Cancun has seen its first decline in tourist arrivals in seven years.
Cancun Airport received 1.5 million passengers in January, down by 2% on a year earlier.
It is the first drop since April 2012.
Hotel occupancy was also down.
The perception of worsening crime in and around Cancun is beginning to bite.
Around 70% of all inbound air passengers are from international markets, mostly North America.
Armando Bojórquez, president of the Latin America Culture and Tourism Association said the fear of violent crime is behind the decline but there are other factors too.
He points to the success of other destinations attracting a growing number of tourists, such as the Dominican Republic.
"The Dominican Republic and Cuba are growing at a fast pace and they’re beating us in the market because of marketing, we have to ramp up the advertising strategy," Bojórquez said.
The government’s new tourism promotion strategy has been heavily criticized by tourism industry stakeholders.
The Mexican Employers Federation called the decision to funnel most tourism funding on the Maya Train project as ‘almost suicidal.’
It was also described as ‘high risk’ by Coparmex chief Gustavo de Hoyos.
