Celestún travel guide

Flamingo at Celestun (Photo: Tony Hisgett from Birmingham, UK, CC BY 2.0)

Celestún is a fishing village on the Gulf of Mexico coast in the western part of Yucatán, Mexico. The small town of 8,400 people (in 2020) is completely surrounded by the Ría Celestún Biosphere Reserve, a large protected natural area that is home to more than 200 species of bird including tens of thousands of pink flamingos.

Understand

Beach in Celestun (Photo: S. Rae, CC BY 2.0)

The town of Celestun makes a good base from which to explore area beaches or nature reserves, though it isn't a particularly noteworthy or interesting town. It does, however, have some pleasant wide beaches that are nowhere near as popular as the beaches along the Quintana Roo coast. The sand tends to be a bit greyer on this side of the Yucatan and the water a much darker green, but the beers are just as cold, the sun as bright, and the sunsets better than those in Cancun. If you're in Merida and looking to do a beach weekend, Celestun is a good alternative to Progreso because it's rarely crowded.

Octopus season is in early fall (August-October) and the town fills with fishermen out to rake in a haul. In 2022, fishermen earned over M$100 per kilo for the tentacled sea beasts.

Ría Celestún Biosphere Reserve

Flamingos in flight at Celestun (Photo: Adam & Tess, CC BY-SA 2.0)

The Ría Celestún Biosphere Reserve spans more than 80,000 hectares of coastline, beaches, and mangrove swamps along the Gulf of Mexico Coast. It's home for hundreds of bird species, but the most famous are the pink flamingos.

Osprey in Celestun (Photo: Bernard DUPONT, CC BY-SA 2.0)

The Biosphere Reserve lies to the north and east of the town. It is a vast wetland of mangrove swamps (known as the Petenes region) fed by natural springs drawing water from underground aquifers. Amid the swamps are lagoons and marshes and areas of tropical rainforest. The famous flamingos are just one of the many species that live and nest in the wetlands here. Several species of heron, pelican, ibis, and osprey can be seen. UNESCO says the area is home to 304 bird species. The number of flamingos alone is more than 20,000. A popular spot in the reserve is Bird Island, which is populated mainly by egrets and pelicans.

The coastal beaches and dunes are also nesting areas for several types of sea turtles and the reserve makes efforts to preserve those areas as well. There are plenty of crocodiles in the swamps and you'll probably see one or several if you do a boat tour. Boat tours generally stop at Ojo de Agua Baldiosera, one of the natural springs that feeds the swamps. There's a boardwalk where you can walk through an area of the swamp and some places where you can swim. Bring the mosquito spray!

The best time to see flamingos is between November and March with January and February being "peak time".

The Ría Celestún Biosphere Reserve is adjacent to other protected natural areas, including the Petenes Biosphere Reserve.

Get in

By car

You can rent a car in Merida and drive to Celestun. It is an easy drive, simply head west out of Merida on federal highway MEX 281 and keep driving west until you're in Celestun.

By bus

Autobuses Oriente operates hourly buses between Merida and Celestun. The 2-hour ride costs M$100-200. Bus stops at several scheduled pickup points, plus anytime a passenger shouts "Baja" or a prospective passenger on the roadside waves a hat.

Terminal Autobuses Oriente, C. 13 98, Centro. Catch the buses to Merida here. First bus leaves at 05:00. Buses run about hourly from 08:00 - 20:00. Buses are very modern, clean and comfortable.

Get around

To see the Ria Celestun Biosphere Reserve, you'll need to take a boat. The dock where you can catch a boat is south of the bridge that goes between the mainland and Celestun (on the Celestun side). Boats cost M$1500 (per boat, not per passenger). If you're by yourself, look around to see if there are other single travelers or small groups who might split the cost with you.

• Parador Turistico, MEX 281 (next to the bridge crossing to the mainland). Tourist info, bathrooms, tickets for boat tours of the Ria Celestun Biosphere Reserve

See

A bunch of flocking birds.

Do

Palapa restaurants on the beach in Celestun (Photo: AlejandroLinaresGarcia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

There are several beaches where you can hang out, play in the water and get a sunburn.

• Playa Sur - the beach in town, south of Calle 11
• Playa Norte - the beach in town, north of Calle 11
• Playa Agua - the beach a few minutes north of town on Calle 14, far from crowds, no food/drink vendors
• Guardianes de los Manglares, Calle 2-D, ☏ +52 999 645 4310. 08:00 - 15:00. Local nature guides will take you in canoes or kayaks, paddling through the mangrove swamps.

Eat

• Bouquinets, Calle 14 7 (on the beach), ☏ +52 999 802 1194. Fri-Tue 10:00 - 18:00, Wed Thu 09:00 - 17:00. Great beach restaurant to hang out at all day, come for breakfast, stay for lunch, cold drinks, then dinner watching the sunset. Palapas with tables on the beach, hammocks, friendly service. Lobster and octopus are very popular here. M$200.
• La Palapa, Calle 12 No. 105 (on the beach). 11:00 - 19:00. Large palapa restaurant on the beach and smack in the middle of town. Popular tourist spot with large indoor dining area as well as shaded outdoor tables on the sand. From M$300.
• Nicte Ha, C. 10 108 (50 meters from the beach). 08:00 - 18:00. Traditional Mexican and Yucatécan regional dishes, heavy on the seafood. Good breakfast spot with reasonable prices. M$200.

Sleep

• Casa BreMar (north end of town, corner of C. 12 and C. 4), ☏ +52 999 136 5163. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 11:00. Clean, comfortable, peaceful hotel. Hammocks available. M$2100.
• Castellito Kin-Nah, Calle 12 No. 47, ☏ +52 19992005594. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 12:00. Small, modern, beachfront hotel with balconies, swimming pool. M$2100.
• Posada Maria Isabel, Calle 12 num 113B x13 y 15, ☏ +52 9993101908. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 12:00. Beachfront with basic, but clean and modern rooms. Sunset views from the balconies. M$900.
• Posada Lilia, Calle 12 128B, ☏ +52 988 916 2039. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 12:00. Modest beachfront hotel with basic rooms but low rates. M$880.
• Hotel Villa Gabriela, Calle 6 entre 5A y 3, ☏ +52 999 298 5437. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 12:00. Simple, comfortable hotel with friendly owners. 3-block walk to beach. M$880.

Go next

• Rio Lagartos
• Progreso
• Holbox

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