Abstract

CARDENAS GOMEZ, Erika Patricia. The Road from Acapulco to Mexico City: Construction, Crossings and Tourist Implications. Estud. perspect. tur. [online]. 2019, vol.28, n.1, pp.227-248. ISSN 1851-1732.

Extensive bibliography has emphasized that the communications and transport system has played an important role in the promotion and development of tourism. To know, from a long-term perspective, how the process of construction of the Acapulco road towards Mexico City has been and what the implications of its construction have been is the objective of this article. This from reviewing the literature and collecting the opinion of several visitors who made the trip.The importance of analyzing this path is due to the fact that it has been strategic throughout its history, because people, merchandise and money traveled from various parts of the world, but above all from Asia. In spite of its transcendence, the route, for four centuries, turned out to be tired, slow and uncomfortable. However, the situation changed with the inauguration of the Mexico-Acapulco highway in 1927, since it opened the possibility for many people, especially from Mexico City, to visit it. In a few years, tourism became the main economic activity of Acapulco, which implied a demographic and urban growth, something that had not happened before. In this change the post-revolutionary governments had a broad participation because they invested and positioned it as the main tourist destination of sun and beach in Mexico and Latin America, where undoubtedly also influenced the international context. Today despite losing competitiveness Acapulco is still visited by domestic tourism.

Keywords : Road; Strategic; Tourism; Acapulco; Mexico City.