Mahahual

Mahahual has long been known, to those few who heard of it, as a Cruise Ship port. Remote as it is, that was almost the only way to get there. Today, the Tren Maya station at Limones-Chacchoben has made the trip much easier. And people are rediscovering Mahahual as the authentic fishing village in a supremely undisturbed natural landscape of wetlands, dreamy coast, and slow, laid-back Caribbean vibes.

People visit today because Mahahual is affordable and gentle. The cruise ships horns can be heard over everything a few times a day, but its not a rowdy party place. The nearby village of Chacchoben is even smaller, and the two together have not even a market, though the pyramids at Chacchoben are something most visitors will check out. They're about an hour drive inland, and a little further than the village itself. 

People come too for the diving. The sea offshore is famous for the variety of old shipwrecks as well as for the coral reefs and the warm clear waters. But more than anything, Mahahual is known for the enormous Uaymil Flora and Fauna Protection Area. That keeps everything natural between the town and much more famous Bacalar, the seat of the Uaymil municipality. A rising star for visitors from abroad, Bacalar is a bit more than an hours drive away. The town is the next station on the Tren Maya, and the famous lake there separates it from this part of the green and fantasic coast. 

Travel from Cancun on the Tren Maya (to Limones) takes just short of four hours. From the Tulum Airport, the same trip is about two hours. Travelers arriving to Chetumal airport should expect the train to take a little less than two hours. The Tren Maya on all of these routes is still operating just two times daily.

There is regular van service from the Tren Maya station at Limones-Chacchoben to Mahahual and taxis make it even faster.