Los Cabos Competes with Houston and More American Destinations for Visitors from Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and More

Written By: Tuhin Sarkar

Tuhin Sarkar

Tuhin Sarkar is a Senior Journalist at Travel and Tour World with more than 10 years of experience in travel and tourism journalism. A post-graduate in Journalism and Mass Communication from Jadavpur University, he combines strong research, industry knowledge and storytelling expertise to produce engaging, insightful and impactful travel news and fascinating feature stories.

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August 30, 2026 2:34 AM

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Los Cabos is raising the stakes in tourism as Houston and other American destinations chase Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and more, while new routes, luxury stays and experiences reshape travel choices.

Los Cabos is pushing deeper into international tourism as Houston and other American destinations compete for visitors from Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and more. The Mexican destination welcomed nearly 3.8 million visitors in 2025, marking almost 130% growth over a decade. Meanwhile, its air network reached 42 international airports, including 32 in the United States.

Miami, Orlando, New York City, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Houston, Dallas, Washington, DC, San Francisco and Atlanta are strengthening their tourism propositions as U.S. destinations compete for Latin American visitors, domestic American travellers and international business groups.

Now, Los Cabos is strengthening its position through new connectivity, premium hospitality and experience-led tourism. A direct Panama–Los Cabos service opened access to more than 60 destinations across Latin America, while a new Puebla route is expanding domestic reach.

The competition is increasingly centred on air connectivity, meetings infrastructure, family attractions, shopping, entertainment, cultural experiences and business opportunities, rather than a single tourism product. Recent destination data shows that Latin American demand is also diverse, with Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and other markets generating different patterns of leisure, business and MICE travel across the United States.

Los Cabos Targets Latin America and U.S. Meetings Market With New Flights, Adventure Experiences and Personalised Events

Los Cabos is strengthening its position as a meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) destination by combining its desert, mountain and sea landscapes with new experiences, expanded air connectivity and increasingly personalised event services.

Speaking exclusively to Travel And Tour World at IBTM Americas, Juan Elizarraras, MICE Manager at the Los Cabos Tourism Board, outlined the destination’s priorities for attracting meeting planners from Mexico, Latin America, the United States and Canada.

Los Cabos promotes a three-landscape MICE proposition

Elizarraras said Los Cabos offers meeting planners a distinctive combination of desert, mountains and sea, allowing groups to build different experiences within one destination.

The destination can accommodate events ranging from desert cocktails and receptions to poolside gatherings and adventure-led group activities. According to Elizarraras, planners can also incorporate activities such as ATV experiences, ziplining and other desert adventures into programmes.

This variety is becoming increasingly important as event organisers look beyond conventional conference formats and seek experiences that encourage interaction and team engagement.

IBTM Americas provides access to meeting planners

Elizarraras described IBTM Americas as an important opportunity for Los Cabos to present its destination to meeting planners.

The event brings together planners from Mexico and Latin America, along with some buyers from the United States. He said the Los Cabos team had already seen interest from planners who did not have appointments but still wanted to visit the destination’s stand and learn more about what it offers.

For the tourism board, the exhibition is therefore not simply about scheduled meetings. It is also an opportunity to create new relationships and remind established markets about Los Cabos as a MICE destination.

New experiences add to Los Cabos’ group offering

One of the experiences highlighted during the interview was a new zipline in the destination. Elizarraras described it as allowing participants to cross on a bike and called it the biggest zipline the destination has had.

He positioned the attraction as particularly relevant to groups looking for team-building opportunities.

Beyond activities, Los Cabos is also showcasing suppliers involved in rentals and event décor. Elizarraras said planners are increasingly interested in adding more decoration, flowers and other personalised elements to events.

That shift reflects a broader move towards designing events around the experience rather than simply providing meeting space.

U.S. to Mexico: Major Nonstop Flight Routes, 2026

Panama connection opens a route towards Latin America

Air connectivity was another major focus of the Los Cabos presentation at IBTM Americas.

Elizarraras highlighted a new direct flight connection from Panama to Los Cabos operated by Copa Airlines, describing it as particularly important for strengthening access from Latin American markets.

The new connection gives travellers from parts of Latin America the possibility of reaching Los Cabos via Panama, supporting the tourism board’s efforts to attract more meeting planners from the region.

The destination is also seeking to maintain its relationships with Mexican and U.S. meeting planners while expanding its international reach.

Puebla and Canadian connectivity also highlighted

Elizarraras also pointed to a new flight from Puebla to Los Cabos, adding another domestic connection to the destination’s network.

For international markets, he highlighted additional services involving the United States and Canada. He specifically mentioned a new Porter Airlines service between Toronto and Los Cabos planned for November.

