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Question: Snorkeling options on the Riviera Maya?

Rene McDaniel

Rene McDaniel

TUG Review Crew
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We're headed to the Riviera Maya for Spring Break, and this time I'd like to try some snorkeling there. I've heard Puerto Moreles mentioned, but where exactly would we go? I've also heard Yal Kul lagoon is great. Anyone snorkeled in the Riviera Maya area and have any suggestions?

We will have a car for the week, and were thinking of driving down to Tulum one day to see the ruins & snorkel somewhere (we will bring our own gear).

Thanks for your suggestions!
---Rene McDaniel
 
We liked Akumal, just south of Yal-Ku
http://www.akumaltravel.com/accom/akumalmap.htm

There's parking, a nice public beach and bar/restaurant.

We were there some years ago, and there may have been hurricane damage to the coral since then, but at least there should be fish.

Yal-Ku is also worth a visit - - you'll pay a fee to snorkel there. It's small and contained. Visibility is variable at Yal-Ku because there's a stream of fresh water running into the salty bay that gets cloudy where they mix.
 
Akumal is great. That is where most of the tours take you.
 
My understanding is that Akumal is about the only place that you can walk-in and see some great stuff snorkeling. Puerto Morelos is great, but there and elswhere it's far enough off shore that one needs a boat for good snorkeling. This info I've only heard from others, I've only been scuba diving.
 
Snorkeling

Puerto Morelos is the place to snorkel. We go there every year for a few weeks to rest before Cancun...If you drive into town, turn left at the police station go down a block and on the left side of the road you will see a dive shop, run by Enrique. He speaks English. He has a web site called www. almostheavenadventures.com if you want to check him out. He does dives for the El Cid hotel as well as Ceiba del Mar hotel...top notch kind of guy. If you cannot find him, simply drive straight down to the public dock area. There are plenty of boats for hire, with a dive boss. Try to go on a day that is not too windy, or you will not be able to dive.
 
I also like Akumal, and in addition, Yal-Ku Lagoon. Both are excellent. If you are willing to go over to Cozumel, there is a beach bar on the west side of the island called the Money bar. It is right up the street from the Chakanaab park. This place is right on the Dzul Ha reef and has GREAT snorkling. AND, the bonus.......FREE! The access to the water can be a little slippery, but they will help you in the water. They have a small beach club there too, with lounge chairs, a restaurant, etc. We ate lunch there and it was good.

Another idea, that I think would very much benefit you, would be to buy the maps from the map chick. They are SOOOO worth it! We have the Riviera Maya one, the Conzumel one and the Playa del Carmen one. They have given us great tips!

http://www.cancunstore.com/

Have fun!

Michelle
 
here's a link to a short review I wrote year before last on a day of snorkeling we did with a company called Edventures. It was just the two of us and our guide.

We could have gone to all these places on our own, but we would have had no clue what we were looking at, and in the case of the caves, you had to go in with a guide.
 
We went to Akumal. It's a public beach (i.e. free) with a small restaurant and a floating dock not too far out to rest if you need to (at least this was the situation 4-5 years ago). We saw some good-sized sea turtles in addition to the usual underwater plants and fishes. Nothing spectacular, but good.

As I recall there was something about driving in and seeing a "private no entrance" sign for a residential area, but going through it anyway and turning right for the beach.


If you're staying at the Royal Haciendas, there's also nice snorkeling right on their beach. The close-in snorkeling is very shallow, and it's a bit weird having the coral etc a foot or less under your body. It was kind of uncomfortable not being able to stand up or tread water for awhile, because of the coral. A bit farther out and to the sides it's deeper and you won't have that situation.
 
I heard from someone who saw an octopus snorkeling off the Haciendas in Sep, that's pretty cool.
 
hello....xceret????

It may cost a few bucks...but the best we have snorkled ,was at xel ha...................great deal!:)
 
yalku lagoon anyone??

from what I hear ,this lagoon located near Akumal?? Is almost free and filled with awesome marine life.Others might know more ,as we have not been there.:) :) sally
 
ssally said:
from what I hear ,this lagoon located near Akumal?? Is almost free and filled with awesome marine life.Others might know more ,as we have not been there.:) :) sally
Click to expand...

Yes, Yal-Ku lagoon is great snorkling. We have been there a couple of times. The problem is, the first time it was much better than the second, and I don't know why. Maybe the weather? (The water was cloudier on one of the days which made it more difficult to snorkel.) I still stand by the map from mapchick, as it has SOOOO many tips in it!

Michelle
 
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