Mexico Converts Its Own Alcatraz Into Tourist Attraction

Mexico converts its own Alcatraz into tourist attraction: Feared Pacific coast prison island housed murderers, drug traffickers and thieves for 103 years.

A century-old, notorious prison camp island that once housed killers, drug traffickers, and thieves may well become one of Mexico’s top tourist attractions in the Pacific.

At least, that is what the Mexican government is hoping for.

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador celebrated the opening of the Islas Marías Tourist Center on Friday night.

It is all part of a plan to attract history devotees to Islas Marías, the Pacific Ocean archipelago located about 62 miles off the coast of the state of Nayarit.

For 103 years, Mexico’s Islas Marías functioned as a penal colony that housed drug traffickers, murderers and crooks. It was shut down by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and has been revamped into a tourist attraction with villas, restaurants, beaches and a cultural and environmental learning center. The first visitors are expected to arrive at the Pacific Ocean archipelago Wednesday.

‘Imagine the enormous joy of resting, sleeping, waking up in this paradise that before became like hell, but now, once again, it is glory,’ the leftist leader said.

The villas at the revamped Islas Marías will lodge international and mainland tourists and features a museum, restaurant, café, and beaches.

The attraction is similar to the infamous prison located on an island in the San Francisco Bay.

The Mexican government government is hoping that it will become a major tourist attraction like Alcatraz.

Its entrance includes an arch that is named after Nelson Mandela, who spent nearly 18 years in prison on South Africa’s Robben Island before he was elected president of the country.

As part of a promotional video, the Mexican government hailed Mandela ‘as an example that even behind prison walls, ideals and change can live on for those who want to change history.’

Mexico has enjoyed a post-pandemic tourist boom, with international arrivals to the country rising by 56.4% during the first 10 months of 2022 compared with the same period last year, and up 7.3% in comparison to 2019.