Together, these connectivity developments are part of the tourism board’s effort to make Los Cabos easier for meeting planners and groups to access from a wider range of origin markets.

Safety and connectivity influence destination decisions

When discussing current travel-business trends, Elizarraras identified security and connectivity as important considerations for travellers and meeting planners.

He presented Los Cabos as a destination where visitors can enjoy its experiences while benefiting from strong air access.

For MICE organisers, connectivity can have a direct influence on the feasibility of an event because convenient routes can reduce the complexity of bringing attendees together from multiple markets.

Experiences are becoming central to event planning

According to Elizarraras, changing expectations are pushing destinations and suppliers to focus more heavily on experiences.

Los Cabos is responding by listening to meeting planners, companies and attendees and adapting its offering around their needs.

Food and beverage experiences are part of that strategy. Elizarraras specifically referred to gastronomic experiences and margarita experiences, alongside the importance of maintaining high-quality service.

The objective is to create programmes that attendees remember rather than simply providing a conventional meeting itinerary.

Personalisation becomes a key differentiator

Personalised service was another central theme of the Los Cabos Tourism Board’s MICE strategy.

Elizarraras said the tourism board wants to provide personalised service and pay attention to details because today’s groups are increasingly looking for unique experiences rather than standardised programmes.

That approach extends across the destination’s properties, services and tourism suppliers.

For meeting planners, the ability to customise an event can be particularly valuable when the objective is to create a distinctive incentive or corporate programme for attendees.

Los Cabos plans continued international promotion

Looking ahead, the Los Cabos Tourism Board plans to continue promoting the destination both nationally and internationally.

Elizarraras said the organisation intends to visit meeting planners in Mexico and other destinations while continuing to introduce Los Cabos to international buyers.

New properties, experiences and flight connections will remain important parts of that effort.

The tourism board is also directing planners towards its online resources, including a meeting planner guide containing information on properties, experiences and suppliers.

Los Cabos Faces Growing Competition as U.S.–Mexico Flight Network Expands

Los Cabos is competing for travellers from Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and other international markets as an expanding U.S.–Mexico flight network gives visitors more choices between Mexican resorts and major American destinations.

The competition is being shaped by air connectivity, business travel, leisure tourism and MICE demand, with Houston, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, Orlando, Phoenix, Denver, San Diego and other U.S. gateways maintaining important links with Mexico. Current route data shows 59 U.S. airports offering nonstop services to 38 Mexican destinations, creating roughly 280 direct city-pair connections operated by 17 airlines.

Houston strengthens its Mexico connection

Houston is particularly important in this competition because its aviation network connects Texas with a wide range of Mexican cities. Houston Airports reported that 5.1 million passengers travelled between Houston and Mexico in 2024, with nonstop services to 24 Mexican destinations.

The network also continues to develop. Volaris introduced Houston–Querétaro and Houston–Puebla services in June 2026, giving travellers additional options between Texas and central Mexico.

Houston’s strength extends beyond leisure tourism. Its energy, healthcare, aerospace, logistics and business sectors create substantial corporate traffic, while shopping, restaurants, sports and family attractions provide opportunities for visitors to add leisure activities to business trips.

Los Cabos targets premium travellers

Los Cabos offers a different proposition. Rather than competing with Houston as a corporate hub, the Baja California Sur destination focuses heavily on premium leisure, resorts, golf, wellness, gastronomy, adventure, weddings and meetings.

San José del Cabo Airport has direct connections with numerous U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas, Phoenix, San Diego and Austin, making the destination accessible from several major population and business markets. Current route data lists San José del Cabo among Mexico’s most connected international destinations.

This connectivity allows Los Cabos to compete for travellers who may otherwise choose an American city for a holiday, business trip or incentive programme. Its desert-and-ocean setting also gives meeting planners a different environment for receptions, team-building activities and destination events.

Mexico City, Cancún and Guadalajara remain major gateways

The wider U.S.–Mexico network is dominated by several major Mexican destinations. Mexico City, Cancún and Guadalajara have particularly extensive connections with American airports, supporting business, family, cultural and leisure travel.

Cancún remains strongly associated with resort tourism, while Mexico City benefits from business, cultural and government travel. Guadalajara has a major role in business, visiting-friends-and-relatives travel and leisure, especially from the United States.

That diversity means U.S. destinations are not competing against one Mexican market. They are competing across several distinct traveller segments.

California and Texas remain crucial

California and Texas are particularly significant because of their geographic proximity to Mexico and strong commercial and family connections. Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Phoenix and Austin provide important gateways for Mexican leisure, business and visiting-friends-and-relatives traffic.

