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Is Frida Kahlo overrated?
In September 2025, Casa Roja in the south of Mexico City opened to the public. Managed by descendants of Frida Kahlo’s relatives, the museum — meant to complement Coyoacan’s Casa Azul — is a display of objects, photographs and stories highlighting the artist’s family life and upbringing. As a result, for those of us living in Mexico City, our Instagram feeds are flooded with Frida.
There is a clear obsession with Frida Kahlo in North America — that is to say, the North America that lies north of the Mexican border. Her recognizable unibrow is plastered on bags, keychains and prints you can buy for US $5 off Facebook and frame yourself (guilty). Art fans and Mexaphiles are well-versed in her tumultuous love affairs and traumatic health issues. It’s obvious what the general public thinks of her: a media magnet, worthy of her own blockbuster movie and Barbie doll.
The concept of “Fridamania” first appeared as far back as the early 1990s; the Los Angeles Times published a commentary entitled “Fridamania — Where Will It All End?” in 1992. This term would appear in several more respected publications throughout the years, including Emory International Law Review’s 2021 critique of the cult phenomenon “Owning Frida Kahlo.”
What do Mexicans think?
The problem with Frida’s popularity is that it generally overlooks not only her art — “Is it that good?” — but also what Mexicans actually think of her. It’s a rare day when one sees a chilango donning a graphic tee with Frida’s face awash in neon colors. In fact, the odds of seeing Frida on a tote bag in New York City are higher than in the Mexican capital — unless, of course, it’s hanging off the shoulder of a visiting New Yorker.
Ever wondered if Frida Kahlo is as popular a figure in her homeland or if she’s simply a product of excellent marketing? Well, the answer is both clear and nuanced.
MND took to the streets. Not literally, but we reached out to 24 born-and-raised Mexicans from Mexico City to Puebla to Guadalajara between the ages of 26 and 51 for their opinions on the Frida Kahlo craze.
Each respondent works in a different career and is from a class sector that ranges between middle-class and wealthy. Among some of their professions were in the arts, hospitality, education, e-commerce, medicine and tech.
We used the curated set of questions below to find out what a sampling of Mexicans thinks.
Question 1: Is Frida Kahlo overrated as an artist?
In terms of her actual art, responses were split down the middle, revealing a fundamental tension in how Frida’s creative legacy is viewed. On one side, there’s recognition of genuine talent; on the other, a belief that her work’s market value has been unnecessarily inflated. Andrés, whose professional background includes art analysis, captured the essence of this duality:
“I think she is a bit overrated as an artist, especially regarding the prices her work has reached on the market. This is because there are artists who I believe have the same merit but haven’t been valued economically like she has.”
Rosa, an educator, was even more blunt.
“Totally [overrated]. Her painting is quite basic compared to all the drama that’s been created around her life and that artificial feminism her fans attribute to her. Artists like Remedios Varo and Leonora Carrington were much more creative and had much more interesting proposals.”
But hospitality expert Gael, who also dabbles in art dealing, pushed back on the question.
“I don’t think she’s overrated. It seems to me that she reflects the essence of Mexican culture to the world, and people are willing to pay for her works at the same prices as great international artists.”
The results of a social media poll we did on this question mirrored this divide: 58% of respondents said yes, Frida is overrated, while 42% said no.
What emerges is less a consensus on Frida’s talent and more a critique of the forces at work around her that created a pathway to fame.
“I think artistic talent alone is not enough to access the international art market,” Gael noted. “There must be other aspects that stand out to position oneself as Frida Kahlo did.”
Question 2: How does Frida compare to other Mexican artists?
When asked to place Frida within the pantheon of Mexican artists of her era, respondents consistently named the same titans: Diego Rivera, Rufino Tamayo, José Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros. While it appears most agree that Frida belongs in this conversation, so do many others who haven’t achieved her level of global recognition, many said.
Andrés was quick to acknowledge her legitimacy.
“Without a doubt, Frida is one of the best Mexican artists of the 20th century, on par with Diego Rivera himself, Clemente Orozco, Rufino Tamayo and/or Leonora Carrington,” he said. “And, yes, I feel she reflected so much of our country and its idiosyncrasies.”
Yet in the same breath, he also noted, “Probably Rivera, Tamayo or Orozco would have at least the same artistic merit as Frida, even though they didn’t have the international reach that she did.”
Gael framed her fame within a broader artistic movement.
“Frida Kahlo forms part of an intellectual and artistic current of Mexico from that era, along with the great muralists and other artists of international stature.”
Question 3: Which other Mexican figures deserve recognition?
Beyond those aforementioned, the most telling response came from Sara and María, both marketing professionals.
“There are thousands, and we don’t even know their names. Perhaps that’s also because all the other women (artists) are undervalued.”
Beatriz, a tourism professional and writer, pointed to figures outside the art world entirely.
“I think there are others, like Antonieta Rivas Mercado, who did great things for Mexico, like promoting the secretary of education or creating the symphony orchestra of Mexico.”
