Río Lagartos

Introducing Río Lagartos

The largest and most spectacular flamingo colony in Mexico warrants a trip to this fishing village, 103km north of Valladolid, 52km north of Tizimín, lying within the Reservade la Biosfera Ría Lagartos. The mangrove-lined estuary is also home to snowy egrets, red egrets, tiger herons, snowy white ibis, hundreds of other bird species and a small number of the crocodiles that gave the town its name (Alligator River).

The Maya knew the place as Holkobén and used it as a rest stop on their way to the nearby lagoons (Las Coloradas), from which they extracted salt. (Salt continues to be extracted, on a much vaster scale now.) Spanish explorers mistook the inlet for a river and the crocs for alligators, and the rest is history. Intrepid travelers can head east of town past Las Coloradas on a coastal dirt road all the way to the small town of El Cuyo.

Most residents aren’t sure of the town’s street names, and signs are few. The road into town is the north–south Calle 10, which ends at the waterfront Calle 13. There’s no bank or ATM in town, so bring lots of cash.

Last updated: Feb 17, 2009