Mexico has a lot to offer when it comes to nature and eco-friendly attractions.  Cancun and its surrounding areas are top destinations for international travelers.  Here you can find the Northern Hemisphere’s largest barrier reef off the coast, natural springs in the Yucatan, mangrove swamps, salt marshes and thick jungles.

 The Yucatan is mainly a flat limestone slab with jungle and scrub atop it.  If you are looking for animals specific to this area, the woods and waters off the coast is where to look, here you will find great blue herons, anteaters, the Yucatan rust rump tarantula, giant iguanas, ocelots, and manatees, along with many other animals.

 There are also eco-parks available, such at Xcaret and Xel-ha.  Xcaret is the more developed of the two, and is sort of like a U.S. water part, but features a walk-through butterfly pavilion and areas where you can swim with the dolphins and manatee.  The Xel-Ha is centered around a huge lagoon, filled with electric-colored fish, where fresh spring water meets the saltwater.  There are bike trails and a spring-fed river where you can swim or float down in an inner-tube; Xel-Ha also features chances to swim with dolphins.
 
 A bit farther from here you will find the UNESCO World Heritage Sit, Sian Ka’an Biosphere Refuge, which holds everything from offshore coral reefs to beaches, lagoons, cenotes and tropical forests across its 1.3 million acres.

 Another popular thing in this region is flamingo-watching.  In the city of Marida, in the northwest part of the Yucatan Peninsula, you will find two of the best spots for flamingo-watching; the villages of Celestun and Rio Lagartos.  Celestun is on Yucatan’s West coast, and has only two main roads, a handful of restaurants and a few hotels, but when going here, bring cash, as there is no ATMs in town.  And Rio Lagartos is usually easier for people to reach when coming from Cancun.  This area is home to tens of thousands of flamingos, and is where they land to socialize, feed and mate.

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