Quintana Roo Aims to Recover 500,000 Airline Seats, Targets 20 Million Tourists in 2026

Chetumal, Quintana Roo — The Quintana Roo government is drafting a strategy to recover roughly 500,000 airline seats the Mexican Caribbean has lost after several carriers cut flight frequencies, with officials expecting the situation to begin turning around in October.

Bernardo Cueto Riestra, Quintana Roo’s tourism secretary, said airlines have adjusted their operations in response to rising fuel costs, a shift that has hurt air connectivity to the state’s resort destinations.

Cueto Riestra said the problem is not limited to the Mexican Caribbean but reflects a broader squeeze facing international destinations as airline operating costs climb.

In response, the state government is preparing a program to strengthen connectivity and restore some of the lost frequencies. The first results, Cueto Riestra said, could appear in October.

The effort matters heading into the final quarter of 2026, when tourism authorities expect a rebound in arrivals and hotel occupancy across Quintana Roo’s main destinations.

The Tourism Department is also monitoring international economic conditions, particularly how conflicts in the Middle East affect markets and the operating costs tied to tourism activity.

Despite those pressures, state projections for the end of the year remain positive. Cueto Riestra said Quintana Roo received about 10 million tourists in the first half of the year and expects a similar figure in the second half.

If those forecasts hold, the state could close the year near 20 million visitors — or surpass that mark again, according to estimates from the State Tourism Department.

“We do know the last quarter will be a positive quarter in terms of occupancy and arrivals,” Cueto Riestra said of the outlook for the coming months.

The year-end holiday season will be one of the key periods for reaching that goal, given the usual surge in demand for lodging and other tourist services across the Mexican Caribbean.

Still, the tourism secretary said the challenge is not only about drawing more travelers to Quintana Roo. The strategy also aims to raise visitor spending and, with it, the economic benefit tourism generates across the state’s destinations.