Forty miles northwest of Cancun, you will find Isla Holbox.  Though this area is little-known, this narrow strip of white sand, only 25 miles long and no more than two mile wide, is the perfect spot for snorkeling in the Gulf of Mexico.  From June through September, the offshore waters are the site for whale sharks to congregate, as they come here to feed on seasonal plankton blooms.  The whale shark is the world’s biggest fish (it can grow to more than 50 feet in length), and can be a vulnerable species.  This is why the Yum Balam Biosphere Reserve was created in 1994 to protect Isla Holbox and its surrounding waters.

 Local guides take tourists to see the whale sharks in season.  Dove6 Water Tours offers packages that include swimming with the whale sharks and scuba diving elsewhere in the Maya Riviera.  Gap Adventures offers eight-day itineraries to Holbox from Cancun, which include accommodation, whale shark tours and other activities.

 The population of Holbox is less than 2,000, and there are no cars in the area (most people get around by bike, golf cart or motor scooter), and the local economy is based largely on fishing.  This also means there are many seafood restaurants in the main town that serve up fresh catches of the day, such as lobster, grouper, red snapper, conch and octopus.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 26th, 2008 at 11:13 am and is filed under Mexico, Diving. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

foxnomad Says:

April 10th, 2008 at 1:41 pm

Great!

This is something I’m going to add to my list of travel adventures to do!