Has an entire ecosystem of female talent been overshadowed by Frida’s star power? A UNAM study seems to support it: Women artists were marginalized in teaching posts and exhibitions during the entire first half of the 20th century, despite a pool of comparable painters within the Kahlo circle, including María Izquierdo, Aurora Reyes and Nahui Olin. Yet, while Frida Kahlo’s paintings top the US $50 million mark, Izquierdo’s highest sale closed at less than half a million.
Question 4: When did Frida start appearing everywhere?
Nearly everyone agreed: They learned very little about Frida in school. Beatriz recalls that “in school she appeared as part of the official discourse,” as more of a link to cultural nationalism than as one of Mexico’s artistic greats. What everyone interviewed remembers is her sudden ubiquity, and exactly when that happened.
“About 25 years ago, she started to become popularized as part of Mexican culture,” Lucia, an e-commerce expert, stated.
Andrés pinpointed the same era.
“While she was always present in Mexican culture, I think she had a radical surge, caused in part by North Americans, at the end of the 20th century.”
This coincides with the 2002 Hollywood movie “Frida,” starring Salma Hayek, which Ana, a public relations agent, noted as the reason Frida “took on importance and relevance. She became more fashionable.”
Rosa remembers the frenzy building even before the film’s release.
“For me, the international boom arrived with the movie, or even before, when Salma Hayek and Madonna were vying to bring ‘Frida’ to the screen.”
The timeline reveals Frida’s current iconography as neither long-standing nor organic. It’s recent, manufactured and heavily influenced by forces outside Mexico.
Question 5: Is Frida overrated as a pop culture icon?
The answer, overwhelmingly, was yes — but with an asterisk attached.
“Few have seen her work; she’s more a pop culture symbol,” Lucia said plainly.
The sentiment was repeated by David, an AI developer.
“Her history is fascinating, but she’s become too cliche.”
Maria and Sara drew a comparison that landed like a punch.
“It’s clear that it’s very different for foreigners than for Mexicans. It’s like Cinco de Mayo.”
The analogy is apt: In Mexico, May 5 is a relatively minor holiday, not even a federal one requiring a day off for workers. In the United States, however, it’s become a commercialized celebration of “Mexican culture” that often bears little resemblance to actual Mexican traditions.
Is Frida also a symbol co-opted, commodified and sold back as something it never was? Rosa thinks so.
“She went from being a supposed socialist icon to the merchandise of cultural capitalism. Today, Frida functions the same as Che (Guevara) on a T-shirt: a depoliticized symbol, comfortable and ready to sell.”
Beatriz, however, sees both sides.
“She’s been put on a pedestal as if she had made great reforms or influenced movements,” she said, adding that while Diego Rivera did influence movements and portray many aspects of everyday Mexican life in his murals, he is hardly the pop icon Frida is today. “Still, I’m grateful to Frida that, thanks to her, Mexico receives a lot of attention and more cultural appreciation.”
Conclusion: The paradox
So is Frida Kahlo overrated? The answer depends entirely on what you’re rating.
As an artist, the majority of Mexicans I spoke with placed her firmly among the greats of her generation — but no greater. As a pop culture phenomenon? Wildly overrated, a product of media machinery and North American fascination that has little to do with her actual contributions to art. The 24 Mexicans we surveyed suggested that Frida’s international role as a symbol of female strength, Mexican identity and dramatic suffering doesn’t resonate the same way in her homeland.
The late Mexican Nobel laureate Octavio Paz once questioned whether Frida Kahlo could be both a great artist and “a despicable cur.” Today, the question might be: Can someone be both a great artist and an overhyped brand?
Yes, both things can be true. But what Mexicans understand that many foreigners do not is that while Frida Kahlo may be extraordinary, she’s certainly not unique.
Bethany Platanella is a travel planner and lifestyle writer based in Mexico City. She lives for the dopamine hit that comes directly after booking a plane ticket, exploring local markets, practicing yoga and munching on fresh tortillas. Sign up to receive her Sunday Love Letters to your inbox, peruse her blog or follow her on Instagram.
Los Cabos shopping: Ánima Village and the Cabo del Sol revival
Architectural firm Sordo Madaleno has a distinguished history in Los Cabos, dating back to its iconic arch-like design for the Westin Los Cabos, which opened in 1993. In recent years, Sordo Madaleno has also designed the luxury resort Solaz Los Cabos and served as lead architect on the Park Hyatt Cabo del Sol, one of several exciting new projects at Cabo del Sol, a 1,800-acre luxury resort and residential community six miles outside Cabo San Lucas.
Sordo Madaleno is also responsible for the newest eye-catching design to arrive at Cabo del Sol: a boutique shopping destination for over 80 luxury brands.
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Ánima Village opens in Los Cabos
The first phase of Ánima Village premiered at Cabo del Sol in early December 2025, with over 1,500 guests showing up to celebrate the opening. Already open are more than two dozen shops featuring brands such as Abercrombie & Fitch, Guess, Hugo Boss, Lululemon, the Mac Store and Nike. More upscale brands are on the way in the next phase, scheduled for later this year, including Cartier, Dior, Prada, Valentino and Louis Vuitton.
When complete, Ánima Village will be by far the most sophisticated shopping destination in Los Cabos. In addition to its anticipated 84 luxury brands, it will feature diverse dining options, art exhibitions, open-air walkways with botanical gardens and a range of regular events and programs.
