Red-tape tangles cost billions

It seems that lately, if you want to opine about what’s wrong — or right — with the global travel industry, all you need is a ticket to Mexico. Within a span of just a few weeks this spring, the nation played host to three international conferences, each of which focused at least partly on how to maximize the potential of travel and tourism.

First up was the T20 meeting, which invited ministers of tourism from 25 countries to the city of Merida in mid-May. Just days later, many of those same attendees headed to the Riviera Maya for the debut of the Americas Summit, a new confab organized by the London-based World Travel & Tourism Council.