For Los Cabos, these markets are especially valuable because nonstop air services can turn a short-haul U.S. trip into a premium Mexican resort holiday. As airlines add routes and frequencies, travellers gain more flexibility and destinations face greater pressure to differentiate their tourism products.

Air connectivity is reshaping tourism competition

The expanding network demonstrates how closely aviation and tourism are connected. New nonstop routes can stimulate leisure holidays, corporate visits, conventions, family travel, shopping trips and longer stays, while giving destinations access to travellers who previously faced more complicated itineraries.

For Los Cabos, the strategic response is clear: maintain strong U.S. connectivity while expanding access to additional international markets and promoting experiences that distinguish the destination from major American cities. The competition is therefore increasingly about more than flights; it is about what travellers receive after they land.

A destination built around choice

Los Cabos’ MICE proposition is increasingly centred on choice: meeting planners can combine accommodation and conference facilities with desert adventures, sea-based experiences, food and beverage programmes, entertainment and personalised event production.

Its strategy at IBTM Americas also demonstrates the importance the destination places on expanding beyond established markets. Stronger links with Latin America, alongside continued engagement with Mexico, the United States and Canada, are intended to broaden its international MICE footprint.

With new air connections, additional properties and experiences being developed, Los Cabos is positioning itself as a destination where business events can extend well beyond the meeting room.

Miami: Latin America’s powerful U.S. gateway

Miami remains one of the strongest U.S. destinations for Latin American tourism because it combines international aviation, beaches, cruises, luxury shopping, gastronomy, business travel and meetings. Greater Miami and Miami Beach recorded 28.3 million visitors in 2025, generating $32.2 billion in total economic impact.

The destination’s strength comes from its ability to serve several travel purposes during one trip, allowing visitors to combine corporate meetings with beaches, dining, shopping and cruise holidays. This broad tourism proposition has helped Miami maintain its position as an important gateway for visitors from Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Mexico and other Latin American markets.

Miami’s principal tourism strengths include:

• Latin American air connectivity.
• Cruise and beach tourism.
• Luxury hotels and shopping.
• Business and MICE tourism.
• Food, nightlife and cultural experiences.

For American travellers, Miami also remains a major domestic leisure destination, particularly for beach holidays, cruises, winter escapes and short breaks. The combination of domestic and international tourism gives the destination a broad visitor base and allows its hospitality industry to serve multiple markets throughout the year.

Orlando: family tourism meets major meetings

Orlando remains one of America’s largest tourism destinations, with a visitor economy built around theme parks, family attractions, shopping, restaurants, hotels and conventions. According to Visit Orlando, the destination welcomed a record 76.7 million visitors in 2025, including 70.3 million domestic and 6.3 million international visitors.

Latin American tourism is particularly important to Orlando, with Brazil, Mexico and Colombia among its leading international markets in 2025. Brazilian arrivals reached 736,300, Mexican arrivals 458,500 and Colombian arrivals 360,000, with all three markets recording year-on-year increases.

Orlando’s advantage is that leisure and business tourism can operate within the same destination. The Orange County Convention Center hosted 187 events and more than two million attendees in 2025, while group meetings visitation increased 3.1% to 5.8 million visitors.

New York City: global business and Latin American leisure

New York City continues to attract an enormous mix of domestic leisure, international tourism and business travel. Its combination of finance, fashion, shopping, Broadway, museums, restaurants, luxury hotels, sports and major events creates a broad tourism proposition for Latin American and U.S. travellers.

According to NYC Tourism + Conventions, the city welcomed 65 million visitors in 2025, including 52.4 million domestic and 12.5 million international visitors. Tourism generated $84.7 billion in total economic impact.

Latin American travellers can combine meetings with shopping, entertainment, gastronomy and cultural attractions, making New York particularly suited to bleisure tourism. Mexican visitation increased 1.8% in 2025, while business travel accounted for 12.6 million visitors.

The city’s meetings economy is also substantial. NYC Tourism + Conventions booked 1,515 meetings and events, representing almost 345,000 definite hotel room nights, reinforcing the connection between business travel and leisure tourism.

Los Angeles: Mexico, entertainment and business

Los Angeles has a particularly strong relationship with Mexico and the wider Latin American tourism market, supported by geographic proximity, cultural connections and extensive aviation links. Hollywood, beaches, shopping, sports, restaurants and entertainment provide a broad leisure proposition, while technology, media and other industries support business travel.

Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board reported 49.5 million visitors in 2025, including 43.1 million domestic and 6.4 million international visitors. Mexico remained the destination’s leading international market.