“Art and culture are central to Ánima Village’s identity,” notes SOMA Group, the Mexican real estate development company led by members of the Sordo Madaleno family that operates Ánima Village. “The project features Arte Abierto, a dedicated gallery space that hosts rotating exhibitions, permanent installations throughout public areas, and an active cultural program. This initiative invites visitors to engage directly with the creative process, making them part of the ongoing artistic narrative.”
Of course, given Sordo Madaleno’s architectural reputation, this aspect, too, is first-class. Buildings “rise and fall in volumes ranging from 6 to 9.5 meters, creating a dynamic rhythm reminiscent of a coastal village. This stepped geometry not only frames shifting views of the landscape but also incorporates passive climate strategies — terraces open to public plazas, while shadows and landscaping provide comfort and shade, encouraging visitors to pause and enjoy the environment.”
And all visitors are welcome: Ánima Village is open to the public daily between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m.
The history of Cabo del Sol
Cabo del Sol owes its existence to the visionary foresight of legendary Los Cabos developer Don Koll. During the mid-1980s, the Southern California real estate heavyweight made a series of moves that would forever change the landscape of Los Cabos. In 1985, he purchased the land for what would become Cabo del Sol in partnership with Robert Addison Day from Bud Parr, another Los Cabos pioneer. The next year, Koll bought the landmark Hotel Palmilla (now One&Only Palmilla) and brought in Jack Nicklaus to design golf courses for both, the first world-class layouts in the area.
“Koll knew from time in the area developing Palmilla Hotel resort that this property [Cabo del Sol], with its gradual sloping terrain and two miles of pristine ocean frontage, was the best property in Cabo,” Day told Cabo Living Magazine in 2019. “Anywhere you put your finger on the map, you had an ocean view from the property. So Don and I struck a deal to buy the property in a joint venture between our two companies. Don took the role as operator and lead developer in those years, leveraging the expertise and team they already had in place at Palmilla and immediately began adding value.”
Two parcels were sold off to hotels for capital: the Sheraton Hacienda del Mar (now the all-inclusive Hacienda del Mar) and Grand Fiesta Americana, both of which opened in 1999. Accompanying these early Cabo del Sol tent poles were Jack Nicklaus’ stunning Cabo del Sol Ocean Course (now the Cove Club), which opened to acclaim in 1994, and Tom Weiskopf’s Desert Course, which followed in 2001.
Koll may have been the visionary, but Day was, practically speaking, the most important figure in Cabo del Sol’s history. The grandson of William Myron Keck, founder of Superior Oil Company — later sold to Mobil for US $5.7 billion in 1984 — Day made his own fortune, selling the Trust Company of the West, which he founded in 1971, for $2.5 billion. The Oakmont Corporation, which he began in 1980 and for which he served as CEO, would later buy out Koll for ownership of Cabo del Sol and oversee its development for decades before Day passed away in 2023.
Cabo del Sol’s revival
Cabo del Sol’s golf courses were designed to sell the accompanying real estate, which they have been doing for 40 years and counting. But over the last few years, a series of luxury resort openings, along with Ánima Village, have ushered in what can only be called a resurgence. This has been led by the arrival of several properties from big-name hospitality brands that not only provide stylish accommodations to visitors but also amenities like restaurants and spas that residents can enjoy.
The first to open was Four Seasons Resort and Residences Cabo San Lucas at Cabo del Sol, which premiered in May 2024 with 96 guest rooms and 61 branded residences, the latter including luxe villas and estates. The following year, saw the announcement that Hacienda del Mar would transition to an all-inclusive resort, as well as the opening of Park Hyatt Los Cabos at Cabo del Sol, with its 163 guestrooms and enormous 59,000-square-foot fitness and wellness center, the largest in Los Cabos.
This year, trendy Soho House will open its first phase at Cabo del Sol, showcasing 15 bedrooms, 12 casas and three spacious casonas, along with a branded Soho Health Club. Phase 2, still to come, will feature 45 private residences, ranging from two-to four-bedrooms and five villas with three and four-bedrooms. Yes, Soho House, too, is being designed by Sordo Madaleno.
This flurry of openings, combined with the arrival of Ánima Village, has established Cabo del Sol, 40 years after its birth, as the most impressive resort and residential community in Los Cabos. Interestingly, perhaps, given this ascendance, Oakmont Corporation sold a controlling interest of 51% in Cabo del Sol holdings to RLH Properties, a Mexico City-based asset management company in September 2025.
But that doesn’t change the resort inventory or the many real estate offerings still available. Or the location of the best new shopping destination in Los Cabos.
Chris Sands is the former Cabo San Lucas local expert for the USA Today travel website 10 Best and writer of Fodor’s Los Cabos travel guidebook. He’s also a contributor to numerous websites and publications, including Tasting Table, Marriott Bonvoy Traveler, Forbes Travel Guide, Porthole Cruise, Cabo Living and Mexico News Daily.
Mexico isn’t immune to the seduction of the smartphone
It’s New Year’s Eve, and I’ve just clicked on two articles. One is called, “How to break free from your phone.” The other is, “Want more self-control? The secret isn’t willpower.“
Can you see a pattern here? I sure do.
