What started off as an informative lunch about Meliá Hotels International, turned into a discussion about Hurricane Odile and its effects on the company’s Los Cabos properties.
Meliá representatives from various parts of the world gathered at Yorkville’s Sassafraz Restaurant last week to discuss the hotel chain’s most successful resorts including the ME London and The Gran Meliá Luxury Urban Resort in Rome, as well as new openings including ME Milan and ME Dubai opening next month; Meliá Braco Village Jamaica opening in 2015 and Paradisus Papagayo Bay Resort & Luxury Villas in Costa Rica opening in late 2016.
But when Jairo Torres, Director, Sales & Marketing, ME Cabo, the Meliá representative sitting at my table, began talking about Los Cabos, Mexico and its recovery after Hurricane Odile, he really had everyone’s full attention. “As we were walking through the ruins we were all looking around in shock,” he said, remembering his visit to ME Cabo. “We couldn’t believe that this happened.”
“I thought there would be a problem with the tourists who were staying at the affected hotels but there wasn’t,” he continued. “Everyone was so kind and understood the impact of what just happened. Their reaction to it was very humane.”
Hurricane Odile hit the Baja Peninsula in early September. The Category 3 storm damaged dozens of resorts and homes; closed the area’s airport which left more than 30,000 tourists stranded; injured hundreds of people and left 250,000 without power. Guests at the table commented on Los Cabos’ quick recovery and restoration. Torres mentioned that since tourism is the biggest industry in that area, the government was quick to react - the airport, several hotels and streets reopened in a matter of weeks. Meliá’s own properties: ME Cabo will reopen on March 1st, 2015 and Meliá Cabo Real is set to reopen on February 1st, 2015.
LaToya Moxley, Sales Manager - Melia Nassau Beach, Nassau Bahamas; Daniel Lozano, Managing Director - Paradisus La Perla & Paradisus La Esmeralda in Playa del Carmen Mexico; Alexandra Michel, Sales Manager MHI – Quebec, Ontario & Eastern Canada; Leandro Cruz – Director Leisure Sales North America; Leticia del Rosario, Sales Manager - Paradisus Palma Real & Paradisus Punta Cana in Punta Cana, DR; Maria de Jesus Lopez, Director of Sales & Marketing - ME Cancun, Cancun Mexico; Jairo Torres, Director of Sales & Marketing- ME Cabo, Cabo Mexico; Florian Connet, Director of Sales & Marketing- Melia Caribe Tropical, Punta Cana DR
