| Holbox vacations, hotels & travel transportation to
Holbox! |
Holbox Island - A unique tour for the naturalist. Enjoy bird watching,
fishing, and nature at its best on Holbox Island, Mexico, where you can have a
quiet vacation away from it all. Holbox Island is a unique Mexican destination,
unspoiled by mass tourism. It is a quiet place to enjoy nature and relax.
Located northwest of Cancun off the tip of the Yucatan Peninsula, Holbox touches
both the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.
Holbox Island is the best kept secret in Mexico. It is wild and primitive and
undeveloped. A world of seabirds, ocean breezes and dazzling white sand. A world
where birding, diving and fishing are enjoyed in near perfect isolation.
The more economic hotels and guesthouses are located in the islands laidback
rustic town like the
Faro Viejo Hotel. The more luxurious accommodations can be found on the
town's beach, or on the small hotel zone with its more remote beaches,
Villas Paraiso del Mar(semi-all-inclusive) is one of our favorites. All
hotels are within walking distance of the town. Some hotels & guesthouses offer
apartments with cooking facilities at special monthly rates. Holbox Village is
small, but offers the basic amenities necessary for a relaxing island vacation,
including comfortable accommodations.
The beaches vary in type. North of the little town, the beaches are composed
of sand and crushed sea shells. Walk a little either west or east, and you see
less and less of the crushed sea shells. The beach area in front of the hotel
zone is very beautiful. As for the water, its always a clear turquoise blue.
However, don't let the shells deter you from coming to this place, if you walk
or ride a bike along the beach for about 25 minutes or more, you can find
yourself tanning on a sandy beach, with no buildings in sight in any direction,
no people in sight in any direction, and you could be alone for hours and hours
without being disturbed! It happened to me everyday!
Isla Holbox History
Holbox is mayan language for "black hole". The name's origin has two
explanations. Some believe that the name was given due to a small inland lagoon
on the south side of the Island. The lagoon's soil is very dark, giving the
impression it's black. By the end of the 9th century, the Mayas of the Classic
period had acheived an advanced level of artistic, cultural and scientific
development. Yet, very suddenly, this progress came to and abrupt halt and the
Mayas disappeared. . It was untill 1876 that Isla Holbox could receive it new
habitants. Spaniards on their search for palo de tinto (a widely used colouring
material in Europe in those days) were so appealed by the beauties off the
island and its rich fishing grounds, that they decided to make Isla Holbox their
home, and settled down on the Island.
How to get to Holbox Island:
By Land:
The rates for the transfers from Cancun's airport to Chiquila where you board
the ferry to Holbox are:
-
Private car up to 3 persons with luggage plus driver (Chrysler Stratus type)
ONE WAY $220 - ROUND TRIP $440
-
Private van up to 10 persons with luggage plus driver (Chrysler or Chevrolet Ram
VAN)
ONE WAY $250 - ROUND TRIP $500
Transfer time from Cancun's airport to Chiquila is between 2 and 3 hrs each
way
Rental Car - Make sure to make your car reservation BEFORE you arrive in
Cancun. To get rates from all companies, visit our car
rental page.
Browse to the bottom of this page to print detailed driving directions.
By Water:
Passenger Ferry times between Chiquila and Holbox are:
-
Chiquila to Holbox: 6, 8, 10, 11:30, 12, 2, 4, 5 & 7
-
Holbox to Chiquila: 5, 7, 9, 10:30, 11, 1, 3, 4 & 6
-
Crossing time is approximately 20 minutes
-
Estimated price is $4 per person
Private Boats are available for 6 and 8 passengers to Holbox from Chiquila
until about 11:00 pm. Prices vary from $25 to $35 per boat.
By Air:
Flights to Holbox Island - Aerosaab (http://www.aerosaab.com) offers private
flights to and from Holbox Island from:
-
Merida
-
Cancun
-
Isla Mujeres
-
Cozumel
-
Playa del Carmen
-
Tulum
Flight Details:
Flight Estimated Prices:
-
From Cancun: $500.00 for 1-4 passengers, plus $18.00 airport tax per person
-
From Playa del Carmen: $450 for 1-4 passengers, plus $2.00 airport tax per
person
-
All rates are in US Dollars
-
Rates are subject to change until confirmed
Driving Directions to Isla Holbox
You will be driving in a foreign country, PAY
ATTENTION TO SIGNS AND KEEP ALERT SO YOU DON'T GET LOST:
-
After you pick up your luggage and exit the airport, take the time to
exchange Dollars to Pesos at one of the many exchange houses. There are no ATM's
or banks in Holbox and you will need cash at restaurants for shopping and tours.
-
Make sure to make your car reservation BEFORE you arrive in Cancun. To get
rates from all companies, visit our car rental page.
After you take delivery of your rental car, be sure your tank is full of gas
before leaving Cancun.
-
From the Cancun airport follow the signs toward "CANCUN CENTRO", not towards
the hotel zone. If you are coming from Playa del Carmen, pass both the Merida
and the Airport exits and follow the signs toward "Cancun Centro". DO NOT
follow any signs that say Chichen Itza or Merida, if you go that way you will
end up on the toll-road "CUOTA" and there is no exit from the toll-road to
Holbox. Always follow signs that say "MERIDA LIBRE", it's the old road to
Merida and never follow signs that say "Merida - Cuota".
-
As you are heading into "CANCUN CENTRO", you will be on BLVD. LUIS DONALDO
COLOSIO, it's the main 4 lane highway from Playa del Carmen to Cancun City. You
will turn left at PARQUE KABAH / AVE. RODRIGO GOMEZ. Watch for traffic lights
and a gas station.