I’m hooked, you’re hooked, we’re all hooked. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that the dude driving the train that went off the rails in Oaxaca was scrolling on his phone in the minutes before (victims so far have simply commented on the speed with which a sharp turn was approached.)
I’ve been musing lately with my partner that the only way to make an interesting movie lately is to set it in the “before times” — you know, before we had powerful, fast smartphones with the whole of human knowledge and entertainment at our fingertips. Some plots cause the characters to lose their phones for some reason, while others simply pretend they haven’t taken over our collective attention spans. Hallmark and Lifetime-type movies especially tend to create a special world where people practically forget they have smartphones in the first place. A phone rings, they pause as if trying to figure out what’s making the sound, and then fish it out from the bottom of a bag? Please.
Lots of movies and shows these days are set in the past, I think, to get around this problem. Why? With everyone walking around with their eyes glued to a tiny computer, there’s just less novel activity to notice.
What does this have to do with Mexico?
Well, Mexico’s being swept up in the same technology as the rest of the world is. As of 2024, over 80% of the Mexican population were internet users, with most of them accessing the internet on their phones.
Uh-oh.
The internet, of course, is not in and of itself bad. It’s a tool, and there’s a lot of great things to be found — like this website, for example! Smartphones are also a tool, as are computers, as is the much-hyped but fairly brain-smoothing Artificial Intelligence. And as much as I gripe about too many screens, I still got my kid a new iPad for Christmas (in my defense, I can control app use and screen time).
Perhaps it’s the ability to take these “tools” with us everywhere that’s the problem. When I arrived in Mexico in 2002, cell phones were still a relatively new thing. Some people had radio-like “Nextels” instead, actually. They were really noisy and made the users sound super important.
I had access to the internet back then, but I had to go to the internet café across the street to use it. I’d write some emails and maybe chat on MSN Messenger for a bit — the preferred platform then — and then go about my business. I’d do that maybe once or twice a week. These days, it’s nearly impossible, and not a little panic-inducing, to even think of going an entire day without my phone. What if something happens?
Most often, of course, nothing happens, and the phone serves as simply a distraction device. I have conversations on WhatsApp and check my email. And though I’ve long since removed the “slot machine” apps from my phone (goodbye, Facebook and Instagram!), I still find myself reaching for it in times of boredom or anxiety, simply as something to do. Does the fact that I mostly use it to read news articles make it any better? [Editor’s note: Yes, if it’s MND] Maybe for my brain, but certainly not for my social skills.
To make things more complicated, we actually miss out on a lot of important things without it. How many locals do you know, for example, that you can get a hold of by any means besides WhatsApp? Banks require smartphone verifications, and essential communication for our jobs happens over an array of messaging platforms.
You could give them a ring, except for the fact that most people don’t even answer their phones anymore. Extortion by phone is so rampant, and landlines are becoming a thing of the past. The option to simply ignore your phone is really just a privilege. We’re expected to be forever available on it, while expectations for in-person availability have plummeted.
In the end, the feeling now is that the tech overlords have simply won. We’re addicted, and now we’re so addicted that we can’t do much to stop them. All of us, I believe, have a hunch that it can’t be good for us, the way smokers must have before there was actually hard evidence of the damage smoking caused.
Shortages of available land and water for AI? Oh yes, that does sound very bad! We’ll think of what to do about it as soon as we’re done watching this TikTok.
And that right there — I mean, it was a joke, but still — is our whole problem. Look up while sitting in a café or the park these days and I guarantee you’ll see at least half of everyone, workers included, with their heads bent toward their phones. No more chatting in public transport; everyone’s in their own private world now. For introverts, it’s likely a welcome change. For me, it’s scary and sad.
And then there’s our poor little atrophying brains.
Like Travis said, AI particularly has the real potential to make us dumber. And like the insidiousness of smartphones themselves with their unlimited endless scrolls, I fear that by the time the majority of us realize we need to do something about the damage they cause, especially to kids, it will be too late. For all the hype of AI, most people are using it as simply another distraction.
Mexican companies are mostly using it to be “more productive,” which, as far as I can tell, is code for saving money on writers and translators [Editor’s note: see me].
Maybe there are some good things coming as a result. I mean, murder and crime are down, no doubt in part because would-be criminals are too busy watching funny YouTube shorts.
But when we go along with the rest of the world in allowing our phones and endless scrolls and unlimited access to both the real and the AI-generated distract us, we lose something. Casual chats in lines and on buses disappear. Opportunities to hang out, to convivir. We don’t learn each other’s languages.
Being social is a skill, and one that Mexicans have traditionally excelled so much at that they’re famous for it. But Mexicans aren’t immune to the technology that’s seducing us all. I hope we can get a handle on it before we’re all zombies.
Sarah DeVries is a writer and translator based in Xalapa, Veracruz. She can be reached through her website, sarahedevries.substack.com.
How Sheinbaum plans to reshape Mexico’s elections: Friday’s mañanera recapped
President Claudia Sheinbaum held her Friday morning press conference in Ecatepec, one of Mexico’s largest municipalities by population.
Governor Delfina Gómez and other officials from México state, where Ecatepec is located, joined various federal functionaries at the mañanera.
