Negotiating the past and present: a critical re-evaluation of public sector tourism strategies in Teotihuacan, Mexico’s world heritage

This study advances critical insights into the governance dynamics of UNESCO World Heritage sites, interrogating how state driven tourism policies prioritize mass visitation economies while systematically marginalizing community agency in heritage management. Focusing on Mexico’s Pre-Hispanic City of Teotihuacan-a monumental archaeological complex inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1987—and its adjacent Pueblos Magicos (Teotihuacán and San Martín de las Piramides), the research unravels the paradoxical coexistence of global heritage prestige and localized sociocultural disenfranchisement. As a nexus of Mesoamerican civilization and contemporary neoliberal tourism, Teotihuacán offers a seminal case for analysing the tensions between preservation mandates, economic exploitation, and participatory governance in Latin America. Employing an exploratory mixed-methods approach, the study synthesizes qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with policymakers, heritage administrators, and local stakeholders, alongside critical discourse analysis of tourism legislation and UNESCO operational guidelines. This methodology reveals how institutionalized "top down" frameworks-epitomized by Mexico’s Programa Pueblos Magicos (PPM)- instrumentalize cultural heritage as a marketable commodity, privileging infrastructural investments in mass tourism hubs (e.g., visitor centres, souvenir corridors) over inclusive community development. While UNESCO’s designation reinforces the site’s scientific and symbolic capital, the PPM’s neoliberal ethos transforms intangible heritage into consumable experiences.