Royal Caribbean’s hopes of opening a Perfect Day destination in Mexico were dashed this week after Mexican authorities responded to growing concerns about the plan’s environmental impact.
“Royal Caribbean’s ‘Perfect Day’ project will not be approved,” Mexico’s Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) Alicia Bárcena said at a press conference on Tuesday.
The remarks follow comments from Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum earlier this week, who called on Bárcena and his agency to carefully consider the project.
“There are a lot of protests, a lot of people are against it,” she said at a press conference on Monday. “SEMARNAT is carrying out a very detailed analysis, but I would like to inform you in advance that we do not intend to do anything that will jeopardize the ecological balance of the area.”
According to Cruise Hive, in July 2025, Royal Caribbean spent $292 million to purchase the Port of Costa Maya and surrounding assets, and then planned to spend another $529 million on construction.
At over 200 acres, Perfect Day Mexico was to be twice the size of Royal Caribbean’s Perfect Day Island in the Bahamas. The destination, which was scheduled to open in late 2027, featured 30 waterslides, the world’s largest sombrero and the world’s longest lazy river.
A Change.org petition, which recently approached 4.8 million people, asked the Mexican government to reconsider plans to transport 21,000 people a day to Mahahual, Quintana Roo, where Costa Rica’s port is located. Mahahual, a village of about 3,000 people on Mexico’s southern Caribbean coast, is home to sensitive mangroves and the world’s second-largest barrier reef.
Royal Caribbean said in a statement that it continues to have “confidence in Mexico” and is “optimistic about the possibility of proceeding with the investment responsibly.”
“We are disappointed in SEMARNAT’s decision and respect the role of Mexico’s environmental authorities. Mahahual is a special place that deserves care and protection,” the statement said. “Over the coming weeks, we will once again encourage our stakeholders to move forward in a way that delivers shared prosperity through the development of critical environmental infrastructure, the creation of thousands of local jobs, and community programs that support the people of Mexico.”
The Perfect Day Mexico website was removed as of Wednesday morning and instead redirected to Royal Caribbean’s homepage. The company’s stock fell to $232.10 per share in early trading Wednesday, a 52-week low.
Greenpeace Mexico hailed the decision to cancel the project as a “victory for the people.”
“This victory also belongs to the independent and autonomous work of organizations specifically committed to protecting Mahahual’s territory, its mangroves, its coral reef system, its inhabitants, its local communities, and Mahahual,” the environmental group’s statement reads. “The Mexican government has a historic mission to comprehensively protect the peninsula and thereby guarantee its survival for future generations within the framework of the fight against the climate crisis. Greenpeace Mexico remains vigilant about the announced possible relocation of the project.”
Royal Beach Club Cozumel is scheduled to open in early 2028, later than the originally targeted opening date of late 2026. Meanwhile, Royal Caribbean continues to expand its massive Icon class, with four more ships under construction by 2030.
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