It’s no secret that people from all over the world love flocking to Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean. And while our neighbors in the United States make up the biggest chunk of tourists overall (a whopping 36.2%!), you might be surprised to hear who’s really packing the planes on the busiest routes.
Seriously, take a guess. Which cities send the absolute most people flying directly into Cancún International Airport? If you guessed somewhere in the USA… think a little further north.
Believe it or not, based on recent reports looking at the first few months of the year, it’s Canada that snags the gold and silver medals for the busiest international flight paths to Cancún!
Coming in at Number One is the Toronto-Cancún route! A massive 418,000 passengers made that journey. That’s a whole lot of Canadians trading snow boots for flip-flops!
And right behind, taking the Number Two spot, is Montreal-Cancún. They clocked in with an impressive 293,000 passengers heading south for some sunshine.
So, what about the US? Don’t worry, they’re definitely showing up to the party! The Chicago-Cancún route grabs the bronze medal, landing at number three with 283,000 travellers. And remember, while Canada might have the top two individual routes, the sheer number of flights coming from many different US cities is why the US holds the overall top spot for visitors. It’s like having one superstar player versus a whole team of really good ones!
Together, the routes connecting Cancún with Canada and the US saw a huge jump in passengers – up nearly 48% compared to the year before! Clearly, the craving for Cancún is stronger than ever from the North American markets. Canada actually accounts for 17% of all visitors, making them the solid number two source market.
So, what’s steering so many Canadians towards Cancún? A significant part of the story, according to recent surveys and travel industry observations, seems to be the uncertainty surrounding the political climate in the United States under the Trump administration. Reports indicate a notable percentage of Canadians express hesitation about US travel due to heightened political tensions and rhetoric.
This unease appears linked to concerns about potentially unpredictable encounters at the border, including worries about stricter or changing immigration procedures and anxieties fueled by reports of increased enforcement or detainments, even if such incidents are not common for typical tourists. Faced with this perceived unpredictability and a potentially less welcoming atmosphere, many Canadians looking for a hassle-free vacation are seemingly opting for destinations like Cancún, which are viewed as offering a more relaxed and reliably welcoming experience right now.
Just to give you an idea of how busy Cancún gets, the airport saw a staggering 8.1 million passengers (arrivals and departures) in just the first three months of the year! That includes the busiest domestic route in all of Mexico: Mexico City (AICM) to Cancún, which saw over 830,000 passengers itself!
So, there you have it! While Americans love Cancún in huge numbers overall, it’s the folks flying out of Toronto and Montreal who are currently filling up the two single busiest international flight paths. Who knew? Maybe we’ll see you on one of those flights soon!
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