Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Sept. 9, 2026 — Canirac Vallarta reported Tuesday that member restaurant sales fell 20% to 30% from summer 2025 as fewer diners visited in July and August.
Martha Leticia Parra Vargas, the local Canirac president, tied the decline to lower foot traffic. Some businesses reported higher average checks, she said.
Canirac also counted 15 temporary closures and two permanent shutdowns among roughly 200 member restaurants.
Closures reach beyond dining rooms
Canirac has not released employment totals for the current shutdowns. The reports also do not identify the restaurants or give expected reopening dates.
The closures follow earlier PVDN reporting that restaurants were reducing staff days as tourism demand weakened in June.
Parra said the temporary closures do not all represent failed businesses. Some owners routinely use the slow season for remodeling, employee training or operational changes.
“There are temporary closures and closures for remodeling,” Parra said in Spanish. “But there are closures.”
She cited high commercial rents, weaker tourism activity and broader economic conditions as pressures on some businesses. Two restaurants have stopped operating permanently, according to the association.
The 30% estimate has limits
The sales figures come from surveys and conversations with Canirac members. The published account of the findings does not provide the sample size, response rate, or calculation method.
The figures should therefore be read as an industry estimate. They are not an audited measure of sales at every Puerto Vallarta restaurant.
Canirac said the average decline during July and part of August was closer to 20%. Some establishments reported losses reaching 30%.
“There are fewer people,” Parra said.
The comparison also begins from an already weak base. In September 2025, Parra reported that most restaurants surveyed had lost about 30% of their sales from the previous summer.
That 2025 report referred to 130 affiliated restaurants. The latest closure report cites roughly 200 members, so the two surveys may not cover the same businesses.
Canirac’s previous findings also show that restaurant performance can vary by neighborhood. During Holy Week 2026, the association reported gains in Centro, Zona Romántica and Marina Vallarta.
Restaurants in Versalles, El Pitillal, Fluvial Vallarta, Palmar de Aramara and Olas Altas reported declines of about 30% during that period. Canirac has not provided a similar neighborhood breakdown for the summer survey.
Airport traffic also weakened
We compared Canirac’s assessment with official passenger figures from Puerto Vallarta International Airport.
The airport handled 484,200 passengers in July and 426,900 in August, according to monthly reports from Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico.
The combined total of 911,100 passengers was 11.2% below the same two months of 2025, a PVDN calculation based on the airport operator’s data.
International traffic accounted for most of that decline. International passengers fell 28.3% across July and August, while domestic traffic decreased by less than 1%.
The August airport analysis reported by PVDN found that international traffic accounted for 87% of that month’s total passenger loss.
Airport totals do not measure restaurant spending and cannot establish what caused the sales decline. However, the figures are consistent with Canirac’s report of fewer potential customers during the summer.
Winter reservations provide a cautious signal
Parra said conversations with restaurant owners indicate favorable reservations for the winter high season. She also described customer behavior as conservative.
Canirac did not provide booking totals, a year-over-year comparison or a winter sales forecast.
Some restaurant owners will use the current low season to remodel, train employees, and adjust operations before reopening, Parra said.
