Public transportation between Tulum and Playa del Carmen is seeing one of its sharpest declines in recent years, with daily ridership falling by more than 50%, according to estimates by local transport operators. 

Union representatives said the historic drop has had a severe economic impact, as demand remains well below previous years. Just last year, some 70,000 passengers used the service each day. Today, that figure has dropped to between 30,000 and 35,000, according to the transport union.  

Residents of Tulum, Playa del Carmen, Cancún and Felipe Carrillo Puerto commonly use the collective bus for their daily transportation. These so-called vans offer more affordable fares than public buses, costing 60 pesos per ride. However, they are also popular among tourists. 

Moisés Pool Quijano, general secretary of the National Union of Transporters of Change (UNTRAC) in Tulum, attributed the slump to a decrease in tourist arrivals. He pointed to several factors behind the decline including security concerns, massive amounts of sargassum arriving on local beaches and the new entry fee at Jaguar Park, which also covers beach access. 

Due to the decrease in passenger flow, Quijano explained that transport unions were driven to reduce the daily fees that operators must cover by 200 pesos as a support measure in light of the challenging economic scenario.

“Operating costs, such as fuel and unit maintenance, remain high, but we simply can’t make ends meet,” he said. 

Public vans aren’t the only ones hit by the slump in tourists arrivals. Lourdes Jiménez Rojo, commercial manager of ADO Mobility in the Riviera Maya, said passenger numbers to and from Tulum International Airport this summer season have fallen between 20-30% compared to the same period in 2024. She added that initial projections for the season in Tulum were not met, while Cancún maintained stable visitor numbers.

Tulum Airport loses another carrier as Discover Airlines moves its flights to Cancún

Several airlines from the United States, including American, Delta, JetBlue and United, are drastically cutting back capacity for the upcoming winter season, with significant cuts on routes from Minneapolis-St. Paul, Detroit, Charlotte, Chicago and New York. Earlier this month, Discover Airlines, the German subsidiary of Lufthansa, joined the list, canceling its direct route to Tulum from Frankfurt, which was set to start this winter.

Overall, seat availability on flights to Tulum Airport is expected to drop by 27%, reflecting deflated tourism demand following the enthusiasm of last year.

With reports from La Jornada Maya, QR Agenda and Sol Quintana Roo