“Presidenta, your presence [here] strengthens us,” Gómez said in an introductory address.
Later in the press conference, Sheinbaum responded to questions on a range of topics including the electoral reform proposal she is expected to soon present to Congress, and the earthquake that activated the Seismic Alert System in Mexico City at around 12:40 a.m. Friday.
She also defended her government’s record on security, after the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs said in a social media post that the United States has “made clear” to Mexico that “incremental progress in facing border security challenges is unacceptable.” (Read Mexico News Daily’s story on Sheinbaum’s remarks here.)
Sheinbaum discusses electoral reform proposal
During her Q&A session with reporters, Sheinbaum outlined the “central elements” that “the people” are asking for with respect to electoral reform in Mexico.
The president — who in the coming weeks is expected to present a wide-ranging electoral reform proposal to Congress — said that the Mexican people (and her government) are seeking a reduction in costs related to holding elections, and an electoral system in which proportional representation (plurinominal) candidates are not selected by party chiefs.
“There are deputies who have been plurinominal deputies their whole lives, senators [as well]. The objective of the reform is that the people also decide about proportional representation,” Sheinbaum said.
She also said that the reform proposal she will submit to Congress will aim to increase “citizen participation” in various facets of Mexico’s democracy.
“People should express their opinions and participate, that’s democracy,” said Sheinbaum, who also said that her reform proposal would aim to make it easier for Mexicans abroad, especially those in the United States, to “exercise their right to vote.”
On Thursday, she asserted that the National Electoral Institute — the authority responsible for organizing elections in Mexico and the nation’s electoral umpire — will not lose its autonomy as a result of the reform, as opposition politicians have claimed.
Indeed, opposition lawmakers have dubbed Sheinbaum’s proposed reform — which has not yet been drawn up — the “Ley Maduro,” or “Maduro Law,” after ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, to whom the National Electoral Council of Venezuela awarded the 2024 presidential election even though he is widely believed to have lost.
On Thursday, Sheinbaum said: “We don’t have the proposal yet [but] they’re already calling it Ley Maduro.”
She subsequently asserted that the aim of the reform is “the strengthening of democracy.”
“We’ve always fought for democracy,” Sheinbaum said Friday, referring to herself and her colleagues in the “fourth transformation” (4T) political movement she leads.
‘The transformation isn’t a political party, … it’s a decision of the people of Mexico’
Later in her press conference, Sheinbaum was asked to respond to claims that the 4T now control’s Mexico’s judiciary in light of the election at last year’s first ever judicial elections of many judges, magistrates and Supreme Court justices seen as supporters of, or at least sympathetic to, the Morena party.
Referring to the 4T, she responded that “the transformation is not a political party,” but rather “a decision of the people of Mexico in 2018 to change the regime of corruption and privileges.”
In 2018, Andrés Manuel López Obrador was elected president and the party he created, Morena, took office at the federal level for the first time.
Sheinbaum asserted that the “fourth transformation” is not represented by “la presidenta,” or a political party or groups of deputies or senators, although she acknowledged that “we are part” of the movement.
Rather, the 4T is “a collective desire to build a new country free of corruption and privileges, for the well-being of the people, with security and justice,” she said.
[It’s about] advancing toward what has always been the hope of the people: a better, more democratic, fairer, freer, sovereign country,” Sheinbaum said.
She added that the 4T is also about “the recovery or the rescue of our values” and acknowledgement of the people and “great civilizations” of the past, “the history of Mexico, our great heroes and heroines” and “the dignity of the people.”
“That’s the fourth transformation — a new model of development for the country. The transformation of the Supreme Court has to do with this new model, with this new vision of more justice for Mexico, of a true rule of law,” Sheinbaum said.
‘Fortunately, nothing happened,’ Sheinbaum says after 5.0 magnitude earthquake
Asked about the earthquake that occurred just after 12:40 a.m. Friday, Sheinbaum responded that “fortunately, nothing happened.”
“… There was no major damage,” she said.
The National Seismological Service said that the earthquake, whose epicenter was near San Marcos, Guerrero, was an aftershock of the 6.5 magnitude earthquake on Jan. 2. The epicenter of that temblor was also near San Marcos, located in the Costa Chica region of Guerrero.
Sheinbaum acknowledged that some homes were damaged in the Jan. 2 quake, and said that the federal government is working with authorities in Guerrero to support the affected homeowners.
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
Aeroméxico calls for adding a third terminal to the Mexico City International Airport
Mexico’s legacy airline Aeroméxico has proposed building a third terminal at the Mexico City International Airport (AICM) to solve the frequent congestion issues of Terminals 1 and 2.
“The airport has room to build a new Terminal 3 that would be larger than Terminal 1 and 2 combined” Aeroméxico CEO Andrés Conesa Labastida said in a podcast appearance this week. “It would increase capacity from 50 million passengers per year, to some 70 or 75 million.”
According to Conesa, Terminal 3 would be built adjacent to Terminal 2, which would require relocating Aeromexico’s maintenance and repair workshops. Building it next to Terminal 1 would not be possible, he said, since the site currently houses fuel farms and certain infrastructure that would be difficult to relocate.
“I hope that this project could be studied, because it will be very good for the city and the country,” Conesa said.
