Isla Mujeres is an Island off the Caribbean coast of Mexico just a short ferry ride from the famous Cancun. Despite its proximity to Cancun, it has a completely different vibe. There are more boutique hotels, a small island chill beach vibe that feels extremely safe. If you’re looking for that Cancun blue water and white sand beach without the cost and restriction of staying on a resort, Isla is the place for you. The island legend is that Isla used to be a sacred place for fertility and was a special place for the Mayan goddess Ixchel, the goddess of childbirth. When the Spanish invaded, they called it Isla Mujeres translated to the Island of the Women because of all of the statues of women. Today as you venture around the island, you can still see these similar statues.
What to do:
Playa Norte
Playa Norte is one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. It has beautiful blue water, white sands and a wide sand bar allowing boats to anchor just offshore along with numerous beach bars, and restaurants. You can wander the beach with a bottle of wine, swim in the warm water, or find a beach cabana to spend the day in.
We loved Na Balam. http://www.nabalam.com/ Located on the edge of Playa Norte, it had an amazing Beach Club! You have to try the grilled octopus! They also had an amazing yoga class at the Vastu School of Yoga. I will say it’s not your average yoga class, but it was super fun!
Snorkeling
Isla has several places to snorkel. They have an underwater museum with hundreds of statues around the island. If you plan to snorkel, check the weather forecast. We unfortunately couldn’t visit the underwater museum because of the heavy winds during our visit. There was however, some amazing snorkeling on the protected side of the island! We snorkeled around the lighthouse and frequently stumbled upon beautiful schools of reef fish.
Punta Sur
Punta Sur is home to the ruins of the Temple Ixchel, which honors the goddess of the moon. On the southernmost tip of the island, this sacred place not only has the ruins of a Mayan temple, but also has very breathtaking views. Just beyond the temple is a walkway that will take you down to the crashing waves. I highly recommend renting a golf cart or scooter and spending at least one of you sunsets here. We showed up about an hour before sunset. All of the tourist vendors had recently closed for the evening and we had the entire place to ourselves. It was magical.
Rent a golf-cart or scooter and explore the island
There were just two of us so we opted for the scooter, but the island is over-run with golf carts, in a good way. It’s about a ten minute ride from the north to the south of the island. There were beach bars and plenty of local sites to check out on the way. It was super easy to rent as well. You can arrange a rental from your hotel or, do what we did, randomly walk the streets until we found a decent priced rental storefront. Only requirements are a driver’s license and some cash.
Cash vs Card
Larger restaurants, shops and beach bars take credit cards, but the smaller local mom and pop establishments only take cash. Luckily there are several banks and ATMs on the main drag.
How to get there:
Fly into Cancun. I normally use Google Flights. https://www.google.com/flights. After arriving at the airport, walk outside and ask for a taxi. Don’t stop at the local vendors inside. After that, it will be a 20 minute taxi ride to the port, Puerto Juarez. Make sure you negotiate you fare prior to the trip. There is a ferry that runs from Peurto Juarez to Isla Mujeres from 5:30 am to 11:30 am every thirty minutes. https://www.ultramarferry.com/en/routes-and-departures it’s about 300 Pesos, which is about $15 American dollars. Once you get to the island, hop in a taxi from the Isla docks to your hotel. Taxis always wait outside. It should be about 50 pesos to get anywhere on the island.
Until next time…Dez
