Cancún, Quintana Roo — Hoteliers in Mexico’s Caribbean coast are warning that massive sargassum influxes could damage tourist destinations’ reputations during the crucial Holy Week season if authorities don’t act quickly to clean beaches.
David Ortiz Mena, president of the Mexican Caribbean Hotel Council (CHCM), said the challenge is addressing sargassum promptly to maintain the experience visitors expect when traveling to the region’s various destinations.
“More than reacting, we need to anticipate to maintain the experience that visitors to different destinations are looking for,” Ortiz said.
He noted that with solid demand expected, it’s essential to anticipate sargassum behavior to avoid negative perceptions from visitors. Hotels conduct constant cleaning operations, sometimes several times daily, which has helped mitigate the effects of sargassum accumulation on beaches.
However, Ortiz emphasized the importance of strengthening coordination between all three levels of government and the private sector to address the phenomenon more efficiently.
Projections for Holy Week anticipate 1.2 million tourists with occupancy rates above 80% in most of Quintana Roo’s 12 destinations.
The massive sargassum influx to Quintana Roo beaches is already impacting wedding tourism, with approximately 10,000 reservations for wedding ceremonies canceled, according to José Mac-Liberty, an event organizer and romance tourism expert.
Mac-Liberty explained that the state hosts up to 100,000 weddings annually between national and international tourists. He warned that at least one-tenth of couples are reconsidering their plans due to the visual, environmental, and logistical impact sargassum creates in high-demand destinations.
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