Tulum International Airport opened in December 2023 on Federal Highway 307, reducing the drive to Tulum's Hotel Zone from ninety minutes to under thirty. The terminal serves Felipe Carrillo Puerto municipality and handles domestic and international arrivals around the clock. Prior to its inauguration, visitors flew into Cancun and endured a two-hour coastal corridor punctuated by toll booths and resort traffic. The new facility processes passengers through a single-level concourse designed for efficiency, with immigration lanes feeding directly into a ground-transport plaza where private operators hold placards and SUVs idle in designated staging bays. Private transfer demand surged within months of the airport's debut. Hotel chains along Boca Paila Road and Tulum Pueblo negotiated flat-rate contracts with fleets that maintain GPS tracking and bilingual drivers. Shared shuttles wait for cabin loads to fill; private vehicles depart on the passenger's schedule. The fare delta between group vans and dedicated SUVs narrows when split among three or four travelers, a calculus that tips families toward door-to-door service. Operators submit vehicle registrations and insurance certificates to Quintana Roo's transport secretariat, a vetting layer absent in the pre-2023 Cancun freelance model. The airport's catchment extends south to Bacalar and north to Playa del Carmen, though most reservations cluster within the fifteen-kilometer Tulum arc. Morning arrivals coincide with checkout times at boutique properties along the beach road, compressing demand between nine and noon. Evening flights from Mexico City and Monterrey generate a second peak after eight. Luggage capacity varies by vehicle class: sedans accommodate two large cases, while Suburbans handle six plus dive gear or surfboards. Real-time flight tracking allows drivers to adjust pickup windows when inbound aircraft circle due to crosswinds, a November-through-January pattern tied to norte weather systems sweeping the Yucatán. Road surface between the terminal and the coast remains smooth asphalt maintained by federal crews, though speed limits drop to forty kilometers per hour through ejido villages where topes enforce compliance. The route bisects jungle corridors protected under environmental zoning, with howler monkeys audible at dawn and dusk. Operators include meet-and-greet service inside the arrivals hall, bypassing the taxi scrum outside baggage claim where unlicensed drivers solicit fares at inflated rates.