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Travelers from all over the world have made Cancun a destination travel hotspot this year as the revenge travel phenomenon propelled travel to record levels.
However, with a slowing worldwide economy, a tough geopolitical situation, and travel budgets wearing thin, travelers are starting to pull back from vacation travel around the world.
Cancun Continues to Attract Travelers
Cancun amazingly continues to shine in popularity with travelers by squeaking out a small gain in visitors during the month of October, according to the latest passenger numbers from the Cancun International Airport.
Numbers reported show that 2,458,278 passengers used the airport during October. This was a 1.8 percent increase from the 2,414,967 passengers in October of last year.
For the entire year, the passenger count was better. So far, in 2023 — 27,074,920 people have used Cancun International Airport. That was a 9.1 percent increase over the 24,815,531 last year.
While the October numbers showed a slight improvement of less than two percent, it should be noted that the results come during what is considered a slow period in Cancun.
The results from the upcoming fall and winter holiday peak travel season should be interesting to see if it really confirms the slowing trend.
Strong Domestic Travel
The count of travelers passing through Cancun International Airport was definitely influenced by domestic travelers from across Mexico in October, registering a six percent increase over the same month last year.
That is a trend that has been seen all year as domestic travelers have replaced some soft travel demand from international visitors during the slow months of the travel season.
In fact, the international traffic actually decreased 1.2 percent during the month when compared with last year’s visitor count at the airport. It is, however, up more than six percent for the entire year.
Positive Future Outlook
Based on a number of different factors, the upcoming peak fall and winter holiday travel season looks like it will reverse the decline in international visitor numbers.
There are a number of airlines that have already announced flight schedule additions, which will open up the ability for more passengers to fly to Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean for a vacation getaway.
Additionally, the opening of Tulum International Airport and the launch of the Maya Train service are creating strong interest in vacations to the beach resort destination.
However, the Tulum International Airport only opens for domestic visitors in December and will finally accept direct international flights from the United States in March next year.
Add the impact of these positive factors to the fact that hotels are reporting strong future bookings into Spring Break next year, and it’s easy to see that despite poor October numbers, the future looks strong for Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean.
Information For Visitors
Visitors to the Mexican Caribbean must take the reported numbers for the airport in October with a grain of salt.
It’s going to be important for tourists to plan ahead for a future vacation getaway and expect flights and hotel accommodations to be just as expensive as usual for the upcoming peak fall and winter holiday travel season.
So far, the future bookings and other positive indicators show a strong interest in Cancun despite the slow season results in October.
Travelers need to make their reservations now if they plan to visit any time during the holidays to not only lock in the best pricing but also their preferred flight times and resort locations.
With Thanksgiving just two weeks away, the advanced travel season booking window for Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean is already starting to close and prices are starting to climb as the most popular resorts fill fast.
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