Los Angeles also has a substantial MICE economy. The Los Angeles Convention Center hosted 19 citywide conventions in 2025, attracting more than 260,000 attendees and generating over 209,000 hotel room nights.

For Latin American travellers, this creates a combination of entertainment, family travel, shopping, business and meetings that can be tailored around different trip purposes. Domestic American visitors provide another major source of tourism demand, giving Los Angeles a diversified market base.

Las Vegas: entertainment and MICE tourism

Las Vegas retains a distinctive position in American travel because it combines conventions, entertainment, restaurants, hotels, shopping, sports and major events. Its integrated resort and meetings infrastructure makes the destination particularly attractive to corporate groups and incentive planners.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported approximately 38.5 million visitors in 2025, while convention attendance remained around six million.

The destination can accommodate business meetings during the day and entertainment-led experiences in the evening, making it particularly suitable for incentive programmes and corporate travel. Latin American groups can therefore combine conventions with shows, restaurants, shopping and other leisure activities without needing to change destinations.

Houston: Latin American business and leisure converge

Houston presents a different tourism model, with international demand closely connected to energy, healthcare, aerospace, trade, business and family travel. Mexico is particularly important to the destination, while Houston’s international airport network provides access to Latin America and other global markets.

Visit Houston reported that the Greater Houston Area received 92.6 million visitors in 2024, including approximately 1.9 million visitors from Mexico. The destination also has more than 4.4 million square feet of convention space.

Houston’s tourism proposition is therefore strongly linked to its wider economic importance. Latin American business visitors can attend meetings or conduct commercial activities before extending their stay for restaurants, shopping, sports, museums and family experiences.

Dallas: corporate travel and Mexico connections

Dallas is another American destination where tourism and business travel overlap closely. Corporate headquarters, technology, healthcare, aviation, retail, sports and conventions support visitor demand, while connections with Mexico strengthen its Latin American tourism potential.

Visit Dallas reports that the city welcomed more than 27.7 million visitors in 2024, generating $10.9 billion in economic impact. The organisation also booked more than 1,400 events during fiscal 2025.

Dallas can therefore attract Latin American executives and business groups while serving domestic leisure travellers seeking shopping, dining, sporting events and entertainment. Its large corporate economy also provides a natural source of meetings and professional travel throughout the year.

Washington, DC: culture, diplomacy and business

Washington, DC has a specialised tourism proposition built around museums, monuments, government institutions, diplomatic organisations, universities and meetings. This combination gives the U.S. capital a strong relationship with cultural tourism as well as professional and international business travel.

According to Destination DC, the capital welcomed 27.2 million visitors in 2025, including 25.1 million domestic and 2.1 million international visitors. Visitor spending reached a record $11.9 billion.

Mexico was among the city’s leading international markets, while domestic leisure and business travel continued to provide the majority of visitor volume. Washington, DC is also developing a substantial convention calendar, making it relevant to associations, professional organisations and international groups.

San Francisco: technology-driven business tourism

San Francisco is particularly important for high-value business tourism because technology, artificial intelligence, venture capital, biotechnology and entrepreneurship remain central to its global profile. Its leisure appeal also includes waterfront attractions, culture, gastronomy, shopping and nearby destinations.

San Francisco Travel projected 23.33 million visitors in 2025, with visitor spending forecast at $9.41 billion. Meetings and business travel remain important elements of its tourism strategy.

San Francisco is therefore more strongly positioned around technology, investment, professional events and higher-value international tourism than mass family tourism. Latin American executives, entrepreneurs, investors and conference delegates represent a potentially important segment of this market.

Atlanta: aviation and corporate tourism

Atlanta combines a major aviation gateway with corporate travel, conventions, sports, entertainment and leisure tourism. Its position as a business centre makes it particularly relevant to international travellers whose primary reason for visiting the United States is professional.

Discover Atlanta reported that metro Atlanta attracted 52 million visitors in 2025, generating $21 billion in visitor spending and supporting more than 315,000 jobs.

The destination’s Latin American opportunity is closely connected to air access and its corporate economy rather than the beach and family attractions associated with Miami or Orlando. Atlanta can therefore capture business travellers, convention delegates and visitors extending professional trips into leisure holidays.

Why Latin American tourism matters

The U.S. travel market is increasingly dependent on a combination of international and domestic visitors, with Latin America providing several distinct source markets. The U.S. International Trade Administration reported that Brazil supplied 1.9 million U.S. visitors in 2025, making it the country’s fourth-largest overseas source market.

