Mahahual is one of the last places where the jungle meets the sea, where coral reefs still pulse with life, and where sea turtles return each year to nest.

Today, a massive project led by the multinational Royal Caribbean, called “Perfect Day Mexico,” threatens the very existence of Mahahual, a coastal town in southeastern Mexico that borders the second-largest coral reef in the world.

This project involves the construction of a 90-hectare water park on protected mangrove land, an essential natural barrier for marine life, ecological balance… and our future.

This project directly threatens:

Our rights to access and use the sea, the beaches, and the mangroves,

Our local identity, our way of life, our freedom to live here,

And above all, the survival of unique and endangered ecosystems: three species of sea turtles, resident manatees, living mangroves, and the second-largest coral reef in the world.

We have already witnessed their environmental management practices: videos are circulating that show wastewater being discharged into mangroves adjacent to their facilities. And today, this is no longer just about a cruise ship pier — it is about a giant water park.

📍 This project is not an isolated case. In CocoCay (Bahamas), an identical Royal Caribbean project already caused:

• The exclusion of local populations from their coastline, through the privatization of coastal areas that were once freely accessible,
• The massive destruction of biodiversity through the removal of mangroves and pollution of the reef, resulting in a drastic decline in marine wildlife,
• The near-exclusive enrichment of the multinational corporation. 

Royal Caribbean plans to receive up to 20,000 tourists per day:
bringing with them tons of chemical sunscreen, plastic waste, mega-cruise ships polluting the water, and absurd levels of freshwater consumption in a region already suffering from water scarcity.

All of this while destroying still-living mangroves and coastline, without a serious environmental impact assessment, and stripping local communities of their own territories — as has already happened elsewhere.

Mahahual is not an amusement park.

It is a fishing town inhabited by local communities who live facing the sea.

One of the last free strongholds of the Mexican Caribbean, while Playa del Carmen and Tulum have already succumbed to the logic of profit.

We are not opposed to development or tourism.But we believe in a model based on sustainability, respect for ecosystems, and justice for local communities.
A model that strengthens what makes Mahahual valuable, instead of replacing it.

Authorities are under no obligation to consult the local population, and current environmental oversight mechanisms are far too weak to guarantee the protection of Mahahual.

📝 What we are demanding for Mahahual:

• The immediate cancellation of the “A Perfect Day Mexico” project as currently proposed,
• A rigorous, independent, and public environmental impact assessment,
• Recognition of the right of local communities to decide their future and protect their territory,
• The opening of a national debate about the tourism model we want for Mexico.

Because defending Mahahual means defending nature, human rights, and the future of our oceans.

P.S. Mahahual needs your help to sustain its legal defense.

If you would like to support, you can donate to cover the essentials of the process (lawyers, technical analyses, and legal proceedings). Every peso is used exclusively for the legal defense of Mahahual:

https://vaki.co/vaki/salvemos-mahahual-apoyo-urgente-para-su-defensa-legal