Despite a 2.4% decrease in the number of international travelers arriving by air, cruises fully filled this gap. Cruise tourism grew 11.2%, offsetting the drop in air travelers.
Increased interest in cruises from companies such as Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line is offsetting the decrease in foreign travelers arriving in Mexico, helping to maintain tourism sector revenue.
According to data from INEGI (National Institute of Statistics and Geography), the number of people arriving from other countries by air in the first four months of 2025 decreased by 2.4%, meaning that 212,331 people no longer arrived.
However, the arrival of passengers via cruise ship increased by 11.2% during the same period, resulting in 435,130 more people arriving than reported between January and April 2024. This compensates for and surpasses the number of passengers who stopped arriving by plane.
Beach regions such as the Caribbean and the Pacific are highly sought after by cruise passengers, more so than those arriving by plane.
Data from the Mexican Port Authority shows that the Pacific received 14.7% more cruise passengers, while the Gulf-Caribbean grew by 8.4%.
A report by AMANAC (Mexican Association of Shipping Agents) indicates that the cruise industry contributes more than 20,000 jobs to the sector, thereby contributing $200 million in wages.
Likewise, AMANAC indicated that shipping companies in the sector spend one billion dollars on direct expenses.
The president of AMEPACT (Mexican Association of Companies for the Service of Tourist Cruises) stated that the improved dynamics in terms of vessels is because a cruise trip is cheaper than a vacation taken by air, and that companies now have ships with a passenger capacity 60 percent greater than they had three years ago.
He mentioned that the arrival of cruise passengers to the various destinations in the country has a direct impact on the ports where they arrive, because it is more quickly reflected in spending in restaurants, bars, shopping areas, souvenir purchases, and tour rentals in nearby regions, among other activities.
“The interesting thing is that in a short time, this spending is distributed in monetary terms to the communities and their businesses, such as pharmacies, timeshares, and other venues. A virtual movement is created in the sector,” stated the executive.