Quintana Roo Hoteliers Say DNR Hike Favors Punta Cana Over Cancún

Cancún, Quintana Roo — Hotel leaders along Mexico’s Caribbean coast are warning that a planned increase to the country’s non-resident fee would trigger a historic drop in occupancy across Quintana Roo’s 12 tourist destinations and hand an edge to rival beach markets such as Punta Cana.

The Mexican Caribbean Hotel Council (CHCM), joined by the Caribbean chapter of the Business Coordinating Council (CCE) and a group of tourism trade associations, repeated its objections to the higher non-resident fee, known in Mexico as the DNR, contained in the government’s 2027 economic package.

Speaking at a news conference at the headquarters of the Cancún, Puerto Morelos and Isla Mujeres Hotel Association, its president, Rodrigo de la Peña, said the destinations face the risk of a record slump in occupancy. “This increase would put our destination in a situation of vulnerability in the face of strong competition from other international beach destinations,” he said.

Hoteliers argue the measure pushed by the administration of President Claudia Sheinbaum benefits competitors such as Punta Cana rather than defending Mexico’s own tourism hubs — and comes at a moment when they need support most.

Fees Rising 36% in a Single Year

The federal proposal would raise the DNR from 983 pesos to 1,334.8 pesos (about $74) per person, an increase of roughly 36% in a single year and close to 55% over two years. The charge adds to higher air fares, an exchange rate that works against visitors and other travel costs, factors the industry says compound the hit to Mexico’s competitiveness against rival destinations.

Fewer Flights and Fewer Seats

One of the biggest drivers of the tourism decline has been the cutback in flights and the loss of available seats. Toni Chaves, president of the Riviera Maya Hotel Association, said 1.6 million fewer international passengers arrived between January and August 2026 than in the same period a year earlier — in Cancún, Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta alone. “For the rest of the year we expect a 3.1% drop in scheduled seats between the United States, our main market, and Mexico,” he added.

A Social and Employment Toll

David Ortiz Mena, president of the CHCM and of the Tulum Hotel Association, stressed that the main dimension of the concern is social: tourism sustains workers, restaurants, transport operators, shops, suppliers and small businesses.

Julio Villarreal, president of Canirac Quintana Roo, the state’s restaurant industry chamber, described a deteriorating picture. “We are in a fairly complicated situation, there is concern, a loss of competitiveness. The economic spillover affects all of us; informality has grown 50%,” he said, warning that job losses translate into more crime and insecurity. “We are heading toward a catastrophe.”

Calls for a Congressional Review

With the deadline for the lower house of Congress to approve the initiative falling on October 20, the CHCM, the CCE’s Caribbean branch and other tourism organizations urged the Chamber of Deputies’ Finance and Public Credit Committee to carry out a technical assessment of the full impact of the DNR increase on competitiveness, demand, tax collection and employment. They also asked lawmakers to open a working group with the Finance Ministry, the Tourism Ministry (SECTUR) and organized tourism before the legislative debate closes.