Budget for Quintana Roo Tourism Soars 107%!

The annual budget for the Tourism Secretariat of Quintana Roo (Sedetur) is set to increase by 107% in 2025, rising from 106.7 million pesos in 2024 to 221.2 million in 2025. This substantial increase was approved as part of a fiscal package by the State Congress. However, no budget allocation has been assigned to the Trust for the Strengthening of Tourism Activity in Quintana Roo (Foatqroo), which is expected to take over maintenance responsibilities in Cancun and Cozumel's hotel zones previously managed by the federal government.

An official announcement is expected soon, which may reveal that the increased budget for the Tourism Secretariat will be used to fund the operational functions of Foatqroo. This follows preparations throughout 2024 for Foatqroo to take over maintenance, wastewater management, gardening, cleaning, and other tasks previously performed by Fonatur in Cancun until 2023.

The Tourism Promotion Council of Quintana Roo (CPTQ) is another organization set to see a budget increase, going from 717 million pesos in 2024 to 752 million in 2025. Additionally, from 2025 onwards, the CPTQ will no longer solely depend on income from the Hotel Tax collected by the state government, but will also have access to other income sources determined by the Tourism Secretariat.

The fiscal package approved by the state congress has set the Hotel Tax revenue for 2025 at 3.469 billion pesos, a 13.7% increase from 2024's 3.05 billion pesos. This increase appears unjustified considering the estimated influx of 20 million tourists throughout 2024, of which at least 5 million are cruise visitors who are not subject to this tax. The remaining 15 million is a figure virtually equal to that of 2023, indicating no significant increase in tourist arrivals to justify higher tax collection expectations.

In fact, there are indications of a slowdown in the growth of American tourist arrivals and a noticeable decline in South American markets such as Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia.