October 10, 2026 — Hurricane Simon strengthened rapidly overnight into a Category 4 storm with 150 mph winds and is forecast to reach Mexico’s Pacific coast as a major hurricane tonight or early Sunday, the US National Hurricane Center said. All commercial flights at Manzanillo are cancelled for Saturday, Puerto Vallarta is losing flights, and coastal Jalisco shuts down this evening. Separately, Tropical Storm Rachel comes ashore in northern Baja California tonight.
This updates our October 9 story, when Simon had just become a hurricane.
Hurricane Simon
- Strength and position. At 9:00 am CST Saturday (Advisory 13), Simon had maximum sustained winds of 150 mph and was about 115 miles south-southwest of Manzanillo, drifting north at about 3 mph. The hurricane center’s headline calls it a “dangerous Category 4 hurricane.”
- Warnings widened. A Hurricane Warning now runs from Punta San Telmo to El Roblito and includes Las Islas Marías. That covers Manzanillo, Puerto Vallarta and the Nayarit coast; the stretch north of Punta Mita was only under a watch on Friday. A Tropical Storm Watch runs east of Punta San Telmo to Lázaro Cárdenas. No Simon watch or warning is posted for Los Cabos or Mazatlán.
- Timing. Tropical-storm conditions are possible from Saturday afternoon, with hurricane conditions in the southern warning area from early Sunday. The forecast takes the center inland over Jalisco and weakens it quickly on Monday. Some models keep it just offshore longer, so the exact landfall point and hour are TBA. Mexico’s weather service expects landfall on the Jalisco coast between Cihuatlán and Puerto Vallarta.
- Rain and surge. The hurricane center forecasts 10 to 20 inches of rain, locally 30, across Michoacán, Colima and Jalisco through Sunday, with life-threatening floods and mudslides, plus dangerous storm surge near and east of landfall.
Airports, ports and local orders
| Place | Status |
|---|---|
| Manzanillo (ZLO) | All commercial flights cancelled Saturday, October 10, by airline decision, per operator GAP. Restart: TBA. |
| Puerto Vallarta (PVR) | Open as of GAP’s Friday afternoon report. Volaris cancelled two round trips Saturday and all its PVR flights Sunday. No formal closure reported. |
| Tepic, Colima, Uruapan | Volaris cancelled operations October 10–11. |
| Los Cabos, Mazatlán, Guadalajara | No closures or cancellations found. |
| Ports | Lázaro Cárdenas closed to all vessels; Puerto Vallarta, Manzanillo, Barra de Navidad, Zihuatanejo and Acapulco closed to small craft. Reopening: TBA. |
- Jalisco coast: non-essential activity, including public transport and gas stations, halts from 5 pm Saturday, and tourists are asked to stay in their hotels from 6 pm. Shelters are open in Puerto Vallarta and coastal evacuations are under way.
- Waivers: Mexican media report Aeroméxico and Viva Aerobus change waivers for Puerto Vallarta, Manzanillo and other Pacific airports. We found no cancellation list from US or Canadian carriers in the sources we could open; check your own airline.
- US government: the US Embassy and the Guadalajara consulate issued an upgraded weather alert for Simon on Friday. We could not open the page itself.
Tropical Storm Rachel: northern Baja
- At 8:00 am PDT Saturday (Advisory 54), Rachel had 60 mph winds and was moving northeast at 22 mph.
- A Tropical Storm Warning covers the west coast of the Baja peninsula from Punta Eugenia to the US border and the east coast of Baja California from Isla San Luis to Puerto Peñasco.
- The center moves onshore in northern Baja California tonight and weakens by Sunday morning. Expect 1 to 3 inches of rain and coastal flooding. We found no airport status reports for Tijuana.
What it means for airline travelers
- Do not try to fly standby into Puerto Vallarta or Manzanillo this weekend. Seats that do operate will go to displaced revenue passengers, and you may not get out again for days.
- Already there? Follow hotel and Protección Civil instructions and stay off beaches and out of the water. Stay indoors from Saturday evening.
- Expect a slow restart. Flooding and mudslides can cut the coast roads after the wind eases. Do not plan on driving to Guadalajara as a fallback until roads are confirmed open.
- After the storm, flights out will be full of rebooked passengers. Budget extra days and extra money, and keep receipts for insurance.
- Baja: allow for delays at Tijuana and on the border crossings Saturday night and Sunday.
- Los Cabos, Cancún and Mexico City are outside the warning areas, though Mexico City’s airport has warned of knock-on delays on Pacific routes.
- Enroll in STEP (US) or Registration of Canadians Abroad so the embassy can reach you.
Sources
- US National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Simon Public Advisory 13
- US National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Simon Forecast Discussion 13
- US National Hurricane Center, Tropical Storm Rachel Public Advisory 54
- Latinus, “Aeropuerto de Manzanillo suspende vuelos comerciales por el huracán ‘Simón'”
- El Informador, “Huracán Simón: Cancelan vuelos comerciales del aeropuerto de Manzanillo”
- El Informador, “Huracán Simón alcanza categoría 4: Así afectará a Puerto Vallarta hoy 10 de octubre”
- La Jornada, “Huracán Simon ya es categoría 4; alerta en Jalisco y Colima”
- Rio Times, “Hurricane Simon Grows to Category 4 as Mexico Braces”
- Tribuna de la Bahía, “Siguen las cancelaciones de vuelos a Puerto Vallarta”
- UnoTV, “Huracán Simon provoca cancelaciones de vuelos y activa políticas de protección en aerolíneas”
- US Embassy in Mexico, Weather Alert: Upgraded Storm – Hurricane Simon, October 9, 2026 (page could not be opened)
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