Travel motivations also differ significantly. Official data shows that vacation and holiday trips accounted for 57.1% of overseas visitors’ primary trip purposes in 2025, while business represented 16.4%, highlighting the importance of maintaining both leisure and professional tourism strategies.

Domestic tourism remains essential

International tourism attracts considerable attention, but domestic American travel continues to provide the foundation for several major destinations. Orlando’s 70.3 million domestic visitors in 2025 demonstrate the scale of the U.S. leisure market and explain why destinations continue to target American travellers alongside international audiences.

The same pattern is visible in New York City, Los Angeles, Miami and other major destinations, where domestic travellers provide enormous visitor volumes while international visitors often contribute higher average spending. The strongest tourism economies therefore increasingly seek a balance between domestic travel, international leisure, business tourism and MICE demand.

Destinations compete on connectivity and experiences

The current U.S. tourism market shows that destinations are competing on a wider set of factors than traditional attractions. Air connectivity, convention capacity, shopping, dining, family entertainment, cultural experiences, sporting events and personalised travel programmes can all influence destination choice.

For Latin American travellers, direct or convenient air access can be particularly important, while domestic American visitors may respond more strongly to major events, attractions, road connectivity and seasonal offers. Business travellers add another layer, with corporate ecosystems and convention infrastructure influencing where meetings and professional events are held.

Anup Kumar Keshan: editorial perspective

“American destinations are competing in an increasingly sophisticated tourism environment where Latin American visitors cannot be treated as one uniform market, while domestic U.S. travellers remain essential to destination performance. Miami, Orlando, New York, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Houston and Dallas demonstrate how connectivity, business, leisure, shopping, entertainment and meetings can work together to attract different visitor segments. The opportunity is especially significant because travellers from Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and other Latin American markets have different motivations, spending patterns and trip purposes. Destinations that respond with relevant experiences, accessible connectivity, quality service, strong meetings infrastructure and compelling reasons to extend stays will be better placed to strengthen their travel and tourism performance.”

— Anup Kumar Keshan, Editor-in-Chief, Travel And Tour World

The cause behind the intensifying competition is simple: travellers from Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and more now have more destinations and air routes to consider. The answer for Los Cabos is to combine stronger connectivity with premium hotels, personalised service, nature, gastronomy, wellness, adventure and MICE experiences. The reason this matters is that major American destinations such as Houston can offer corporate networks and global connections, while Los Cabos can offer a distinctive resort experience that those cities cannot reproduce. New routes through Panama and Puebla therefore strengthen the destination’s ability to compete across both domestic and international tourism markets.

Los Cabos is entering a wider tourism contest in which Houston and other American destinations are competing for the attention of travellers from Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and more. Its answer is not to copy U.S. cities, but to emphasise what makes Baja California Sur different: premium hotels, desert landscapes, ocean experiences, gastronomy, wellness, adventure and personalised tourism. New Panama connectivity gives the destination a stronger bridge into Latin America, while the Puebla route expands its domestic reach. As connectivity improves, Los Cabos has an opportunity to attract higher-value travellers seeking distinctive experiences.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which U.S. destinations attract the most international visitors?

New York City, Los Angeles, Orlando, Miami and Las Vegas were among the leading U.S. cities for international air visitors in the third quarter of 2025, according to the U.S. International Trade Administration.

Which U.S. destination is strongest for Latin American tourism?

Miami has one of the strongest overall Latin American tourism positions because it combines air connectivity, business links, beaches, cruises, shopping, hospitality and cultural connections.

Why is Orlando important to Brazilian tourism?

Orlando offers theme parks, family attractions, shopping, hotels and entertainment, all of which appeal strongly to Brazilian leisure travellers. Brazil was Orlando’s third-largest international market in 2025, with 736,300 visitors.

Which U.S. cities are strongest for Latin American business travel?

Miami, New York, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, San Francisco and Washington, DC have particularly strong business propositions because of their corporate economies, international connectivity, convention facilities and established commercial relationships.

Is domestic U.S. tourism still important?

Yes. Domestic tourism remains the largest visitor source for many major destinations, with Orlando recording 70.3 million domestic visitors in 2025 compared with 6.3 million international visitors.

Which Latin American market is especially important to U.S. tourism?

Brazil is a major overseas source market, with 1.9 million visitor arrivals to the United States in 2025. Mexico is also strategically important, particularly for destinations in California and Texas, as well as Orlando and other major tourism markets.

Why are business and leisure tourism increasingly connected?

Business travellers can extend professional trips with leisure days, while conference delegates may combine meetings with shopping, dining, entertainment or family holidays. Destinations such as Miami, Orlando, New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas are particularly well positioned to capture this growing overlap between business and leisure travel.