Presenting: Ruben Cortes of Morelos Trails: Adventure Travel and Cultural Explorations in the Heart

I met Rubén Cortés a couple of weeks- Xochicalco: A United Nationals World Heritage Site,
ago during my stay in Cuernavaca when he filled menot to be missed if you come to Morelos.
in on a variety cultural and adventure sports tours- Tepoztlán: Climb the mountain to reach the
that his company provides in the Mexican state oftemple of Ometochtli (the pre-hispanic rabbit god of
Morelos. In addition, he took me on a 2 hour hikeliquor) and then do some rock-climbing or use ropes
through the "Barranca de Santa Maria", one of theto practice your descents.
many ravines in the city of Cuernavaca, where we- Chalcatzingo: Located among the higher mountains
walked beside a tiny river through a forested area toof Morelos, this is one of the one most ancient
a local trout farm. It was a fascinating hike througharcheological zones of Mexico, dating to 1500 B.C.
somewhat challenging terrain that introduced me toHere you can also rock-climb and rappel.
the fauna and flora around Cuernavaca. The most- Chimalacatlán: Here you can enter into the
interesting thing about this walk was seeing thedepths of a temperate rainforest, cross the entire
variety of rubber pipes that local families use to tapstate and admire one of the last natural frontiers of
into the river to deliver water to their homes sinceMorelos. You can go horse-back riding and reach an
they live in areas without municipal water supply. Wearcheological zone located at the top of a mountain,
also met a local family who was doing their washingalso among the most ancient zones of Mexico.
in the river, again a very interesting vignette of local8. You also provide guided tours of the museums of
life in Mexico.Cuernavaca. Please elaborate.
Rubén runs two hotels in the Cuernavaca areaThere are a variety of different museums in
and also started a tour company last year thatCuernavaca, we can offer you a variety of guided
provides local cultural tours as well as adventuretours:
travel. Rubén filled me in on the variety of- The Cuahunauac Museum was the palace of Hernan
cultural and adventure activities in the areaCortes, the conqueror of Mexico. It also used to be a
surrounding Cuernavaca:jail and now you can find a great mural by Diego
1. Please tell us a little about yourself and yourRivera.
background .Museo Muros: this art museum has the greatest
I am a certified excursionist & cultural guide, as wellcollection of contemporary Mexican art, with paintings
as a PADI scuba diving instructor, with recognition byby Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, Rufino
SECTUR (Tourism Secretary of Mexico). I startedTamayo, Frida Kahlo, and many more.
my own company "Morelos Trails" last year, and we- The Borda Gardens: This property used to be the
offer complete touristic services (adventure, cultureweekend house of the Emperor Maximilian of
& nature) in the states of central Mexico states, withHabsburg during the French occupation of Mexico in
a special emphasis on the State of Morelos.the 19th century.
I speak English, Italian, and of course Spanish. I- The Robert Brady museum: An eclectic collection of
studied at "La Salle University" and got a degree inart from all parts of the world, donated to the city
International Business. I have been working as theby Mr. Brady, an American painter and millionaire who
general manager of a small hotel in downtownused to live in this house.
Cuernavaca, the "Hotel Royal" , since 1997 and as a- Etnobotanic museum: Here you can discover over
scuba diving instructor at "Cuernavaca Gold's Gym"5000 species of plants in Mexico and learn about the
and at "Las Estacas", a natural river park.medicinal proprieties of these plants.
2. How did you come up with the idea to create an9. You also provide tours of "ex conventos", former
adventure travel company? You mentioned that aconvents created by Spanish monks. Please give is an
trip to British Columbia had a major influence on youoverview of their locations, their history and the
in terms of your interest in nature, please tell ustours that you provide.
more.These former convents were among the first in the
Well, the original idea for the creation of myAmericas. They are very interesting because their
company came about as a result of my thesis at thelocations are very close to the Popocatepetl volcano.
university (Marketing as an alternative for exportingThese convents have beautiful wall paintings and
tourist services in the State of Morelos). I discoveredthey have also been declared UNESCO World
that in the State of Morelos and in central Mexico weHeritage Sites.
have a lot of points of interest for travellers, includingWe provide 5 different tours, depending on the
national parks and biosphere reserves. The fact thatdistance and the number of ex conventos you want
there was a real absence of professional adventuresto see. There are a total of 11 former convents and
companies in the area pushed me to start on theit is feasible to see them all in one day during a
project.whirlwind tour where much of the time is spent in
And as you said, a trip to British Columbia, crossingthe car. We also offer less compressed tours where
from Seattle to Juneau with my family in a camperyou see a smaller number of former convents and
vehicle 18 years ago, planted the seed for my lovehave more time to explore the main features of
and passion for nature and culture, which haveeach one.
