The Cancun Hotel Association has joined with the Cancun Convention
and Visitors Bureau (Cancun Fideicomiso) to launch a new
extravaganza of music, fashion, film and food called “Cancun in
Lights.”
Scheduled for Nov. 25-28, Cancun in Lights will include a series
of events, including a fashion show with runway models produced in
conjunction with Fashion Television, which will broadcast the show.
Through the weekend, concerts, film screenings and food tastings
will also be scheduled, and the festival will close with a series
of private VIP after-parties.
The goal is to highlight the destination’s lesser-known
attractions, such as restaurants and entertainment venues that have
international appeal throughout the U.S., Europe and South America.
But the focal point of the festival will be the Hilton Cancun Beach
& Golf Resort, where much of the entertainment will be staged
on the beach under the stars.
Performers scheduled to appear include Grammy Award winners
Chaka Khan and Poncho Sanchez, “New Yorican” jazz and urban funk
musician Little Louie Vega, Cuban salsa diva Albita and the
Venezuelan salsa/jazz/lounge band Los Amigos Invisibles. More
entertainment will be announced closer to the event.
Surrounding the various venues will be food stations offering
tastes of the best restaurants in Cancun. The lighting and ambiance
will vary each night to offer a new visual experience.
This will be the first in what organizers describe as a series
of special promotional events that will be held in Cancun this year
and into 2005. The city has seen a dramatic upswing in tourism. The
Tourism Secretariat of Quintana Roo announced recently that Cancun
was the most visited destination of the Mexican Caribbean during
the first half of 2004. More than 1.7 million national and
international visitors were reported to have visited Cancun, a 12
percent increase over the same period last year.
Details about specific events are available at the festival’s
Web site. About 5,000 general admission tickets will be available
each day for $25 per night. One hundred VIP tables will also be
available for sponsors each night. Tickets will be available
through Ticketmaster beginning Oct. 15.
www.cancuninlights.com
