Tourism investments particularly benefit Mérida, accounting for 43.7% of the total, expanding economic and employment opportunities in the region.
Mérida, the capital of Yucatán, is experiencing expansion into its periphery, occupying new territories and municipalities, according to Adrián Guillermo Martínez, coordinator of the Academic Unit of Territorial Studies Yucatán at the Institute of Geography of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), in an interview with the university.
This growth is dispersed and fragmented, with residential developments, industrial parks, and shopping centers scattered throughout the city. “The pattern of land use is characterized by scattered patches, revealing a lack of effective territorial planning,” the specialist stated.
According to Martínez, between 2000 and 2020, the built-up area nearly doubled, increasing from 21,000 to more than 42,000 hectares, and more than 300 real estate developments have been built, primarily in the northern part of the city.
Mérida is growing faster in area than in population; the city has grown from 800,000 inhabitants to 1.3 million in 20 years.
What is driving Mérida’s urbanization?
Mérida has become an attractive location for metropolitan development due to its safe environment, accessibility to specialized services, and proximity to the coast, archaeological sites, and tourist circuits.
The university specialist explains that urban growth follows corridors toward beach areas and nearby municipalities, where middle- and upper-class residential developments are being built to the north, and social housing to the south and west, where the population with fewer resources lives.
“For decades, it has been the most important regional center on the Yucatán Peninsula, with more infrastructure and specialized services, which has increased its appeal as a tourist destination.”
Urban expansion on the outskirts of Mérida is linked to the growth of tourism and economic activity in the Yucatecan capital. Tourism in Mérida and its Economic Impact.
Tourism in Mérida experienced growth during 2025, with more than 21 million tourists spending at least one night in the state, solidifying the sector as a key economic driver, according to data presented by the Ministry of Tourism Development.
During this year, more than 9.2 billion pesos were invested in 61 tourism projects, resulting in the creation of 11,000 direct and indirect jobs, according to official information.
The Ministry highlighted that 43.7% of the investments were located in Mérida, which allowed for a broader territorial distribution of economic benefits.
However, Martínez states that Mérida is not among the “fastest-growing cities in the country,” despite the intense real estate activity.
He specified that “many properties are sold for speculative purposes, meaning that ‘not everyone who buys comes to live there: some rent or join platforms like Airbnb’”. Urban Growth Exacerbates Social Inequality
The real estate market in Mérida is concentrated primarily in the north of the city, where housing developments targeting upper-middle and upper classes predominate. In contrast, social housing for lower-income populations is mostly built to the west and south, according to Aguilar Martínez’s report.
This urban growth model has reinforced socio-spatial segregation in the Yucatecan capital: while higher-income areas are consolidating in the north, poverty and lower-quality housing persist in the south and west.
The researcher also highlighted the emergence of new labor dynamics linked to residential expansion, characterized by the creation of low-skilled jobs in areas with greater purchasing power.
In this context, the EFE news agency documented in March of this year the testimony of Oziel Pech, a member of the Mayan Communities of the Chenes collective, who warned that real estate projects and megaprojects “do not guarantee a better quality of life for Indigenous communities, since they tend to occupy the lowest rung of the ladder, primarily as cheap labor.”
Likewise, in an interview with EFE, lawyer Luis Antonio López stated that dozens of complaints of land dispossession and theft are filed each year in Mérida and in various districts of the municipality. According to the lawyer, businesspeople and outsiders take advantage of the Mayan farmers’ lack of knowledge, exploiting loopholes in the Agrarian Law to acquire vast tracts of land at “ridiculously low” prices, which are later resold for up to three times their value.
Source: INFOBAE
