The transformation of a cultural territory. The development of “pueblos magicos” in Mexico: Pátzcuaro as a case study

Abstract

In 2001, the Mexican Secretariat of Tourism (SECTUR) approved the “Pueblos Magicos” program, as a strategy to diversify tourism within the country, looking to promote small towns interested in adopting and developing tourism as part of a promotion of local development. The towns interested in applying had to have heritage assets, be these historical, cultural or natural. After 17 years of operation of the Pueblos Mágicos program, this work analyzes their development and evolution on three scales: first, the way the program has spread geographically throughout the country. Following on from this, the State of Michoacán is analyzed, since it has 8 “Pueblos Magicos” (PM), where Pátzcuaro, one of these, is chosen as a representative case study, in order to identify whether the urban improvements seen in the municipality come from this being a “Pueblo Magico”. The results show that the program has included 121 towns located in 31 states, focusing mainly on a central strip of the country, showing a mismatch between the original goals of the program and its current situation. Using the increased tourist activity in Patzcuaro, the authors identify that urban improvement actions and plans focus their work on the Historical Monuments Zone (HMZ), and around the lake. The attention given by the city and its efforts to maintain an urban image in the HMZ, along with a tourist approach, may result in a lack of attention paid to infrastructure deficiencies that have appeared and not been resolved in neighborhoods and districts within the municipality.