Conesa added that his proposal must be supplemented in operation by the Felipe Ángeles International Airport (AIFA) near Mexico City, and the Toluca International Airport in Mexico state, creating a combined capacity of more than 100 million passengers per year in the Valley of Mexico.
“This would be more than enough for the next decades,” Conesa stated.
This is not the first time the AICM’s congestion problem has been addressed, and that a third terminal has been proposed. In 2019, Gerardo Ferrando, CEO of the Mexico City Airport Group, announced a master plan for a third terminal was being drawn up and predicted that it would be inaugurated in 2020. At that time he said a fourth terminal was being analyzed as well.
Even then, Luis Felipe de Oliveira, director of the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association, said that a third terminal wouldn’t be enough to solve the AICM’s structural issues.
“A third terminal would help but it won’t solve the problem,” Oliveira said then.
During former President Enrique Peña Nieto’s administration (2012-2018), the master plan for a new airport had been approved to be built in Texcoco, near Mexico City, designed by renowned architect Norman Foster. That partially built new airport was canceled and the AIFA was built instead.
Currently, the AICM is undergoing major renovation works to improve the passenger experience ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will take place in Mexico, Canada and the United States.
With reports from A21
More aggressive audits made 2025 a record year for tax collection in Mexico
The federal government’s total revenues reached a record high last year, surpassing 6 trillion pesos and increasing by 4.8% in real terms compared to 2024.
The tax collection part of that revenue also established a new record, according to a Thursday press release from the Tax Administration Service (SAT), bringing in 5.351 trillion pesos (nearly US $303 billion), a 4% increase over 2024 tax revenues.
The total government revenues of some 6.046 trillion pesos (US $342.3 billion) in 2025 was nearly 487.5 billion pesos (US $27.6 billion) more than in 2024. The total revenues collected even surpassed what was programmed, reaching 101.6% of the amount anticipated in this year’s federal budget.
Analysts attributed the record tax collection to the SAT’s new and more aggressive auditing strategy that relies on Generative Artificial Intelligence to carry out more comprehensive electronic audits, which provide more information and more documentation of taxpayer behavior.
Cynthia Valeriano, a professor at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education, said the SAT’s tax strategy will go a long way in reinforcing the role it will play after Congress reformed federal tax laws late last year.
“The SAT has sufficient teeth and will have direct control mechanisms … to reduce the margins of tax evasion,” she said, adding that its aggressive strategy of constantly conducting audits of large and medium-sized companies will also discourage tax evasion.
The reforms, approved in November, focus on boosting collection through stricter controls, digital platform taxation (higher withholdings), increased excise taxes (tobacco, sugary drinks, video games), and enhanced measures against fake invoice schemes. Congress had estimated that fake invoice schemes were depriving the Treasury of 1.41 billion pesos (US $79.8 million) each year.
The SAT provided detailed information about the taxes it collected last year:
- 2.889 trillion pesos (US $163.7 billion) in income tax (ISR), 204.5 billion pesos (US $11.6 billion) more than in 2024
- 1.499 trillion pesos (US $84.9 billion) in value-added tax (IVA), an increase of nearly 91.5 billion pesos (nearly US $5.2 billion) compared to 2024
- 671.27 billion pesos (US $38 billion) from the special tax on production and services (IEPS), 42.9 billion pesos (US $2.4 billion) more than in 2024
Valeriano did express concern about the government’s continued reliance on the same tax base, saying it must look to implement other measures to reduce informal employment and encourage “the self-managed economy to join the formal economy” in order to broaden the tax base.
With reports from Reforma, La Silla Rota and Forbes México
Transportation Ministry will reinforce Cancún’s nearly-complete Nichupté Bridge after photos show cracks
Mexico’s Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation Ministry (SICT) has committed to reinforcing Cancún’s Nichupté Bridge after videos and photos circulating on social media revealed visible cracks in the concrete joints of the yet-to-be-inaugurated infrastructure project.
Following the circulation of images showing fissures in the unions between concrete blocks that make up the bridge, SICT announced it will strengthen the structure and conduct dynamic and static resistance tests before the bridge enters operation, according to El Economista.
Guido Mendiburu Solís, SICT delegate in Quintana Roo, said the bridge structure poses no risk to users. Nonetheless, he said four additional support pillars and a metal beam will be constructed at at least three support points throughout the concrete structure as reinforcement measures.
Some parts of the structure have settled, Mendiburu said, because the bridge was built in an area with high karsticity, a geological feature of limestone areas prone to sinkholes.
“It is not structural damage, but before it is inaugurated we will conduct load tests, both with moving and static vehicles, to verify that the work fulfills the objective for which it was designed,” the official explained.
The images shared by social media users this month show pronounced cracks and irregularities in concrete joints, particularly in sections of the traffic distributor connecting Bonampak Avenue and Luis Donaldo Colosio Boulevard, according to local news outlet Expediente Quintana Roo. The photos also reveal fissures on lower and lateral surfaces of the structure, as well as areas with cracked concrete and chipped edges, generating concern among drivers and local residents about the structural safety of the megaproject.
