Claudio Cortez, representative of the CROC union in Tulum, pointed out that the influx of tourists is already directly impacting the job security of thousands of workers. Therefore, the union and business owners believe the challenge is to maintain occupancy rates above 70-75% during the coming months to avoid layoffs during the low season.
Cortez indicated that the Riviera Maya has an occupancy rate close to 95%; downtown and the coastal area of Tulum, on average, maintain occupancy rates between 65% and 70%, but with hotels reaching occupancy rates above 75% on weekends. Thus, Tulum has a third of its beds empty, despite the full occupancy of the Riviera Maya.
In Tulum, the CROC has between 54,000 and 55,000 registered workers, especially in the hotel and tourism services sector. “We are talking about colleagues who travel between Playa del Carmen, the Maya Zone, and Tulum. The flow of tourists is key because it allows us to maintain full staffing levels,” he stated.
Despite the low occupancy rates, and unlike other periods, there are currently no reports of labor shortages or mass layoffs in the municipality’s hotels, as companies are maintaining their staffing levels at the current occupancy rate. They expect to maintain a minimum average occupancy of 70% through April and May, which include Holy Week and the start of the pre-summer season.
The Quintana Roo Tourism Secretariat (Sedetur) confirmed in January that preliminary figures for the 2025-2026 December holiday season showed that the state surpassed one million tourists. (Tulum saw only slight growth compared to Cancún and the Riviera Maya in December).
The figures indicate that, compared to the 2024 winter holiday season, Cancún increased from 432,755 to 455,691 visitors, representing a 5.3% increase; Tulum grew by 1.2%, from 139,621 tourists to 141,305; Meanwhile, the Riviera Maya also saw a 5.6% increase, rising from 321,698 to 339,729 travelers during the same period. This figure does not yet include tourists from other important destinations such as Holbox, Bacalar, the Costa Maya, and Maya Ka’an, among others.
Source: reportur
