Mexico Tourism Says Campeche Remains Yucatán’s Hidden Secret as MICE and Heritage Tourism Open New Doors at IBTM Americas 2026

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September 3, 2026 7:19 PM

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Mexico Tourism says Campeche remains Yucatán’s hidden secret as MICE and heritage tourism open new doors at IBTM Americas 2026, with the state seeking greater visibility through meetings, incentives, Maya heritage and nature-led experiences. Campeche is using the international business-events platform to promote its hotels, restaurants, convention infrastructure and tourism services, while destinations such as Calakmul, Campeche City and Ciudad del Carmen strengthen its wider appeal. Improved regional connectivity and growing interest in the Yucatán Peninsula could further help Campeche attract event organisers, cultural travellers and visitors seeking lesser-known Mexican destinations.

Speaking with Travel And Tour World journalist V at IBTM Americas 2026, Luis Perez Vasquez of the Tourism Office of the State of Campeche, Mexico, positioned the destination as an underexplored part of the Yucatán Peninsula. “Campeche is still a hidden secret in the Yucatán Peninsula. We have a lot of expectations for people to discover our secret,” he said. The state is seeking greater visibility through cultural, nature and business tourism.

MICE tourism is central to this push. “IBTM Americas 2026 is a great place to do business in the MICE segment,” Perez Vasquez said. Campeche is promoting its hotels, restaurants, convention infrastructure and tourism businesses to attract meetings, incentives and event organisers.

Perez Vasquez also highlighted Calakmul as a distinctive tourism asset. “I think it is a magical place. You can go to Calakmul, reconnect with yourself and take a lot of energy to continue,” he said. Together, MICE opportunities, Maya heritage, natural landscapes and lesser-known experiences could help Campeche strengthen its position within Mexico’s wider tourism economy.

Campeche Targets the MICE Tourism Market

Campeche is making meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions a bigger part of its tourism strategy. At IBTM Americas 2026, the state’s tourism authorities targeted congresses, conventions, exhibitions and incentive groups while pursuing business with event organisers, destination management companies and specialised buyers.

This matters because MICE visitors can generate demand beyond leisure attractions. Meetings and conferences support hotels, restaurants, venues, transport companies and specialised tourism suppliers. Mexico’s Tourism Ministry also identifies meetings tourism as a segment capable of attracting visitors with higher average spending.

Calakmul Gives Campeche a Powerful Tourism Story

Campeche has an attraction capable of differentiating it globally: Calakmul. The UNESCO World Heritage property combines the remains of a major ancient Maya city with protected tropical forests, giving travellers archaeology and biodiversity within the same destination.

That combination allows Campeche to compete for travellers interested in more than conventional resort holidays. Cultural tourists can explore Maya history, while nature-focused visitors encounter one of Mexico’s important protected landscapes.

The Tren Maya is also integrating Calakmul and Campeche into broader regional itineraries. Official Tren Maya tourism products already combine rail travel with archaeological and nature experiences involving Calakmul.

Yucatán Builds Momentum Through Cruise Tourism

Yucatán provides another growth engine. During the first half of 2026, the state received 96 cruise ships, up 14.3% from 84 in the same period of 2025. Cruise passenger arrivals increased even faster, rising 21.8% to 294,028 from 241,475.

If that trajectory continues, Yucatán authorities project 171 cruise calls and 521,942 passengers for full-year 2026.

Yucatán Also Pushes Harder into Meetings Tourism

Yucatán is simultaneously strengthening its MICE proposition. Its delegation to IBTM Americas 2026 expanded to 26 representatives, compared with 20 in 2025, bringing together government institutions, hotels, destination management companies and event venues.

The strategy appears to be gaining commercial traction. Yucatán reported that its stand at IBTM Americas 2026 generated 11% more business appointments with buyers and specialised professionals than in 2025.

This creates an important complement to leisure tourism. Business travellers attending a congress or incentive programme can extend their trip to experience gastronomy, Maya heritage and cultural attractions, converting an event visit into a broader destination stay.

Campeche and Yucatán Can Create a Wider Tourism Corridor

The bigger opportunity lies in treating the peninsula as an interconnected tourism ecosystem while preserving the identity of individual destinations. Travellers can combine established Yucatán experiences with Campeche’s historic capital, Calakmul and less-visited natural and cultural areas.

Improved rail connectivity strengthens that proposition. Tren Maya’s Campeche section connects communities and attractions through stations including Edzná, San Francisco de Campeche, Tenabo and Hecelchakán. Official figures previously showed that this section had already carried tens of thousands of passengers while connecting visitors with natural and cultural attractions across several municipalities.

For Mexican tourism in 2026, that connectivity could help disperse visitors beyond the peninsula’s best-known destinations. Campeche brings the appeal of discovery, Maya heritage and emerging MICE tourism, while Yucatán contributes growing cruise traffic, established tourism infrastructure and an expanding meetings industry.

Together, the two states have an opportunity to make the Yucatán Peninsula more than a collection of individual attractions. It can increasingly function as a connected tourism corridor where travellers combine heritage, nature, meetings, cruises, gastronomy and regional exploration, potentially generating longer stays and spreading tourism expenditure across a wider part of southeastern Mexico.

Mexico Tourism says Campeche remains Yucatán’s hidden secret as MICE and heritage tourism open new doors at IBTM Americas 2026, driven by its Maya heritage, event infrastructure and push for greater global visibility.

In conclusion, Mexico Tourism says Campeche remains Yucatán’s hidden secret as MICE and heritage tourism open new doors at IBTM Americas 2026, supported by its Maya heritage, convention infrastructure, natural landscapes and growing regional connectivity. Campeche’s push to attract meetings and incentive travellers, combined with the appeal of Calakmul, Campeche City and Ciudad del Carmen, could strengthen its visibility beyond established Yucatán destinations. With MICE opportunities complementing cultural and nature tourism, Campeche has a stronger platform to attract new visitors, encourage longer stays and spread tourism spending across southeastern Mexico while preserving its distinctive identity.