El Puente Nichupté, en Cancún, Quintana Roo, será uno de los puentes más largos de América Latina sobre una laguna. Su construcción beneficiará a más de 1.3 millones de habitantes y a 20 millones de turistas que visitan la zona anualmente. 🏖️ pic.twitter.com/nHGqFwbkSl
— SICT México (@SICTmx) January 8, 2026
The 11.2-kilometer Nichupté Bridge, which officials had previously announced would open this month, has been plagued by delays since construction began in 2022. Originally proposed in 2006 as part of Cancún’s 2030 Strategic Plan for Sustainable Development, the project languished for 16 years before work finally commenced.
With the bridge scheduled to be inaugurated by the end of this month, builders are coming down to the wire, with Mendiburu reporting that construction is 93% complete.
The bridge will feature three lanes in each direction on its main section with one reversible lane, a bike path and pedestrian walkway. It is designed to reduce transit times between the city center and hotel zone by up to 45 minutes by crossing a portion of the Nichupté lagoon and avoiding the most congested traffic areas. Officials say it will benefit an average of 1.3 million residents and more than 20 million tourists annually, and have promised that there will be no tolls.
With reports from El Economista and Expediente Quintana Roo
This story was written by a Mexico News Daily staff editor with the assistance of Claude, then revised and fact-checked before publication.
MND Local: How one Puerto Vallarta expat group avoids the pitfalls of online culture
Anyone who’s spent time in online expat groups knows the pattern: What often begins as a practical space for advice about visas, neighborhoods or where to find a decent loaf of bread can quickly spiral into something else entirely.
Minor misunderstandings flare into full-blown arguments. Longtime residents clash with newcomers. Local pride rubs up against foreign expectations. And before long, the original purpose of connection is buried beneath sarcasm, gatekeeping and thinly veiled frustration. Which is why, when something genuinely different comes along, people notice.
Humble beginnings
Puerto Vallarta Experience Share on Facebook has quietly become one of those rare online spaces that feels, dare we say, nice.
It’s helpful without being patronizing and positive without being naive. It’s a place where newcomers feel welcome, and longtime residents don’t feel worn down by answering the same questions for the hundredth time.
In a digital landscape where tension often feels inevitable, this page has somehow sidestepped it. And in doing so, it’s become a firm Vallarta favorite.
Page founder and Canadian expat Melanie Henderson started the group as a simple way of sharing her and her husband Travis’s experiences.
“My family, friends and the many customers I had where I used to work all wanted to know what we were into when we retired,” she said. “I began the page as a way of keeping them informed, and the next thing I knew, it unexpectedly grew. There was no moment when I thought it was needed; I just started it for fun and [as] a way to communicate with people.”
What’s striking is that the page — which has just shy of 94,000 followers — doesn’t position itself as an authority. There’s no sense of “we know better because we’ve been here longer.” Instead, it feels like a conversation happening at eye level.
If someone asks a question about buses, they get three thoughtful answers instead of a lecture. Someone shares a small joy — a sunset, a meal, a chance encounter — and it’s met with warmth rather than one-upmanship.
At its heart, Puerto Vallarta Experience Share seems less interested in being right and more interested in being useful.
“This is a group to share, discover and celebrate everything about Puerto Vallarta,” Henderson said. “Whether it’s photos, experiences, restaurant reviews, hotel tips, events or travel questions, our community is here to help each other enjoy the best the area has to offer. I want people to experience the culture [and] the beautiful people and make meaningful memories. In a nutshell, I want the group to add happiness to everyone who’s on it. Knowing it was doing that would make me very happy.”
That sense of positive emotional aftertaste, how people feel when they log off, is perhaps the page’s quiet superpower. And that doesn’t happen by accident.
Maintaining a positive tone in an expat group isn’t simply about deleting negativity. It’s about modelling behavior. It’s in the way questions are answered, disagreements are softened rather than sharpened, and humor is used to defuse rather than divide.
“We aim to post or make comments with kindness, respect, and positivity, so that others will follow suit,” Henderson said. “Our group has so many role models that inspire me, and they’ve helped me see the joy in everything. The group is very important to all of us, so we try to treat each other like family.”
There’s also a noticeable respect in the group for Puerto Vallarta itself. Not just as a backdrop for expat life, but as a living, breathing place with its own rhythms, people and history.
Posts regularly highlight local businesses, traditions and everyday moments that remind members they’re guests here, not just consumers of sunshine and scenery, and that respect feels genuine rather than performative. It’s woven quietly into the tone of the group, shaping how people speak about the city and, just as importantly, about one another.
There’s an understanding that loving a place means listening to it, learning from it, and allowing oneself to be changed by it. That affection for Vallarta, and for the people who make it what it is, shines through in almost every interaction.
“I love the sense of community. There’s such a noticeable feeling of togetherness here,” Henderson said. “I’m grateful every day that my husband and I have been welcomed, and I want everyone to experience the joy we have in Vallarta.”
For many members, Puerto Vallarta Experience Share becomes something more than a practical resource. It’s a touchstone, a reminder of why they chose Vallarta in the first place, or why they’re considering it now. For those newly arrived, still finding their footing, it offers reassurance that uncertainty is all part of the process of being a migrant to a new country and that questions are welcome.
For those who’ve been here longer, it gently rekindles a sense of appreciation that can sometimes fade with familiarity.
