Bacalar – Perle du Mexique

July 11, 2021

Mexico

WEATHER

Bacalar has a tropical climate. In winter, precipitation is lower than in summer. At this time of year, it is hot (30-35 ° C) and humid.

TRANSPORTS

Mérida - Bacalar 5h en bus avec la compagnie ADO pour 545 pesos (22 euros).
Voyage cool ! Bus pas blindé. Un vendeur de pépitas et de cacahuètes grimpent dans le bus et nous fait l'entracte. Me voilà calée au fond du bus à manger mes graines en admirant le paysage. Je me croirais au cinéma. Du coup, je n'ai pas vu le trajet.

Bacalar: the lagoon of seven shades of blue

Bacalar, “el pueblo magico” is a city located on the southeastern side of Mexico, in the state of Quintana Roo, on the border with Belize. It is mainly known for its lagoon 42 km long and 4 km wide with 7 different color shades. It is supplied with fresh water by cenotes and underground rivers.

It is a true paradise thanks to its environment: turquoise waters, white sand, vegetation and palm trees.

To visit

If the city center is tiny, just a few streets, it is really cute. Small stalls, excellent restaurants, bars, it reigns like a bohemian atmosphere, a zenitude. Here, life is a long, calm river. People ride their bikes.

Particularity of Bacalar, there is no beach to enjoy the lagoon but balnearios. These are pontoon-type installations with cabins at the end. Some also offer hammocks and swings in the water. In short ! The complete kit for lounging.

For those who are on the move, there are several activities to do: boat trips, kayaking, sailing, catamaran, swimming, snorkeling and stand up paddle boarding.

Price: 250 pesos / pers (10 euros)

3h boat trip, I can tell you that we were amazed. The colors are sublime. The tour allows you to see the Pirate Channel, Bird Island and several cenotes. It gives you a global view of the lagoon. Carlos and Raoul, our crew, have fun taking pictures of us. Beautiful memories !

Click on a photo to start the slideshow

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

The Kayak epic ...

When a 2-hour kayak trip turns into a 7-hour adventure ...

The day before, with our boat trip, we had spotted the Pirates channel, which is forbidden to boats. Never mind, kayaking is allowed, no worries, we plan that for the next day. But then, that morning there was a lot of wind and we started at the other end of the lagoon, at the Arab Casa. Here we are, paddling against the tide. So already we were not advancing masses but in addition is that we spent our time letting go of the oars to take pictures. The show was just crazy, the colors out of the ordinary. Everything was grandiose! We were fascinated. The result was laughable: paddling, moving forward, taking pictures, backing up, paddling, moving forward, taking pictures, backing up…. to cry with laughter. I ask a boat for the road and water after 2 hours of paddling. Yes yes we are stubborn ahaha or just in awe. He will meet us again 5 hours later and will think quite simply having the berlue seeing us tow our kayak out of the Pirates channel. So, he will suggest that we leave the kayak at his restaurant Papitos, located just opposite. What a great idea, Yvan ! Big thank you. 😁 We will let ourselves drift over there slumped in the kayak like 2 castaways mouahaha. Our arrival will be dramatic. Starving, we will pounce on the food. I will get away with a slight sunburn. Estelle, on the other hand, will have her legs and back burnt, it will take 1 week to recover.

Click on a photo to start the slideshow

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Yucatan

: Bacalar Yucatan

: Bacalar Yucatan

: Bacalar Yucatan

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

: Bacalar Mexique

Did you know ?

The shores of Bacalar are protected because the lagoon is home to stromatolites. These structures are none other than our oldest ancestors, and one of the first forms of life to have ever existed on Earth! They have largely contributed to the creation of the atmosphere of our planet, given their incredible capacity for photosynthesis (absorption of CO2 and rejection of oxygen). The forms present in Bacalar are endemic, and represent the largest volumes of stromatolites in the world. Become very rare, these fragile formations of several billion years, made up of sediment and bacteria, resemble rocks. But they must not be subjected to attacks because they would endanger their growth, which is extremely slow, 0.4 mm per year… Clearly, it is important not to touch them.

