and please forgive me if I come across a bit too strong on this. Just my two centavos worth.

¡Viva Zihuatanejo!