Delta pulls out of Tulum: is the multi-million-dollar airport Mexico’s latest white elephant?
August 19, 2025
Tulum International Airport was billed as a game-changer for tourism in Mexico’s Riviera Maya, the resort district south of Cancún that hugs some of the country’s best Caribbean coastline.
But less than two years after opening, airlines are already pulling back.
By the coming winter season, scheduled seat capacity is expected to fall by roughly a quarter at Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport, a sharp reversal from the optimism that surrounded its 2023 launch.
Tulum Airport’s declining international flights
In June of this year, Mexico’s Federal Civil Aviation Agency reported a more than 50% decline in international flights to Tulum versus the same month in 2024. However, over the January-June period, the number of international passengers doubled from 2024 to 2025.
Major US and Canadian carriers, including Delta, American, United, JetBlue, Spirit, and Air Canada, are among those cutting services.
Delta has scrapped its routes from Minneapolis–St. Paul and Detroit, though it will continue to fly from Atlanta. The airline described the move as part of a broader network realignment to better match demand.
American cut flights from Charlotte, JetBlue reduced services from New York’s JFK, and United axed the route from Chicago-O’Hare.
Spirit Airlines’ enthusiasm for Tulum was also short-lived. In December 2023, it loaded 60 flights for April 2024 – over 10,000 seats. By February 2024, the entire schedule had been erased.
Tulum Airport can’t compete with Cancún
The problem for TQO is that the demand never fully materialised as airport planners and the Mexican authorities had hoped it would.
There are still a handful of daily flights to the US, plus domestic services connecting Mexico City and Guadalajara, as well as San Jose in Costa Rica.
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Yet travellers continue to favour Cancún, which offers a massive nonstop network and direct access to hotel zones. Even if it is closer to the southern stretch of coastline, seen as a less commercial holiday experience, Tulum cannot compete with that connectivity.
And reaching Tulum’s beaches from the new airport still involves a drive of up to 50 minutes – an inconvenience that undermines its supposed advantage.
The $28 billion Tren Maya rail project was meant to provide seamless onward connections, but the reality has been disappointing.
Services are irregular, the station is not integrated with the terminal itself, and visitors often find themselves relying on costly taxis or buses.
Without reliable transport links, the airport’s location deep in the jungle makes little sense for most holidaymakers.
Huge costs but rewards remain elusive
The scale of the investment makes the situation all the more striking. Official figures put construction at several hundred million dollars, but cumulative costs, once associated infrastructure is included, are reported to be far higher – close to a billion dollars, according to Spanish newspaper El Pais.
For that price, critics argue, Mexico could have expanded existing gateways or invested in upgrades at Cancún rather than betting on a brand-new hub.
Even in its early months, the airport struggled to live up to expectations. Facilities opened incomplete, with limited dining and retail options, while travellers complained of leaks and unfinished facilities.
With airlines scaling back and passengers continuing to favour Cancún, Tulum now risks being branded Mexico’s latest “white elephant”.
Other ambitious airports in the country – such as Toluca and Felipe Ángeles – have faced similar struggles to draw traffic despite substantial investment.
The latter, in Mexico City, is miles from the centre, while Toluca is even further from the Mexican capital and has not attracted the numbers envisaged.