Did you know ?

This pretty snail is very important in the ecosystem of Bacalar. This herbivorous, detritus-eating being helps clean the entire lagoon and keeps the seven-color lagoon clean and crystal clear.

Street art in Bacalar ...

Another city in Mexico with many murals. We never tire …

The housing epic

- 3 hotels in 6 days -

Overall, accommodation is expensive on Bacalar. At 600 pesos per night, we did well. Admittedly, we did not sleep on the edge of the lagoon but it was only 6 minutes away on foot, nothing to sulk.

1st hotel. I won't say anything about it, we only stayed one night. Grime reigned supreme throughout the establishment. Oggy the cockroach had taken up residence in our sink. And the flush, unusable. In short ! Be scared. Courage let's flee !

2ème) Hôtel Bacalar Mayan Caribe. Well located. Spacious room with 1 double bed and a small one, nice, well equipped. Perfect comfort if not the absolutely non-existent insulation. Colin, the employee was so nice that our well-being was mainly due to him. A real pleasure to see him every day. By himself, he managed to make us forget that we did not sleep at night (our neighbors were particularly noisy at 4 am) ahaha.

3ème) Hôtel Casa Ariana. Chambre spacieuse avec 2 grands lits, silencieuse mais excentrée. Nous sommes ravies car nous dormons. Tant pis, s’il est moins bien placé. Le tenancier nous fait mourir de rire. Il utilise la version audio de Google translate pour communiquer avec nous. Enorme ! L’appli ne capte pas toujours correctement ce qu’il dit. Du coup, les traductions sont drôlissimes du type: la réception ferme à 22h, est ce que tu veux du poulet ? mouahaha.

Encounter

Arrived at Papitos restaurant with our kayak, who do we meet ? Emmanuel... but everyone calls him Costa. He has a sailboat moored there. He has been living here for 4 years. He literally fell in love with the lagoon. And we understand why. The magic of this place is unspeakable. Our kayaking epic will make him laugh. He will offer us a sunset the next day on his sailboat with picnic. Cultivated, close to nature, he knows a lot about his Mayan ancestors. He will tell us about the difficult year that Bacalar has just experienced. 4 months of rains made the underground water tables overflow and stir up the funds; which had made the lagoon lose its colors. It will take 1 year to have them back. We will do a salsa evening with him at Galeon Pirata Centro. A band plays live and sets the mood at the establishment. His mate Hector joined us and I can tell you he's a hell of a dancer. He and I will set the dancefloor on fire. Unforgettable moments.

For those interested, Costa offers tours on his sailboat for 500 pesos per person (20 euros). What could be better than discovering the beauty of Bacalar in the silence of a sailboat ? In addition to Spanish, he is fluent in English and a little French for which he is passionate. I highly recommend him.

Jules and Jeremyfreshly disembarked from Campeche, will join us for our last breakfast. As usual, lots of fun around lively conversations. Everyone tells about their latest adventures. It is always a pleasure to see our two jokers.

Bars & Restos

Here are some addresses on which I had a crush

MANGO Y CHILE

Small vegan restaurant that offers a nice menu. Visually and tastefully, everything is of high quality. A very pleasant setting with a view of the lagoon. The welcome and the service are friendly. A good moment !

ENAMORA

Mexican restaurant that offers good breakfasts. Good value for money. Everything is nice and homemade. Excellent coffee.

EL MAHATI

Excellent breakfast and lunch. Super pleasant tropical garden. Vegan à la carte options. Everything is fresh, well presented for a reasonable price. A good address!

MR TACO

Excellent and very cheap Mexican restaurant. No fuss, but it's plentiful, fresh and tasty. Effective !

Assessment

1 amazing week, to take it easy. In terms of organization, Bacalar was not the easiest but it's just a combination of circumstances. Travel is that too. Sometimes everything fits well and sometimes it doesn't. But overall, we will keep a magical memory of this place. The colors… but the colors… I swear, it's really to be seen.

Make the detour !

Estelle and I take the road back to Calakmul. My body is still vibrating with salsa after that frenzied evening on the dance floor. Ahhhhh it's good !