Will Tulum become the new Marina d’Or? It’s becoming increasingly neglected, and the Mexican government is starting to worry.

“The problem is the prices, the sargassum, and the police who extort money from everyone. Just yesterday, the officers stopped me in my car, and they look for any opportunity to rip you off. Tulum is changing a lot, for the worse,” says the driver of one of the little trains that connect the Tulum ruins with the parking lot of a new tourist development called Jaguar Park.

The parking area is almost empty, and several of the shops and restaurants have their shutters down due to inactivity. Only a few groups of tourists wander around, knowing that, at least there, parking is free. And that’s no small thing in a town that seems to want to become Miami Beach or New York City, with the same prices and 20% tips, but serving margaritas and snacks.

The numbers speak of a decline that is readily apparent when walking through a town where abandoned hotels, deserted housing developments, and closed restaurants and shops stand empty… all while two projects that should have generated the opposite effect have just been inaugurated: the new Tulum International Airport and the so-called Maya Train.

“Tulum, Quintana Roo, is experiencing a significant drop in tourism, marked by a sharp decline in hotel occupancy and a reduction in flight arrivals. In the last week of September 2025, the new Tulum International Airport received only 24 international flights and 38 domestic flights. This figure is significantly lower than projected after the airport’s inauguration (December 2023). The airport serves 18 destinations, four domestic and 14 international, operated by 13 airlines. Despite this network, passenger traffic has not met expectations,” explains an article in Mexico Business.

“Tulum, Quintana Roo, is experiencing a significant drop in tourism, marked by a sharp decrease in hotel occupancy and a reduction in flight arrivals. In the last week of September 2025, the new Tulum International Airport received only 24 international flights and 38 domestic flights. This figure is significantly lower than projected after the airport’s inauguration (December 2023). The airport serves 18 destinations, four domestic and 14 international, operated by 13 airlines. Despite this network, passenger traffic has not met expectations,” explains an article in Mexico Business.

” Photo: Tulum Archaeological Zone (Source: Soltour)
The problem is so evident that the jewel of Mexican tourism risks dying of its own success. Hotel occupancy has plummeted from 66.7% in September 2024 to 49.2% in September 2025. The decline is constant, and the causes are multiple. Tulum beach seems to be trying to compensate for the lack of tourists with a frenzied price hike, and that’s a shortcut that usually backfires.

Boutique hotels starting at $300 a night and restaurants where a glass of wine costs $20 are prices that certainly drive away a good portion of the middle-class domestic tourism, which isn’t used to spending $60 per person plus a Manhattan-style tip on a dinner of carnitas tacos, guacamole, and ceviche.

This leaves the town in the hands of international tourism, especially from the United States, which fluctuates and is highly seasonal. Tulum is now preparing for its peak season, which runs from Christmas through Spring Break, but it does so with a beach where the decline is evident.

It was thought that the Maya Train—a controversial infrastructure project decided upon by former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, despite opposition from some local residents and environmental groups—would be a boost for the Yucatán Peninsula.

Source: elconfiedncial