The Easter holiday period is invariably a peak tourism and travel season in Mexico, with the Lake Chapala region ranking as a hotspot for vacationers coming from the Guadalajara metropolitan area and other areas of the country.
As the Covid-19 pandemic still presents high risks for the public, the Jalisco government’s Mesa de Salud (health panel) this week issued a series of strategies and recommendations aimed at minimizing transmission of the virus during the hectic Semana Santa stretch, falling this year from March 26 through April 4, and through the following week.
In reference to activity in prime vacation destinations, the recommendations specified that restaurants and bars operating at lakeside, and in other Pueblo Mágico and beach town localities will be obliged to close up no later than 11 p.m. Hotels in these places must limit occupancy to no more than 66 percent capacity. Businesses in the hospitality sector should continue observing strict health protection protocols for customers and staff. In addition, public access to beach areas will be limited to the hours of 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
Health authorities also announced that sanitation filters will be beefed up at airports and bus stations and that 287 Civil Protection officers will be dispatched to monitor highways and sanitation checkpoints in the areas of Mazamitla, Tapalpa, the Colima Volcano and the Pacific coast, with the aim of discouraging an overflow of vacationers. It was not mentioned whether roadways leading into the lakeshore region will be included.
Traditional Easter season religious activities that attract large crowds will not be permitted anywhere in Jalisco, including pilgrimages, processions and reenactments of the Vía Crucis (Passions Plays).
Residents and visitors are advised to avoid all crowded, enclosed and poorly ventilated places, remain no longer than 40 minutes in any particular location, to use face masks, practice social distancing and frequent hand disinfection when out in public, and spend most of the holidays in the safety of their own homes.