Playa El Cuyo — Local services in Yucatán

Small quaint beach town between Los Colorados and Holbox. This is the perfect place to unwind and relax. Most everything is within walking distance. The beaches are beautiful once you are away from the main pier beach area. Which is the only place that has small palapas for rent. I recommend going to the right of the pier (as facing it) a short distance and you can find some covered spots for rent around $200 pesos. Shade is scarce and at a premium. Unlike Holbox, El Cuyo is reasonably priced. Food is economical and very very good, as there is a big European influence in the city. We booked an AirBnB which I later regretted because there is an abundance of rooms and apartments for rent. Just show up and you will see plenty of for rent signs and/or ask a local. It will make for a better adventure and save you some money to enjoy the local flare. My personal choice for the next stay is Posada La Pelicana. Lulu and her husband will cook an awesome homemade meal pescado frito and all the extras, plus they are wonderful local people to get to know and to learn about the history of El Cuyo. Theres not a lot of night activity, except walks on the beach, hanging with friends and locals and seeing the abundance of stars at night. Bring Cash and anything out of the norm with you as there are no banks, a sometimes working HSBC ATM, no Oxxo’s, and no supermarkets except local tiendas. Only a handful of places accept credit cards.

An amazing trip from El Cuyo is a dirt road to Los Colorados that goes along the salt manglares. We saw hundreds of Flamingos, up close, along the way. We didn’t need a four wheeler either. Ask a local and they will give you directions.

Please Please Please clean up after yourself and maybe a but extra. My only sadness was to see the abundance of trash in the more local beach areas. Some floats in from the sea and a lot is pure laziness. We can all do our part to help.

Have fun and enjoy the sun, beach, the stars at night and an...

There is a lot of construction going on all over El Cuyo, and my prediction is that very soon it will completely lose a laid back coastal town vibe (meaning it might turn into another tourist circus).   For now prepare yourself for a lot of families with kids, or older retired couples.  Also, lots of stray dogs running around town and beach - most are mellow though, just be aware.

The local food options are limitted and they keep short hours (either opened in the morning or only in the evening, and not all days of the week), though there are a couple of good budget places - do your research and talk to locals where to find them.  The mini-supermarkets have very limited selection and are over-priced (bring food supplies with you if you plan to spend longer here).

The beach is good for walking and kite surfing, but horrible for swimming - frequent wind and waves keep all the sand sturred up making it murky.  There are so many beautiful peaceful places around Yucatan, but this one in El Cuyo is just not worth it.

Glad we visited now, but no interest returning back...

Esta playa frecuentemente tiene mucho sargazo entre abril y agosto de cada año.

El problema del sargazo empieza cada año más temprano y cada año hay más sargazo.

Más hoteles de gran altura ilegales están comenzando a arruinar el paisaje natural y el frágil entorno ecológico.

Las autoridades locales tardan en actuar. Son lentos en hacer cumplir estrictamente la restricción de altura del edificio de 3 pisos para esta reserva natural designada por la UNESCO.

Si este desarrollo desenfrenado continúa, muchos otros problemas ambientales, como la contaminación por desechos, la contaminación lumínica y la contaminación acústica, afectarán negativamente a la reserva natural y a sus 2000 residentes.

No hay abastecimiento de agua municipal para los hoteles y viviendas de El Cuyo.

El agua residual de los baños y aseos que drena en el suelo es la misma agua antihigiénica que se bombea de regreso a los hoteles y hogares para su uso.

Rodeado de agua, es irónico que la escasez de agua sea un problema común en El Cuyo.

Las fallas de electricidad son frecuentes ya que hay demasiados desarrollos nuevos aquí que ejercen una mayor presión sobre la red eléctrica.

La conexión a Internet y teléfono aquí es difícil y frecuentemente imposible.

Los mosquitos son despiadados.

Es una situación triste.

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Es contra la ley construir más de 3 pisos en El Cuyo.

No se aloje en hoteles de gran altura que infringen la ley.

No anime a que se construyan más hoteles ilegales en la reserva natural protegida por la UNESCO.

Di no a los favores especiales de los funcionarios corruptos. Di no a las exenciones cuestionables. Sin excepciones.

Si permite un favor especial, una excepción o una exención, eventualmente le seguirán muchos otros.

Si permite que un hotel infrinja la ley, muchos otros eventualmente lo seguirán.

AYUDE a los residentes locales y a decenas de miles de sus seguidores a proteger la belleza, la ecología y la tranquilidad de la Biosfera de la UNESCO firmando la petición en SalvemosElCuyo.

No condone las malas acciones.

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