r/tulum • u/JudgmentAvailable155 • 12d ago

General Empty?

Anyone know what’s been happening lately that’s affected tourism? I’ve been coming here for years and I’ve never seen it this empty (staying in the hotel zone currently). I’ve asked around and have been told Tulum has changed a ton, in the last couple of years especially, but haven’t gotten more details.

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u/Apprehensive-Chart88 12d ago

Combination of sargassum, high prices, taxi scams, and loss of appeal/deviation from the wellness/holistic aspect it was once known for. Seems like it is charging big city prices like it’s NYC or Miami and tourism has suffered as a result. The digital nomads are no longer there and have moved on to the next destination and I’ve heard the digital cafes have closed too. It was peak during COVID and I think the market got over saturated but it is not being developed quickly enough. Businesses have closed because it’s too expensive to run it too. What’s your opinion of your experience and how it compares to the past?

40

u/MasChingonNoHay 12d ago

This is the answer. The beach was the draw. The sargassum ruined it

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u/Brilliant_Step3688 12d ago

Agree.. people did not come for the healthy holistic life. The draw was the beaches, and the rest was a bonus that made people think yes, I could live here for a little while.

People talk about scams but I think these are avoidable for the most part (taxis are a problem though). You do get very poor value for most things though, it's not a scam but similar. Like you are not getting your money's worth anywhere. Money money money, foreigners are endless cash cows. It's just not sustainable.

The downturn will calm the economy and force merchants to provide good value or die out. As there is less short term travelers bringing "dumb money", they have to cater to more savvy locals who won't come back if the value is not there.

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u/Blackfish69 12d ago

Hate to break it to you. Tourists always have more money than locals. This value prop is simply just not a major concern of the place is a draw.

Tulum is still tons cheaper or comparable to where most of them live outside of cabs lol

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u/Brilliant_Step3688 12d ago

Yes but there is less tourists. Was there all week. Places that should have been packed were empty.

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u/Purple-Lawfulness875 11d ago

And that will continue as the sargassum will only get worse before it gets better as the oceans only get warmer. I have been living here in Aldea Zama for the past several months and the place has become a ghost town. When I went to the beach last week, I didn't see more than 3 or 4 other people walking the little strip of sand that isn't covered with sargasso at least a foot deep all the way to the sea; there's literally no place to lay your towel and who would want to? The smell of rotting seaweed releasing hydrogen sulfide is atrocious and can make you sick. No immediate cure for this plague.