Hi there,
Last year when we were in Mexico, we ruled out Holbox because we had read several negative things, one of them that the water is not crystal clear. This time, since we didn’t have such a tight trip, we decided to give this island a chance.
You must go by plane from Mexico City to Cancun, take a bus to the center, another from the center to Chiquilá and finally, the boat that takes you to Holbox. Many hours of travel to get to a place that does not compensate you for the displacement.
It rained on the way and when we got to Chiquilá, the dirt roads were lagoons. You had to go jumping from one place to another. Fortunately, we have been traveling with backpacks for a long time. We got to Holbox and the water in that part where the boat leaves you was disgusting.
Holbox’s streets are also of dirt, and everything was flooded. Right there we had to take off our shoes because there was nowhere to go; the mud was knee-deep. It was a shock because it was horrible and decadent.
We arrived at the “Hotel Paseo Kuka” that we reserved only by name (Venezuelans know what I’m talking about).
Something important to keep in mind is that the Wi-Fi does not work anywhere because the signal does not reach the island well. In fact, our phones also went offline when we arrived.
We left our things and went to see the beach. From the first moment you leave the protection of the hotel’s mosquito nets, be it day or night, mosquitoes attack you mercilessly. The first afternoon we ran to buy repellent, but it does not help much.
The entire beach is full of sun loungers, roofs, and poles that the different properties put up to close off their piece of beach. So, walking for miles is not possible. Beach walks are more like an obstacle course.
The prices are much higher than in the rest of Mexico, almost at the level of Spain.
The first night we ate at a taco place that I didn’t like at all and for lunch, the hotel receptionist gave us the contact information for a place that made homemade food for 90 pesos a portion. This was great for us because when we arrived at the hotel, we had the food we had ordered there.
For dinner, around the square there are also cheaper options for tacos, tortas and other things.
The first day we went to Punta Mosquito, which is the part where everyone takes the photo. There are people who walk along what they call the “tongue of sand”, but we went along the beach and a little before the river, we crossed. In all this time, the mosquitoes did not stop harassing us for a single moment. Diego, who usually doesn’t complain about anything, was disgusted by the mosquitoes, the mud puddles, and the heat.
The entire shoreline of the beach is muddy and unpleasant to walk on, there are also mangrove roots, so it is important to wear sandals so as not to break your feet.
We walked to where the signs are. There is a part that is closed with buoys, and you cannot pass or disturb the birds. They penalize you if they see you crossing or misbehaving with the species.
On the way back we saw two horseshoe crabs and further towards the mangroves, a tiny manta ray.
We returned to the hotel, had lunch, and went back to the beach to sunbathe, this time to the one that is 5 minutes away. The shore is always full of seaweed, and the hotels live forever collecting it and throwing it elsewhere, on the parts of the island where tourists don’t go, there are giant mountains of putrefying seaweed.
Taking a bath is also a bit disgusting because you have several meters where it’s like walking into a chard soup. As we had read last year, the water is not crystal clear because the island is full of mangroves. In certain areas it smells of stagnant water, which is normal when everything is full of mangroves and in Holbox, they also have many problems with septic water; so, I do not rule out that part of the waste ends up in the sea.
As soon as the sun goes down, the mosquitoes that have been pestering you all day multiply by a million and become even more aggressive (if possible). So, all the people flee in terror after 5:00 p.m. We watched the sunset at the pier (which was excessively crowded) and we ran back to the hotel.
More about our stay in Holbox next Thursday.