10x cool things to do on Isla Holbox, Mexico

Frankly, Isla Holbox is an island that doesn’t require much activity to enjoy it. But if you’re planning on staying for a long time you might get a little restless at some point. No hurry no worries, there’s still a lot of stuff for you out there to keep you occupied. 

Here some things I think you might enjoy – at least I did!

Also, looking for food? Read about my favourites in Holbox!

Sunrise at the harbour

Rise and shine early honey! And head to the dock (the one over where you arrived with the boat) with your camera. Or just your eyes – mental pictures and all of that. 

No worries, you won’t be out there alone. Most likely big flocks of birds will serenade you on the pier 🙂 

Find that hammock

Alright, so this doesn’t really count as a real activity (or does it?), but to find your favourite hammock requires a bit of an exploration. 

I saw three sets of hammocks that I really liked in particular. Both were on the northern shore (the best coast anyway).

Here’s where to find them, also see the map below:

• Carolinda (first picture)
• Villas Flamingos (second picture)
• The famous ‘Holbox hammocks’ on Playa de Holbox (forgot to picture)

Cycle around

Not like there’s really a need (because the village is so small), but perhaps you’d like to see the life on the island go by a little faster.

A lot of ho(s)tels lend you a bicycle for free, but if not, you’ll easily walk into one of the rental hotspots. 

Swim between the bioluminescence  

You can see the bioluminescence phenomenon at a couple of places around the world and luckily for you Isla Holbox is one of them!

So what is bioluminescence? Interestingly enough, a couple of organisms that are ‘swimming’ in the sea are able to emit light through a chemical reaction. It’s really cool to witness, as it brings light to the darkness of the ocean.

On the main square of Isla Holbox they will sell you ‘packages’ to see the bioluminescence. They’ll take you on a boat for something like $15,- USD per person. But you can easily go to the area yourself.   

Punta Cocos is the place to be and you have to be there around 9pm or later to experience the bioluminescence. In fact, the later the better, as the tour groups tend to go around 9pm as well and the more flashlights brightens up the area, the less likely you are to see the natural event.

A walk from the main square towards the punta takes some 30 minutes. You could also take the local golf cart towards the area, but they might charge you double the price once they hear you want to see the bioluminescence. A ride should be 100 MXN, but when we asked they suddenly told us we had to pay twice that amount. We asked another cab to drop us off at a hotel near Punta Cocos and suddenly it was the normal amount again. A tad annoying, but ah well… whatever works. 

The best days to see the bioluminescence is when the moon is barely visible (because, the darker the skies, the brighter the organisms will shine). We had bad luck. Even though there was no moon, we could barely see it. Only a teenytiny bit when we were wading through the sea. 

So no picture :). I sincerely hope you have better luck, cause it’s awesome to see! 

Also, last tip – don’t bring any valuable stuff with you, or at least make sure you keep it with you. Our Airbnb host warned us for people luring in the bushes who might steal your belongings while you’re happily swimming in the water. Although that sounds creepy, I felt quite safe over there! Just don’t go out there on your own and with your rolex I guess. 

Walk the sandy strip to Punta Mosquito

Ah this one’s really cool! So do you see this picture below?↓ It’s not totally clear yet, but the people on the right side are walking on a sand bank that becomes visible when the tide is low. 

It’s like a path that’s smack right in the middle of the sea. And you can walk it all the way to Punta Mosquito! 

Over there you might encounter a lot of birds again (pelicans and flamingo’s mainly). Note that I heard they might close down a part of the bank – the most eastern tip that is – just to give the birds a bit of space between all the selfie-making tourists. So check beforehand whether it’s still allowed to go there! If not, that first bit is still a pretty cool walk!

Relax around Playa Tortuga / Punta Cocos

Remember the place where you could spot the bioluminescence? That same beach is worth a visit by daylight. Much less visited than Playa de Holbox, both Playa Tortuga and Punta Cocos are great fun to hang out during the brighter hours of the day.  

Aaaand there are sea hammocks too in here! Phew. 

Note that Playa Tortuga is closed during some months as the turtles come ashore here to hatch. And also that you may encounter sand flies on the beaches in here depending on the weather. So bring bug repellent.

Birdnerding

Birds – one of the pleasant surprises on Isla Holbox! They aren’t shy out there either, so you can see them from quite close (as long as you don’t disturb them obviously). Just look how close I got to the pelican and cormorants. Shot with a zoom lens, but still..!

I saw most of them on the northern shore, close to Restaurante El Nañas (also a nice stop for a drink).

Do a tour!

So the basic two big tours that you can do on Isla Holbox are either whale shark watching or the full day island tour:

Whale Shark Tour

Possible from half May to half September. In fact, it’s the main reason why a lot of people come to Holbox. Unfortunately when we were there, the whale sharks had already passed the island, so I can’t really recommend you what company you have to go with. 

Full day island tour

This tour is great if you love birds! The boat brings you to Passion Island, Isla Pajaros and Cenote Yalahau. Isla Pajaros (literally ‘bird island’) is a small island off the coast of Isla Holbox which is famous for its variety of bird species. 

Passion Island ( for some kind of reason this island is mentioned everywhere in English rather than Spanish) is also known for the many birds – especially flamingos that love the shallow waters around the island. 

The last stop of this tour is Yalahau, which is a cenote (a fresh water sinkhole). It used to be a notorious spot as it was used by pirates back in the days as a fresh water supply. 

The whole day usually costs something like $80,- USD, with an included lunch. 

Other tours

There are also kayaking and fishing tours available. And if you need to get rid of an exorbitant amount of energy then you should take a little look at the Holbox Kiteboarding School. That’ll keep you going!

Get artsyfartsy

There are a lot of murals around Isla Holbox. Might be fun to check them out. 

You’ll find most of them just right around the corners of the main square! 

Sunset at the pier

Nothing better after a long, exhausting day of doing nothing than relaxing with a Corona in your hand on the pier. 

It’s quite cosy during sunset over here and it might indeed just be the best spot to gaze at those rosy skies. 

Enjoy your stay at Isla Holbox!

Here’s where to find my tips!