Tulum beach to Punta Allen
Day trip: drive through the Sian Kaan Biosphere reserve to Punta Allen

Alternate energy and raw natural beauty

Up for an adventure? Here's a trip off the beaten path. A drive down the Riviera Maya coast on a sandy coconut road just 50 kilometers long (±30 miles) through the NE Sian Kaan Biosphere Reserve past incredible beaches, pristine mangrove estuaries, finally to arrive in the little fishing village of Punta Allen (about a 2½ hour drive).

For this trip you will need durable transportation (jeep recommended), plenty of drinking water and snacks, your beach stuff, camera, binoculars and anything else you like to take on day trips.

Very few people make the drive all the way to Punta Allen because the road is very rutted in places after the Boca Paila bridge, and sometimes before. You can test your own tolerance but know that if you do make it to the stone archway that marks the entrance to the Sian Kaan you are only 3 kilometers (±2 miles) from a nice beach that's quite evident on your left.

Below are photos from our trip, points of interest and travel distances. To get an overview of the coast see our Riviera Maya road map.

*Please note: Approximate distances are calculated from the Coba road, highway 307 intersection (Cancun-Tulum hwy.).

Beach south of the Sian Kaan entrance 13km - the Boca Paila bridge 24km

Typical mangrove area for saltwater flats fishing - Mayan ruin along the road 40km

Birds we saw along the way

Because we get so many inquiries from birders we decided to make a log of the birds we sighted on this trip.

They are:

  • A Yellow Tailed Oriole (Icterus mesomelas)
  • Brown pelicans (Pelicanus occidentalis)
  • Gray-Headed Kite (Leptodon cayanensis)
  • Yucatan Jay (Cissilopha yucatanica)
  • Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)
  • Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens)
  • Boat-Billed Fly Catcher (Megarynchus pitangua)
  • Red-Vented (Yucatan) Woodpecker (Centurus pygmaeus)
  • Yellow-Lored (Yucatan) Parrot (Amazona xantholora)

We used Peterson's "A Field Guide to Mexican Birds" for identification. Since we are not experienced birders we may be off on a couple species. If so, sorry about that.

One of the deep powdery beaches of fine sand along the way, this one was exceptional

Rancho Sol Caribe

This wonderful mini-resort was far and away the best we found on our trip, paradise found. Located within the Sian Kaan Biosphere Reserve, 8km before you get to Punta Allen town.

Sol Caribe's beach front restaurant - the front porch of an oceanfront room

their excellent beach with some shade palapa umbrellas and a great snorkeling reef nearby

Coming into Punta Allen

As you come into Punta Allen you'll notice this Sian Kaan sign on the left. Punta Allen is not part of the reserve but is surrounded by it on all sides.

Sian Kaan rules

  • Allowed are: birdwatching, low-impact tourism, fishing, snorkeling, kayaking
  • Prohibited are: touching the reef, open fires, non-biodegradable suntan lotion, spear fishing or gaffing, hunting, wave runners

The first thing you'll see in Punta Allen is Los Gaytones
A litte restaurant, fishing & boat rides offered

There's Xoken restaurant, 2 locations
And Muelle Viejo restaurant where we ate lunch

Another photo of Muelle Viejo restaurant, delicious seafood
And the beach next to them

Around the corner is Vigia Grande restaurant/bar
Vigia Grande offers eco-tours, fly fishing, snorkeling

Cuzan restaurant, cabañas, eco-tours, fly fishing & snorkeling trips

Continuing on you'll pass back into the Sian Kaan reserve, through Serenidad Shardon (sorry no photo) and on to the lighthouse, the old one (photo left) and the new one (photo right). There is a trail that goes to a "Miradoor" look-out tower. This is the land's end. The body of water to the south is the tremendous Bahía de la Ascensión, known for unpredictable seas, great fly-fishing and birdwatching.