Rio Lagartos

Río Lagartos is a coastal town in the northeast of Yucatan. It is a relaxing, quiet town that aside from its beaches and seafood restaurants, is world famous for its population of tens of thousands of pink flamingos who breed in the adjacent Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve (which surrounds the town with mangrove swamps, marshes, and rainforest wetlands). Ría Lagartos is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Just west of town begins another large natural wetland area, the San Felipe Biosphere Reserve. The area is also a popular tourist destination for visitors coming to see Las Coloradas, bright pink lagoons just begging for Instagram-worthy selfies to be taken.

Understand
First, let's clear the air about spelling: is it "Ría" or "Río"? Both, depending on context. Ría refers to the lagoon and the name of the biosphere reserve. Río refers to the town. There is not a river here. Feel free to use either ría or río in any situation.

The town was named by Francisco Hernandez, one of the Spanish explorers surveying New Spain back in 1517. When Hernandez cruised into the lagoon, he spotted crocodiles everywhere he looked, so he called the place "Lagartos" (the word for alligators).

The town isn't much more than a village, and it exists only to serve tourism. There are several hotels and restaurants here and plenty of tour guides who will take you on a boat to see the swamps, flamingos, or the colorful pools of Las Colorados. The main draw though is the huge biosphere reserve.

Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve
The Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve covers an area of more than 227,000 hectares. The terrain includes several mangrove swamps, small estuaries, coastal lagoons, marshes and savannah that are home to a variety of species. It is home to more than 300 bird species and serves as nesting sites for some of them (especially the famous pink flamingos who feed on brine shrimp in the shallow salt marshes). The reserve's beaches are critical nesting areas for the hawksbill turtle and the green sea turtle. Dozens of species of snake live in the wetlands as do crocodiles, frequently seen sunning themselves along the shoreline.

Las Coloradas
On a strip of barrier sand in the Ría Lagartos is an area of shallow pools colored an otherworldly bright pink. These pools are created as a by-product of a nearby sea salt production facility. They are not naturally occurring. They are magnetic to shutterbugs and many tourists take day trips by bus from Cancun to come see them.

From Río Lagartos, the pools of Las Coloradas are about 5 miles by boat or 10-15 miles by car. Boats can be hired at the docks in Rio Lagartos starting at about M$3000 for a couple hours (the price is per boat, not per passenger, but be sure to agree ahead of time on precisely what you want to see, how much time it will take, and how many people are going. A tip at the end of the trip is always appreciated).

Get in
The nearest airport with commercial service is Cancún International Airport, about 3 hours away by car.

By bus
From Valladolid take an ADO bus north to Tzimin, where you will need to change buses to continue north on an Autobuses Noreste Yucatan bus to Río Lagartos. Tzimin is about halfway between Valladolid and Rio Lagartos and each bus takes about 1 hour.



By car
From Valladolid, drive north on federal highway MEX-295. It is 100 km to Rio Lagartos on a good highway and the trip will take about 90 minutes. If you need gas or a rest stop, Tzimin is the halfway point and has places selling food and drinks.

Get around
The town is tiny: just a few streets, arranged in a cone. Nothing is more than a few blocks, and walking is the best way to get around. Bikes work too... until you want to get out in the natural areas, where you'll want a boat or a jeep.

Do

 * Birdwatching
 * Beach combing
 * Canoe or kayak
 * Fishing

Festivals

 * Fiesta de Santiago Apostol - annual festival held around July 25 to honor the town's patron saint. Festivities include regional song and dance, bullfights, a carnival midway, and regional food and drink.

Drink
Every restaurant in town serves beer and soft drinks. Most serve cocktails. Hotels often have bars as well. There are convenience stores selling bottled drinks to go.

Sleep










Camping
There are campsites at Camping Chiquila at the end of Calle 9.

Connect
Cell reception was sometimes flaky, occasionally 4G but slipped to 3G with no signal at all out in the nature preserves. WiFi was usually available in restaurants and hotels but would also be flaky with occasional dropped connections.

Go next

 * Isla Holbox
 * Ek Balam
 * Celestún
 * Chichen Itza