Tulum Tourism Leader Blames Sargassum, World

The vice president of tourism for the Chetumal-Tulum National Chamber of Commerce, José Mac-Liberty, has stated that the recent high season was not very good for the destination. He cited sargassum and the FIFA World Cup as key factors that damaged Tulum's image, making it appear expensive despite not being a host city.

Mac-Liberty admitted to having low occupancy rates. "I would love to say it was a very prosperous season, but we did have lows," he said. He identified a combination of issues that converged to hurt business.

Factors Behind the Tourism Slump

José Mac-Liberty listed three primary factors that harmed Tulum's tourism performance. The persistent problem of sargassum seaweed on beaches was one major deterrent. High aviation fuel costs also contributed to making travel more expensive for visitors.

Most notably, he blamed the FIFA World Cup. Although Tulum was not a host city for the event, Mac-Liberty argued the global tournament created a perception of Mexico as an expensive destination overall. This perception, he claimed, affected people's willingness to make reservations for Tulum.

Occupancy Figures and Recovery Hopes

Despite the challenges, Mac-Liberty reported that the destination ended the season with hotel occupancy rates between 60% and 70%. He suggested that under normal conditions, occupancy for a high season could have reached 80%.

The tourism leader now aims to use promotional efforts to improve the destination's image by the end of the year. "Now what we want is to take advantage of tourist promotion so that by the end of the year we can have a clean slate from the image that has affected us tremendously on a national level," he commented.

Mac-Liberty believes the public may have a mistaken idea of the actual situation in Tulum regarding costs, services, and sargassum. He hopes corrected perceptions will aid recovery.

Broader Industry Concerns on Sargassum

The sargassum issue has drawn criticism from other industry figures regarding the government's response. As previously reported by REPORTUR.mx, Wilbert Gutiérrez Álvarez, president of the Mexican Association of the Real Estate Industry, has complained of decreased sales due to the tourism downturn.

Gutiérrez Álvarez stated that the strategy proposed by President Claudia Sheinbaum to address the massive sargassum influx must include more investment in tourism promotion. He recently acknowledged the severity of the problem, which he said has far exceeded the capabilities of municipal and state authorities.

"All efforts made to combat the scourge we have today with sargassum are welcome and are positive," said Gutiérrez Álvarez. "The announcement of the investment that will be made to address this issue I think is very important."