become my main hobbies.10. Morelos Trails also offers a variety of Scuba
3. Please tell us a little bit about Cuernavaca and thecourses and certifications. Please tell us about these
cultural and sports opportunities that this regionopportunities.
offers.The State of Morelos offers great opportunities to
Cuernavaca is known as the city of everlasting spring.begin your diving experience at one of the crystal
It is blessed with one of the best climates in theclear rivers. You have the option of becoming
world, and for centuries this feature has attracted acertified with the PADI credential if you complete a
lot of historic characters, from Aztecs emperors tocourse. The final exams can be completed in
famous painters and scientists such as Diego RiveraAcapulco or in Veracruz, two places with great
or Alexander von Humboldt. The culture and historybeaches and lots of fun.
of Mexico is featured at Cuernavaca's museums,11. What about alternative sports? What sports do
mansions, churches and archeological zones.you offer and in which locations are these sports
The State of Morelos as a region offers everythingactivities available?
you can imagine, from rafting, to excursions inWe offer the following alternative sports:
temperate rainforests, pine forests, natural wall- Rafting at the Amacuzac river, the largest river in
climbing in the canyons (the so-called "barrancas"),Morelos. A full-day tour is available only during rainy
scuba diving in crystal clear rivers, and culture at theseason.
archeological zones (of which there are more than- Flying an ultra-light plane: these small planes have no
10), and at the former monasteries dating back toexterior walls, so you can feel the wind on your face
the 16th century. We even have prehistoric paintingsand body during the entire time that it takes to fly
in this area.above Tequesquitengo Lake, the largest lake of
4. You know a lot about the geological history andMorelos.
topographical situation of Cuernavaca. Please give us- A speleology walk underground for 3 or 5 hours,
an overview.following a subterranean river that lets you discover
Cuernavaca is located at the south end of acomplete darkness while learning more about geology.
neo-volcanic zone, so the inactive volcanoes of the- High mountain climbing at one of the 3 tallest
north absorb all the humidity and produce frequentvolcanoes in Mexico - Iztaccihuatl, a 2-day tour in the
rains which provides a source of fresh water to thecompany of a specialized guide.
city. The water descends from the volcanoes to the12. You offer interesting local hiking excursions within
city in streams that produce natural canyons knownthe Cuernavaca city limits. Please tell us about those.
as "barrancas". These ravines vary in size and theIn Cuernavaca we have two different kinds of hiking
larger ones reach 50 m of depth and 150 m in length.excursions: the more basic one consists of a walk
Cuernavaca is crossed by more than 20 "barrancas"through the Santa Maria ravine, where you can follow
and among other things, this unique topographicala little stream and visit a trout farm. Here you can
situation makes it difficult to plan the streets andyou also enjoy a nice meal in beautiful surroundings.
services for the city.There is enough time to visit the city on the same
5. Your family also operates a hotel in Cuernavaca.day.
Please provide us with information about that.The other excursion is a bit more physically
The Hotel Royal is a small, economic and clean placedemanding and requires you to be in better shape.
where you can comfortably spend the night. OurThe hike goes across the undeveloped ravines of
rates are inexpensive, and we focus on offering youwest Cuernavaca. This is an all-day hike and finishes in
a comfortable place of rest after a day full of actionthe village of Cuentepec, a small town where the
outside. You can visit our web site to get morelocals still speak the indigenous language of Nahuatl.
information:13. Where do your customers come from and what
6. Please tell us about Hotel Villa Royal in Puente detype of experience are they looking for?
Ixtla.Most of the customers for our tours come from the
The Hotel Villa Royal is a place to rest, it is a veryUnited States or from Europe, and they are looking
small hotel with only 7 rooms and a pool, located infor a combination of culture and nature experiences.
the town of Puente de Ixtla. We provide14. What is the demand for adventure sports and
personalized service and attention to your uniquenature experiences in Mexico right now?
needs. More information is available on our web siteThe demand for these experiences is high in the
as well.beach destinations such as Cancun, La Paz or Puerto
7. Please tell us about the tours you provide ofVallarta, but in central Mexico we are just starting to
archeological zones in and around Cuernavaca.promote these opportunities to travellers and we are
In Cuernavaca we offer a tour to the archeologicalletting our future visitors know about the great
zone of Teopanzolco. This zone is very importantpossibilities offered in the State of Morelos.
because the main temple is a scale copy of the greatThank you, Rubén, for taking your time to tell
temple of Tenochtitlán (now in Mexico City),us about the broad variety of cultural and adventure
which was destroyed.opportunities available in the Cuernavaca region. All
Other important places that combine adventure andthe best to your young company!
archeology are: