José Ludvig Estrada Virgen, head of the Municipal Directorate of Tourism, reported that the Puerto Vallarta City Council will invest 3,600,000 pesos for the installation of the Christmas Village, cable car, Christmas tree, carousel, little train, and ice rink on the malecón, in addition other resources to be provided by the Tourism Trust, the Malecón Merchants Association, and other businessmen, without specifying what that amount would be.
There has been no authorization from the State Health Bureau.
Estrada said, “We will have some villas, as has been done in other parts of the international level. Also this ice rink. We will have a carousel, and a little train for the children, a 17-meter Christmas tree, and a small cable car. All this we are just working on. It is not finished yet. We will be active with this Christmas exhibition next week. It is something that we are innovating.”
He announced that it will be running from December 14 to January 14 in order to reactivate the economy of the city center with this innovative attraction for tourists and locals. Along with the Christmas exhibition, there will also be an artistic and cultural program.
All along the boardwalk and side streets, they are building some wooden houses, which will finally be commercial stands, selling handicrafts, sweets, and snacks. Estrada said that they will lend them to people who were affected by Hurricane Nora, explaining that they will not collect rents.
He pointed out that the ice rink and the rides on the cable car, carousel, and the little train will be free. Despite the concentrations of people that are expected on the boardwalk, he assured that everything will be orderly, and that they will take care of sanitary protocols, such as the use of face masks.
Regarding the cost, he said, “It is not just the city council. The Tourism Trust also contributes, and some associations, companies that we are working together with, which we are going to quantify. It has a cost, from the city council 3,600,000 pesos, but there are others parts that are contributing other resources. I cannot tell you right now until we have everything right. We are just starting. It is not finished.”