Mexico's Semarnat blocks major tourism projects on Holbox and Mahahual

Mexico's environmental agency, the Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (Semarnat), denied two high‑profile tourism developments. In the island of Holbox, the agency's Directorate General of Environmental Impact and Risk (DGIRA) cancelled the $4 million, 49‑room over‑water hotel project “Biocentro Isla Grande,” citing non‑compliance with density and construction rules for the protected Yum Balam reserve and the fact that the land had suffered a forest fire in August 2025, which under law cannot be re‑purposed for twenty years.

In Mahahual, Quintana Roo’s coastal fishing community, Semarnat also rejected Royal Caribbean’s “Perfect Day” megaproject, which would have added a water park, private beaches, restaurants, commercial zones and a new marina. After a public consultation that drew more than 14,000 comments, the agency concluded that the plan’s potential impacts on coral reefs, mangroves and coastline were not adequately mitigated, leading the company to withdraw its environmental filing. Both decisions highlight the tension between tourism‑driven investment and the preservation of fragile marine ecosystems in Mexico’s Caribbean region.