American tourists are choosing other vacation destinations instead of Mexico due to international competition, poor safety image, lack of promotion, and a shortage of airline seats.
After attracting up to 34.8% of all American tourists who departed by air in 2021, Mexican destinations received 19% last year, marking the lowest market share since 2019, according to the most recent data from the U.S. National Travel and Tourism Office.
Mexico has become less attractive to American travelers, who are opting for destinations in Asia and Central America, explained Gemes consultant Humberto Molina.
Between January and March of this year, Mexican airports received 3.9 million American tourists, 2% fewer than in the same period in 2024, according to information from the Immigration Policy, Registration, and Identity Unit of the Ministry of the Interior (Segob).
The contraction isn’t good news, but it’s not surprising either, because beach destinations, particularly Cancún and Puerto Vallarta, are struggling with airline seats connecting them to the United States, said Francisco Madrid, director of the Center for Advanced Research in Sustainable Tourism.
From January to March, the volume of international passengers served at Cancún Airport fell 8.2% compared to the same period last year, while arrivals at the Puerto Vallarta terminal decreased 4.6%. Both hubs rank first and fourth, respectively, in terms of foreign passenger arrivals.
Tourists arriving by plane are the biggest spenders in Mexico, contributing 85% of all international tourism revenue.
Europeans and Latinos Stop Coming
Humberto Molina pointed out that not only has Mexico lost appeal in the eyes of Americans, but also in the eyes of the British, Spanish, French, Colombians, Peruvians, and Brazilians.
The 63.4% drop in Peruvian arrivals between January and March is notable, followed by a 30.7% drop in Colombian arrivals, according to Segob records.
Air tourism began to weaken last year, with arrivals growing from 7% in 2023 to only 1.5% in 2024, while this year they decreased by 3.2%, according to the results of the INEGI International Traveler Survey.
For Francisco Madrid, this is due to several factors, such as the lack of seats, which is not only due to grounded planes, but also to re-arrangements and some problems faced by airlines. For example, the number of passengers on the Chicago-Cancún route plummeted almost 40% year-over-year in the first quarter. It is one of the 10 most-flown routes between these two destinations.
“There is an impact related to the inspection of aircraft engines, but also to some problematic situations with US airlines. Recently, the recall has already affected Copa Airlines, which has excellent connectivity to Mexico from Latin America, for the same reason as Volaris,” explained the former federal Undersecretary of Tourism.
From Humberto Molina’s perspective, the lower tourism revenue by air is also related to the lack of promotion in European markets and the difficulty of coming to Mexico from other Latin American countries. For example, there are visa issues in Brazil and mistreatment of travelers from Colombia.
The Gemes consultant also believes that the bad news about security and the economic weakness in important nations like the United States could be a factor.
“Other countries are running very active campaigns to promote their destinations, but we aren’t. If you’re not top of mind and present, without reminding tourists about Mexico, other destinations fill that void, as interest shifts there,” said Humberto Molina.
If the news that reaches markets like the United States is primarily about violence, assaults, and murders, the country’s image is affected, especially now that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has been giving Mexico a bad name, the specialist added.
Border Flow
Not everything is negative, as the arrival of border tourists and cruise ship excursionists somewhat offset the slowdown in international tourism.
Between January and March, border tourists totaled 4.4 million people, representing a 21.2% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
Francisco Madrid explained that, due to the depreciation of the peso against the dollar, Mexico became 20.1% cheaper in the first quarter compared to last year, which should have encouraged movement at the border.
Molina indicated that border tourists are sensitive to the exchange rate. For example, if gasoline is cheaper in Mexico, they come to buy it on this side; if a dinner costs less, they cross the border for tacos and beers.
Tourists arriving by plane also respond to the exchange rate, but not as quickly or as strongly, because air travel is often planned further in advance, the consultant commented.
In contrast, border tourism is decided within the same week, as it is made up of people who live in the region, he added.
On the other hand, more and more people prefer to travel by cruise ship because it offers certain amenities and they feel safer and more comfortable.
The number of day trippers arriving by cruise ship increased 11.5% between January and March compared to the same period in 2024.
Uncertain Outlook
Specialists agreed that the outlook for international tourism in Mexico, especially air travel, is very uncertain.
“These small declines have not yet had a major impact, but it is worrying that if this situation is not addressed, it could continue, and we will see that the economic impact does not grow, and if it does not grow, there will then be less interest in making investments,” Molina commented.
Francisco Madrid estimated that it will be a difficult summer season for air tourism, because we are living in a time of high uncertainty.
Source: eluniversal
