Mexico City has officially reopened its tourism industry as of June 29. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has encouraged people to get out, and has refused to reimpose stricter nationwide restrictions.

This was part of an effort to lift an economy that was forecasted to decrease by as much as 10 percent his year.

Mexico has been one of the countries to reopen its tourism industry despite its continuing struggle to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. But industry experts predict that the Mexico tourism industry could take years to recover.

Head of the Ministry of Tourism Miguel Torruco said Mexico's tourism industry will not fully recover until 2023.

"It has to happen this year and next year, with a lot of effort, so that by 2023 tourism can be somewhat normalized, it will again quite successful, but not yet, it will time to see the same levels that we had at the end of 2019,″ Torruco was quoted in a report.

Mexico was one of the 10 most visited countries in the world. It received more than 45 million international tourists with an economic worth of $24.5 billion. But the pandemic caused a decrease on foreign visitors of around 34.4 percent annually in the first quarter of 2020.

Mexico's tourism industry and COVID-19

Authorities in the Caribbean beach resort of Tulum threatened to fine or arrest people disobeying rules on wearing face masks on Wednesday.

With the reopening of the country's tourism industry, some local authorities worry that their livelihoods will be hit worse if they do not take precautions. Tulma's mayor Victor Mas Tah said they can not play with the health of the citizens. 

The state of Yucatan has also implemented an overnight curfew and banned the sale of alcohol and closed marinas. In the eastern state of Veracruz, where fewer tourists visit the area, authorities have issued curbs in travel and group gatherings in some of its municipalities.

Mexico COVID-19 cases

Confirmed cases in Mexico are around 324,000 with 203,000 recoveries, and 37,574 deaths.

Mexico City has the highest number of positive cases at 57,674 with 38,917 recoveries, and 7,657 deaths. Followed by the State of Mexico at 42,372 with 22,128 recoveries, and 5,184 deaths. Next is Tabasco with 14,958 with 10,462 recoveries, and 1,405 deaths.

On July 13, Mexico surpassed Italy to become the world's fourth-highest death toll, according to data. But the pandemic was already losing its intensity in the state and the "conservative media" has been the one who's causing the alarm, according to Lopez Obrador.

Its neighboring country Brazil stands as the second worst-hit country by the pandemic with over 2 million positive cases, around 1.37 million recoveries, and 76,822 deaths.

Brazil's badly hit areas are the State of São Paulo with 402,000 confirmed cases, and 19,038 deaths. Next is the State of Ceará with 144,000 positive cases, and 7,127 deaths. Third is the state of Rio de Janeiro with 135,000 positive cases and 11,849 deaths.

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