Overview
The reserve was established in 1986 and listed by UNESCO the following year, and it protects a working landscape rather than an empty one — a few hundred people live inside it, mostly in the fishing village of Punta Allen at the end of a very bad road. Its lagoons are fed by freshwater springs welling up through the limestone, and the classic trip is to float on the current down a Maya-cut canal between two of them. Crocodiles, manatees and over three hundred bird species are recorded.
Highlights
Go with a community-run operator from Muyil or Punta Allen; entry is through checkpoints and independent visits see very little. The float down the ancient canal takes about an hour and needs only a life jacket. The road to Punta Allen takes two to three hours to cover fifty kilometres, which is the honest expectation.