Sargassum in Tulum provokes more tourism in cenotes

Derived from the anticipated beginning of the sargassum season, in Quintana Roo the demand of nautical tourism activities has had a reduction of 50 percent.

Visitors no longer want to go to the beaches since the arrival of this marine debris on the coastline and offshore spots, according to some tour vendors, so they have been forced to resort to an alternative tour that is increasingly gaining strength to save the season: the cenotes.

We are already used to the sargasso because it is every year and so is tourism, but the cenotes we have in Tulum help us”, said Adrián, a tourist services salesman.

For his part, Ariel Ramírez, who also sells tours, agreed that offering swimming in cenotes as an alternative is helping them to keep going. Although there is rain and cyclones, the cenotes are always calm and crystalline, so we take people there to snorkel or dive,’ he said.

He added that expeditions to archeological zones are also an option to offer to vacationers who refuse to go to the beaches due to the presence of sargassum, although to a lesser extent in contrast to the cenotes.

The beaches most affected by sargassum accumulation in Tulum are Playa Balam, Playa I’xchel, Playa Santa Fé, Playa Pescadores, Playa Maya, Playa Paraíso, Playa A’ak, Punta Piedra, Villa las Estrellas and Alma Tulum, which need a prompt intervention to clean up their coastline and are not suitable for swimming.

In Tulum, the most intense recales have concentrated algae excessively in the Tulum Archaeological Zone, Hotel Zone and Arco Maya; they urgently require attention and activity in them is not recommended until they are intervened.