-
Follow this 4 lane road for approximately 2.8 miles until you arrive at AVE.
LOPEZ PORTILLO. The intersection is a big roundabout with gray columns in the
center. Go around the circle about 3/4 to exit on the right street with a sign
"MERIDA LIBRE"
-
Now you're on the CANCUN - MERIDA LIBRE road with 4 lanes that later becomes
a two way road. Follow this road out of town and be careful with the traffic
bumps located in every village. You will pass through the following villages:
Leona Vicario, Valladolid Nuevo, Cristobal Colon, Santo Domingo, El Tintal, El
Pozito, Ignacion Zaragoza. About 2 miles after Ignacio Zaragoza there is a
custom check point. (km 80, village "El Ideal" is right behind the check point).
-
Immediately after the customs check point turn to the right. There is a sign
reading HOLBOX - CHIQUILA which is hard to see after dark.
-
Follow this road and pass through some more small villages. After 10km or so
you'll pass through a village called "El Cedral". After the village the road
will divide in two, keep to the right.
-
Follow the road through Kantunil-Kin, a good sized town and then Solferino.
After Solferino it's 6.5 miles more to Chiquilá. The road will become narrow
with hardly any line divisions, just keep driving, the road only goes to
Chiquila.
-
At Chiquilá, leave your car in one of the nearby parking lots that cost about
$3 a day. Don't expect business type parking lots, most are located behind
private homes with small signs that say 'ESTACIONAMIENTO". The caretakers are
very friendly and will assist you if you need help, but make sure to give them a
tip, it's very much appreciated. Park your car and walk towards the passenger
ferry or private boats to Holbox.
-
Once you cross to Holbox, don't expect any automobiles, the taxis are golf
carts that will take you to your hotel for a very modest amount, around $6
Print Driving Directions to Holbox in Microsoft's Word format or
Plain Text
Holbox Island Restaurants & Food:
-
Restaurant Edelin Pizzas - Located on the town's square its wooden
exterior can't be missed. They serve pizzas, fresh seafoods, sandwiches and
seafood cocktails.
-
Restaurant Villamar
.seafoods as well as cow and porq meat dishes. Nicely situated close to the
beach on the main avenue.
-
Restaurant Cariocas Located on the town's beach, serving mainly
seafood and regional dishes. Their restaurant also serves as the local
discoteque during high season.
-
Restaurant Zarabanda Another populair restaurant serving mainly
seafood and regional dishes.
Holbox Island Tour & Activities:
You can explore the island yourself with golf carts, bicycles, by horse or kayak
that are conveniently for rent on the island, or choose to explore the waters
and attractions that surround Isla Holbox with a guided tour.
WHALE
SHARK ADVENTURE
(Whale sharks, flamingos and more)
Enjoy a great day getting to see and probably snorkel with the biggest fish in
the world “ the whale shark “. Also get to admire the unique flamingos and many
other bird species in Yum Balam reserve. According to scientists working in the
area Holbox has the highest concentration of whale sharks in the world. The trip
is run with the local fishermen who where trained to run this unique trips.
ITINERARY - Pick up: 4AM from hotels in Playa del Carmen, 5AM from hotels in
Cancun and depart towards Chiquila. Boat trip to go look for the whale sharks to
see them and probably snorkel with them. Snorkel in a pristine reef enjoying
unique species of the gulf and the Caribbean of Mexico. Enjoy watching the
unique pink flamingos. Back for lunch in Holbox island. Back to Cancun.
6PM arrival to Cancun.
The tour includes:
Comfortable transportation (Club Wagon or Suburban with AC), Professional
bilingual guide (Biologist or Naturalist ), Boat trip, Snorkel equipment, lunch
(2:00 PM ). No alcoholic beverages.
Price: 165.00 USD/person
Children under 7 pay 70 %, Minimum age: 4 years.
The tour size is limited to 10 persons.
Minimum 6 persons to do the eco - tour.
Departs: (Only July and August)
Dolphin search. Dolphins have lived around Isla Holbox since earliest memories
and it is truly an unique experience to see these wonderful creatures in their
natural habitat.
Bird
watching. The most spectacular birds are flamingos, white pelicans, wild ducks,
white ibis, herons, gulls, frigate birds and cormorants. The best place to watch
birds is Isla Pajaros, that has two watch towers at a safe distance.
Isla Pajaros Tour, Holbox Island Turtle observation. With a guided tour it is possible to have a close encounter
as the turtle diggs a hole in the beach, where she will then drop up to a
hundred turtle eggs. Without protecting these eggs, just one of these baby
turtles will grow adult.
 Traditional
fishing .The traditional fishing tour is a nice way to learn to fish as the
islanders do. Just a line with a hook and some bait and some cold drinks, and
off course a fisherman knowing the fishing grounds will certainly be an
unforgettable adventure for 1/5 day. Yalahau Lagoon fly fishing.The lagoon is home to the tarpon, bonefish, permit,
snook, barracuda, snapper and many others. It may well be that you catch your
biggest tarpon ever in these waters; during the summer the big ones can easily
reach to 200 pounds. If you want to come flat fishing don't forget to bring
personal fishing equipment.
Yalahao Lagoon Tour, Holbox Island
 Shelling -The currents flow northward between the Mexico coast and Cuba, then
swirl over a relatively shallow bottom, providing a rich environment for all sea
life and make Isla Holbox uniquely situated for excellent beach collecting. Its
endless beaches are littered with good specimen shells, making them wanted
souvenirs and collector items
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