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Despite a small holiday-adjusted dip in international travelers during the month of April, Cancun International Airport continues to welcome a record number of travelers to the Mexican Caribbean this year.
Welcoming Eight Million
In fact, according to the latest report from Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S.A.B. de C.V. (ASUR), the New York Stock Exchange traded operator of the Cancun airport, the number of international travelers using the airport has topped eight million through April of this year.
The total number of 8.21 million international travelers is a little over a six percent increase from the 7.72 million in the year-ago period.
However, Cancun is third in the international passenger gains this year in the Mexican Caribbean.
Cozumel has seen almost a 20 percent increase in international travelers this year while Merida is up nearly nine percent.
However, both total international passenger numbers are substantially less than Cancun.
Passenger numbers are not available when compared with the new government-owned and operated airport in Tulum.
International travelers to Cancun are helping to support the more than 13 percent drop in domestic Mexican travelers to the Mexican Caribbean travel hotspot this year.
Cancun Holding Strong
Despite the opening of the brand new and very popular airport in Tulum, Cancun International Airport has actually been able to hold its own.
Experts were expecting the excitement around the opening in Tulum to take passengers from Cancun. However, so far, the impact has been minimal.
Many of the airlines flying to Cancun actually became more aggressive with their airfares once Tulum opened. That made Cancun more of a budget flight destination in the Mexican Caribbean.
Cancun Flight Changes
Two new flights are scheduled to start from the United States in the next two months. Southwest Airlines starts its route from Orlando on June 4 and a Volaris flight from McAllen, Texas will start on July 3.
Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines will be ending its flights from Fort Lauderdale on June 3 and JetBlue ends flights from Los Angeles on June 13.
Two airlines will also be starting service to Cancun from San Juan, Puerto Rico. They are Frontier on June 1 and JetBlue on October 28.
What the Future Could Hold
The additional route announcements have been slow to market this year due to issues related to obtaining new aircraft.
Boeing is slow in delivering new aircraft to its airline customers due to ongoing safety challenges. Meanwhile, airlines using Pratt & Whitney engines have had to ground airplanes for safety maintenance reviews and recall-related repairs.
Once the industry gets back to normal, it is anticipated that additional flight destinations could be announced for Cancun International Airport and the Mexican Caribbean travel destination hotspots.
That especially could be the case for Mexican airlines Viva Aerobus and Volaris. Viva Aerobus considers Cancun International Airport a hub for the popular ulta-low-cost carrier. Meanwhile, Cancun is considered a focus city for tourist activity and flights by Volaris.
What Travelers Can Expect
The added competition of the Tulum International Airport has not really dented the international passenger numbers at Cancun International Airport. That’s because many of the ultra-low-cost carriers at the Cancun airport reduced their airfares to compete.
Cancun International Airport is starting to evolve into a budget-oriented airport for cost-conscious travelers.
Not only are some of the airfares more affordable, but getting to the Cancun Hotel Zone is a lot easier and cheaper from Cancun than the Tulum airport.
Travelers looking for the best deal on their vacation getaway should continue to shop all of the airports located in the Mexican Caribbean. However, there is a good chance that the best deal will be at Cancun International Airport.
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