Delta Airlines is the latest company to reduce its service to a popular vacation destination in Mexico.
Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport in Tulum opened with excitement in 2024, as airlines expected the sparking new facility would help facilitate more convenient travel to the tourist hotspot. However, that hasn’t materialized, and several major airlines, including Spirit, United and American, have scaled back, or in some cases suspended, their Tulum flight service.
Delta had previously shrunk some of the capacity on its Tulum flights, but now has decided to remove two nonstop routes altogether.
According to reports, Delta is stopping its seasonal flights from Minneapolis and Detroit to Tulum.
“The Tulum bubble has officially burst. Delta is dropping winter nonstops from both Minneapolis and Detroit, as @Enilria6 first spotted – just the latest reduction in service to the shiny new airport south of Cancún,” tweeted Kyle Potter of Thrifty Traveler.
Delta will continue to provide nonstop service to Tulum from Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and Miami
Tulum air travel has flopped
As Potter and others have noted, one major issue is that airlines initially overestimated the number of tourists they would be able to book on trips to Tulum.
The Cancun Sun has also offered its thoughts on why air travel to Tulum has suffered, including various logistical problems at the airport itself, such as overpriced transportation from the flight hub.
Two other reasons for the flop, per The Sun, are a historically slow travel season and Tulum’s quick transformation from an affordable, more low-key destination to a high-priced luxury hotspot.
“Tourism and hotel occupancy in Tulum are significantly down this year. The post-pandemic travel boom has leveled off, and Tulum is feeling the pinch more than its neighbors,” the Cancun Sun writes.
