Mexico’s federal Ministry of Tourism (Sectur) is raising the bar for obtaining and maintaining Pueblo Mágico status, with upgraded standards set to take effect this year.
The new guidelines were unveiled during the 49th Tianguis Turístico, held April 28–May 1 in Rosarito, Baja California.
Among the changes are requirements for:
The creation of a Municipal Sustainable Tourism Development Plan aligned with the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals,
The implementation of urban image regulations, including color palettes endorsed by the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), and
Full enrollment of all tourism service providers in the National Tourism Registry (RNT).
The objective, according to Marte Luis Molina Orozco, Sectur’s Director of Social Management of Destinations, is to “clean house before continuing to grow.” He emphasized that the intent is not to expel existing Magic Towns, but to encourage a process of continual improvement.
All 177 currently registered Pueblo Mágico communities must submit updated dossiers by September 30, demonstrating compliance with the stricter criteria in order to retain their designation. Municipalities that choose not to comply may opt out of the program altogether.
After reviewing submissions, Sectur will rank each town into one of three categories:
• Triple A (proven excellence),
• Double A (requires adjustments), or
• A (needs urgent transformation).
The classification results will be released by the end of the year.
Towns with “a solid plan,” Molina added, will be eligible for funding support from a national budget of eight billion pesos (approximately US $407 million) for community improvement projects. These could include digital campaigns and the revitalization of official social media platforms in collaboration with Meta.