In that way, Puerto Vallarta Experience Share bridges a quiet but important gap: It allows different stages of expat life to coexist without competing. There’s room for the excitement of discovery alongside the steadiness of experience. There’s room for curiosity without judgment. And, above all, there’s room for kindness.
Looking ahead, the future of the page feels less about expansion and more about intention.
“As the group grows, I’m hoping it’ll continue to be a space we can all enjoy and share together,” Henderson said. “Each time someone reaches out to someone with a post or comment, it connects us. I think the dream is that those connections remain meaningful.”
In a digital world that often rewards outrage and scorn, Puerto Vallarta Experience Share has chosen a different path, valuing curiosity over righteousness, generosity over ego and connection over noise.
That may not sound revolutionary, but in practice it is. Not because the group promises perfection but because it offers something far more sustaining: a reminder that community, when nurtured with care, can still be a source of comfort, joy and belonging.
In a city shaped by arrivals and departures, reinvention and return, Puerto Vallarta Experience Share reflects the best of what expat life can be: open, respectful and grounded in gratitude. A place where sharing experiences doesn’t mean competing for them and where being part of something never requires being someone you’re not.
In the end, that quiet sense of welcome may be its greatest success of all.
Charlotte Smith is a writer and journalist based in Mexico. Her work focuses on travel, politics and community.
Sheinbaum defends Mexico’s security record after US slams ‘unacceptable’ lack of progress
Responding to another sharp U.S. criticism of Mexico’s progress on security issues, President Claudia Sheinbaum on Friday defended her country’s record and reiterated her rejection of repeated U.S. offers of military intervention.
The U.S. government had issued a terse statement on Thursday after Mexican Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed strategies to confront shared security threats this week.
🇺🇸#Sheinbaum defiende #estrategia de seguridad tras dichos del #Departamento de #Estado🇺🇸
Nota: https://t.co/et43OlvyCz pic.twitter.com/UgVJ723zVm— Ventanavermx (@Ventanavermx) January 16, 2026
Acknowledging that progress on bilateral security matters is being made, De la Fuente and Rubio — who also spoke on Sunday — agreed that significant challenges remain.
In a joint statement on security cooperation released on Thursday, the State Department said that the two diplomats “reaffirmed the importance of the U.S.-Mexico partnership, grounded in mutual respect for sovereignty, while acknowledging that more must be done to confront shared threats.”
But the State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs took a harder line in a social media post issued later Thursday:
“The United States made clear that incremental progress in facing border security challenges is unacceptable.”
It added that Mexico is being asked to provide “concrete, verifiable outcomes to dismantle narcoterrorist networks and deliver a real reduction in fentanyl trafficking.”
Thursday’s diplomatic exchange came three days after Sheinbaum personally told U.S. President Donald Trump that U.S. intervention against Mexican cartels is unnecessary. Sheinbaum had requested the dialogue after Trump said he was prepared to confront drug cartels on the ground while again claiming that cartels run Mexico.
In her Friday morning response to the U.S. demand for increasingly stringent security measures and greater results, Sheinbaum asserted that Mexico has achieved significant progress.
“Fentanyl seizures at the U.S.-Mexico border have declined by 50 percent, according to official U.S. data,” she said, adding that the reduction means larger shipments are being seized on the Mexican side of the border.
The United States made clear that incremental progress in facing border security challenges is unacceptable. Upcoming bilateral engagements with Mexico will require concrete, verifiable outcomes to dismantle narcoterrorist networks and deliver a real reduction in fentanyl…
— Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs (@WHAAsstSecty) January 16, 2026
What Sheinbaum thinks the US should do
While insisting that bilateral cooperation is based on mutual respect and shared responsibility, Sheinbaum told reporters at her Friday morning press conference that it is incumbent upon the U.S. to more aggressively address the illicit flow of weapons into Mexico and to conduct an intensive campaign among young people to prevent drug addiction.
“It ought not be assumed that the issue of drug trafficking can be solved on this side of the border,” she said. “The consumption crisis they have there must be addressed from a public health perspective, with prevention campaigns and education. Because the consumption is there.”
With regards to arms trafficking, Sheinbaum noted that according to data from the U.S. Department of Justice, 75% of the weapons entering Mexico originate in the United States.
She added that just this week Mexico’s Defense Ministry seized a shipment of 21 rifles and 30 handguns being smuggled across the border into Tijuana.
Sheinbaum also said that Mexico has requested the support of technological surveillance equipment to reinforce operations carried out exclusively by Mexican agencies.
Thursday’s joint statement revealed that the bilateral Security Implementation Group — established last year to coordinate actions against drug/arms trafficking, financial crimes and fuel theft, and first convened in September 2025 — will meet next on Jan. 23. It has been tasked with “delivering tangible actions to strengthen security cooperation and meaningful outcomes to counter cartels.”
At next week’s meeting, the Group will “follow up on bilateral initiatives to promote information-sharing” and will reassess already established cross-border security initiatives.
The North American neighbors will also hold a Security Ministerial in Washington, D.C., in February, which “will provide an opportunity to assess progress, identify gaps and set clear expectations for further collaboration.”
With reports from El Financiero, La Jornada and CNN
