3 great nature hikes to do from San Felipe Yucatan

San Felipe, Yucatan is a small fishing village located at the tip of the Yucatan Peninsula. It is somewhat overshadowed by the Lagartos River and the pink lakes of Las Coloradas, but it has some hidden gems that you can visit on a tour. For those of you visiting the Riviera Maya and want a contrast to the more touristy part of the peninsula with something a little more authentic or if you live in the Riviera Maya and want to plan a weekend away, this is a great option for you . Here is more information about the nature tours you can do from San Felipe.

Our video guide of the 3 visits you can make in San Felipe

How to do these tours

All these excursions are part of the collective of local fishermen. This means that it is shared equally among all and that the locals benefit from these excursions. at the east end of the malcon you will find a thatched building. This is where the tours depart and also where you buy the tickets. There are some old photos of the tours and an explanation of what each tour entails is available in Spanish.

Trip prices change a bit over time, so here are some general prices. The price of the Isla Cerritos tour by boat is 1,000 pesos and the Cenote Kambulnah tour is 800 pesos. If you just want to go to the beach, there are shared boats and private boats. It will depend on whether there are other people leaving at the same time. Most of the time they try to get you on a boat by yourself or with your group. We’ve never tried paying by credit card, so it would be wise to be prepared with cash. Cash is king in Mexico and you won’t be surprised to have trouble paying.

Take a small boat to the beach

This is the most popular tour or destination you can visit in San Felipe. The city is located on an inlet, so the city has a boardwalk (malcon) along the boardwalk with no real access to the water. In front of Sant Felip there is an island. It takes a few minutes to cross it with a small boat to enjoy the beach.

Once you reach the beach area, there is a dock where you disembark. There are small palapas by the canal and by the beach where you can rent hammocks to swing in the breeze.

There are few people selling food on the beach. The menus are limited and mainly fried fish or fresh ceviche. For drinks there are coconuts, soft drinks and beer. If you want snacks or other drinks, bring them with you. On weekdays there may not be anyone selling food, so be sure to ask the tour center if you should plan to eat in town before or after the beach.

There are very basic bathrooms here.

What is San Felipe beach like?

The picture gives you a good indication of the beach conditions. It’s pretty shallow to the darkest area. This is a very natural area, so you can expect some seaweed and mud. Overall, it’s a very nice beach. This beach doesn’t usually get much seaweed.

Be aware that mosquitoes can populate this area and areas away from the ocean can be problematic. It seems to be a problem 20% of the time, so be prepared with some spray, especially if you don’t want the little bugs to spoil your day at the beach.

Visit to the cenote of Kambulnah

This tour will take you 1.3 km from San Felipe Port to a dock. Here you will walk through the mangroves on an elevated wooden walkway for 320 meters. It is a lush area with birds, insects, crabs and fish in the fresh water streams that come from the cenote.

The cenote is a green area with a circular walk to see all sides. This cenote is not for swimming. The cenote is about 12 meters deep in the center.

After walking to see the cenote, return to the boat to stop at the beach or return to the village if you wish.

tracks: This tour lasts about 30 minutes and is nice to combine with the beach. Be careful on the boardwalk as some tables are missing or weak. The guide will usually point this out.

Visit to Isla Cerritos

Isla Cerritos is about 5 km by boat from San Felipe. It’s an easy trip and you shouldn’t present any problems or worry about getting seasick.

The island itself is not too big and it can be hard to imagine that it was such an important Mayan port city. Today, you cannot see much of the ruins, nor can you land on the island. What you can see are dozens of species on board that make this area their home. the tour guide usually has binoculars for you to use so you can see up close. The route goes around the island and then back to San Felipe.

History of Cerritos Island

Knowing a little about the history will give you a deeper appreciation of the route. Isla Cerritos (Island of Cerritos) was a main port of Chichen Itza. The island was covered by buildings and a causeway was built to connect it to the mainland. A road was then built to Chichen Itza with rest stops for the Mayans.

When the island was excavated, the artifacts found showed that products from northern Mexico were sent all the way to Central America in this area to be traded.

Further exploration in this area:

If you like local finds and exploring the peninsula, here are some other nearby places you can visit. We will add links to our articles below.

• Sant Felip the town. For more information about visiting the city.
• river lizards This is the slightly larger town to the east.
• Las Coloradas This is the area famous for the pink lakes which are the actual production of salt.

Thank you for reading our article. We hope that if you come to this area, you will have a great time exploring.