Cruise fee doubles at vacation hot spot as passengers brace for even steeper hikes

As of Aug. 1, the fee for foreign cruise passengers visiting Mexican ports increased from $5 to $10 per person, with additional increases scheduled over the next two years, according to Mexico's phased plan.

Clint Henderson, a managing editor of the travel site The Points Guy and based in New York, told Fox News Digital the increase likely won't be enough to deter most travelers, but said it adds to the growing expenses consumers face when traveling.

"Consumers keep getting hit with more and more taxes and fees for everything related to travel," he added.

"The messed-up thing about this new fee is [that it's] just one of several increases to come over the next few years," Henderson said. "It will eventually go up to $21 over the next few years."

"We'll have to see if this ends up denting cruise demand for Mexico," he added.

Henderson noted that cruise passengers had previously been exempt from the immigration fee imposed on certain foreign travelers entering Mexico.

"That's no longer the case," he said, "and it's going to raise costs for tourists."

The $10 charge, however, is still significantly lower than the fee Mexico originally planned to impose on cruise passengers.

The law took effect Jan. 1, 2025, but Mexico granted cruise passengers a 100% fiscal credit through the end of June, effectively postponing collection of the fee.

Following negotiations between the Mexican government and the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA), the two sides reached an agreement that set the initial fee at $5 per passenger beginning July 1, 2025.

The association said the agreement was intended to protect cruise tourism while supporting Mexican communities that rely on visitors.

Under the phased plan, foreign cruise passengers paid $5 beginning in July 2025 before the fee doubled to $10 on Aug. 1 of this year.

The next increase is scheduled for July 1, 2027, when the charge will rise to $15 per passenger.

Then, beginning Aug. 1, 2028, travelers will pay $21 through Sept. 30, 2030, under the current plan.

"It's definitely making Mexico more expensive as all these taxes and fees start to add up," he said.

The increase arrives as travelers are seeing jumps in costs throughout the industry.

"Unfortunately, cruising, like everything else, is getting more expensive," Henderson said in a previous interview.

Still, Henderson said cruising can offer good value when travelers consider the transportation, accommodations and entertainment included in the price.

"Cruising is still a relative bargain," he said.

Fox News Digital's Ashley DiMella contributed reporting.