Puerto Vallarta has had a big year in news, from celebrity sightings, film and television production, strongest storms on record, and a day of violence that highlighted the closeness of our community and the commitment from the city to keep its tourists and residents safe. Here are the top ten stories of 2015 on PVDN.
10. The Bachelor in Paradise filming in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
On January 26. 2015 the Puerto Vallarta and Nayarit Tourism Boards released a joint statement announcing the location as the next host for The Bachelor in Paradise. Following the announcement, entertainment magazines and blogs referred readers to PVDN for the scoop.
9. Southwest Airlines receives fed approval for flights to Puerto Vallarta
On March 11 the U.S. granted permission to Southwest Airlines to begin flights to Mexico, with the help of the Mexican government. Interest in this story was significant for Texans and was the ninth most popular story of 2015.
8. Hurricane Carlos predictions for Puerto Vallarta landfall
This year was a busy year for weather news in Puerto Vallarta and around Mexico. Hurricane Carlos formed early on in the 2015 hurricane season and was the first threat to land near the city of Puerto Vallarta during this season. People kept inform of the storms progress on PVDN, making it the eighth most read story of the year.
7. Puerto Vallarta tourism has a bright future
On January 23, PVDN predicted that Puerto Vallarta’s tourism was poised to make a comeback with the perfect storm of circumstances, including the peso exchange rate, more flights, and lower gas prices. This story proved to be true this year and was the seventh most read story of 2015.
6. Mexico offers amnesty to illegals
On February 5 the Mexican government announced that in 2015 individuals in the country illegally had an opportunity to become legal without any penalties. The United States isn’t the only country with an illegal immigration problem and Mexico tried to bring those illegals out of the shadows. This story was the sixth most read story of 2015.
5.Mexico produce safer than that grown in the US in many cases
In March 2015, Consumer Reports in the USA tested produce being imported to the US from Mexico and compared it with tests of produce grown in the US and determined that in many cases less bacteria were found on Mexican grown produce, including less pesticides. This story ranked fifth for 2015.
4. Hurricane Blanca is the earliest Category-5 hurricane ever recorded in the Pacific
On June 3, 2015 Hurricane Blanca became a category-5 storm and earned the title as the strongest hurricane ever recorded that early in the Pacific Hurricane season. Interest grew with the storm as it passed Puerto Vallarta and readers logged on to PVDN for updated information, making it the fourth most read story of the year.
3. Mexicans protest in the nude after 43 students went missing
The story of 43 missing students in Mexico still grabs the attention of the Mexican people and highlights the distrust between law enforcement and citizens, along with corruption in local, state, and federal civil protections. In February a group of protesters took nude photographs around Mexico, including stripping in Mexico City’s subway to show that people are more shocked at the nude body than seeing a decapitated head. Google proved this point with PVDN by demanding our publication remove the nude photos from our site because of our inclusion with Google News and use of Google Ads. There is no policy against violence at Google, just the nude body. This story was the third most popular in 2015.
2. Hurricane Patricia predicted massive damage, the strongest hurricane ever recorded
Many people remember the recent hurricane threat by Patricia, the strongest hurricane ever recorded in history predicted to make a direct hit, or very close, to Puerto Vallarta. Of course Puerto Vallarta was spared and only received light rain. The story of Hurricane Patricia became the second most read story and PVDN worked as correspondence with CNN, NBC, FOX and over a dozen other media outlets worldwide.
1. Cartel launches attacks in Puerto Vallarta
On May 1, 2015 the New Generation Jalisco Cartel launched attacks in Puerto Vallarta, Guadalajara, and several other municipalities in the state of Jalisco to protest an early morning arrest of a cartel leader. The story went international and prompted warnings from the U.S. and Canada to their citizens in the area. PVDN was the only local news covering the story with all other local news outlets pledging to blackout all information on the event for concerns over tourism being more important than keeping the local public informed. PVDN conducted interviews with 7 international news outlets and distributed exclusive news reports to over 30 international media outlets in English and Spanish, making this the most read news story of the year.
That is the big stories of 2015 in Puerto Vallarta and around Mexico. We are excited to see what’s in store for the upcoming year. Happy New Year to all of our readers and thank you for making us the most read news in the area.