Beaches on the Gulf

The state of Yucatan has about 250 miles of beach front property. Many people from Merida and other inland towns have built their summer homes at the beach to beat the summer heat. Many of these homes are for rent off-season, from September to June.

Near Merida, the most popular beaches are Chelem, Yucalpeten, Progreso, Chicxulub, Cocal Josefina, San Miguel, Uaymitun, San Benito, San Bruno (both these are not really towns, but they do have signs), Telchac Puerto, San Crisanto, and Dzilam Bravo.

Chelem
Let's start the farthest west with the town of Chelem (Cheh-lem'). This is a quaint older town, with full services - stores, shops, restaurants, taxis, buses, telephone. The homes, that are pretty much wall to wall, are modest. Prices in this area for rent and purchase are cheaper - say between $300 and $500 USD a month for rentals. To get here you do not enter Progreso, but head west on the overpass before entering Progreso. You will find other foreigners here. You do not need a car to live in this town. To read more about Chelem click here.

Yucalpeten
The next area east is Yucalpeten. To get here you do go through Progreso. This is an area just 4 miles from Progreso with full services. The homes are mostly modest, and the beach is quite wide. Rents also run about $300 to $500 USD a month.

Chicxulub
(Chick'-shoo-loob) is a very popular area with the snowbirds. This is an older area for the Yucatecans, so the homes tend to be quite nice, have telephones and nice furnishings, but the beaches seem to be disappearing - they are quite narrow with lots of jetties and fishing boats up on the beach. Rents run about 600 - 800 dollars in this area. You will find more foreigners, more social life, stores, and good transportation. Pantaleon is the hang-out for tourists escaping North American winters. You don't really need a car in this area either. To read more about Chicxulub click here.

Right beyond Chicxulub, the areas with names such as Colonia Doctores, Cocal Josefina, San Miguel and Uaymitun (Why-mee-toon) are located. Children of the homeowners from Chicxulub moved here to build their homes when they got married and wanted to build their own summer places.

Uaymitun
The farther east you go, the nicer the homes, furnishings and beaches tend to be. Rents in these areas run between $800 and $1,200 USD a month. Uaymitun, is the premiere property area, featuring nice homes, many amenities and rents running from $800 to $2,000 USD a month. This area also has a flamingo sanctuary. It takes about 12 minutes to drive from Uaymitun to Chicxulub. There are no stores or services in this stretch, but there is public transportation from Merida into Chicxulub and Progreso.

Above: the Gulf coast near Chicxulub.

San Benito
The next area going east is San Benito, followed by San Bruno. Here you will find wonderful stretches of open beach, and few or no neighbors. Public transportation is more sporadic and rents are lower than the Chicxulub to Uaymitun stretch. Having a car in this area would make things easier.

San Crisanto & Dzilam Bravo
(Zee'-lom Bra-vo) are tiny towns to the east of Telchac Puerto. There too, we recommend that you have a car to take advantage of your stay.

Sisal
To the west of Progreso is the lovely little town of Sisal. You cannot drive there from Progreso, but must leave from Merida towards Hunucma, northwest of the city. In Hunucma, you will see signs that point to Celestun or Sisal. Sisal is another 20 minutes past Hunucma. Even on a weekend, this is a sleepy little fishing village with three or four good fish restaurants with cold beer and fresh ceviche and a lot more.



Above: the lighthouse in Progreso.

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