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A red mangrove island with
Magnificent Frigatebird nests,
Sian Ka'an
288 In the wake of the Maya,
MexIco
is needed. The adjoining restaurant in a
thatched dining area serves reasonably priced
food, including
huevos motuleños
(fried eggs
and tortillas with refried beans, salsa, cheese
and peas). Solar and wind energy powers
the complex, which also employs a waste-
management system to ensure the wetland
ecosystem isn't polluted.
The centre organizes several boat or kayak
tours into the reserve on which you can visit
unexcavated Mayan ruins and learn about
the reserve's natural and Mayan history
from experienced guides. If you've got time to
spare, then the nine-day kayaking tour with
Ecocolours Mexico, which includes camping for
two nights on an island and two nights in a
ranch, is highly recommended. On the fifth day
the tour leaves the reserve so that you can go
snorkelling at Gran Cenote near Tulum, visit
the ancient pyramid at Chichén Itzá and then
go to see the pink flamingos at Holbox Island in
the Yum Balam Biosphere Reserve, staying the
night in beachfront
cabañas
before returning to
Cancún.
Mexico is awash with “Mayan experiences”
of dubious authenticity. To escape the
commercialization head to the 5000-square-
kilometre Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve, the
largest protected area in the Mexican Caribbean
- home to 23 known archeological sites and a
haven for pelicans, herons and white ibis.
The reserve's visitor centre, or Centro
Ecológico Sian Ka'an - deep in mangrove and
orchid forest near the Mayan ruins of Tulum,
south of Cancún - is the main base for exploring
the lagoons and mangrove channels the Maya
once used as trading routes. An entrance fee
of US$4 per person per day applies; additional
revenue generated is used to fund conservation
and education programmes.
The centre is run by an NGO and the staff are
Maya, many of whom are trained as naturalist
guides. You stay in simple wooden huts in the
palm forest that are raised above the ground
to allow ventilation, so no air-conditioning
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