Town Benito Juárez, Quintana Roo Municipality of Benito Juárez Cancún
The old fishing village north of downtown Cancún that predates the city, now the main ferry port for Isla Mujeres.
From Cancún: 10 min by car (7 km by road) How to get there ↓
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Where to stay near Puerto Juárez
Compare hotels, posadas and guest houses in Puerto Juárez.
Tours to Puerto Juárez
Day trips around Isla Mujeres sometimes stop in Puerto Juárez; a tour is the easy way to see it without a car.
Private transportation CUN Airport-Puerto Juarez & Playa Mujeres
★ 4.3 (21) · From US$36
How to get to Puerto Juárez
- From Cancún: about 10 min by road (~7 km)
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Popular tours to Puerto Juárez
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About Puerto Juárez
Puerto Juárez is a seaside neighbourhood about 2 km north of downtown Cancún, on the road to Punta Sam, looking straight across the water at Isla Mujeres. It is older than Cancún itself. Once known as Tamtamchen, it was a small fishing and port settlement under the jurisdiction of Isla Mujeres; in the late 1960s, just before the resort was planned, it had 117 inhabitants. It counted as a separate locality from 1960 until 1990, when the growing city swallowed it, and only a few hundred people are still counted under its name.
Today Puerto Juárez is above all the place where Cancún catches the boat. The busiest route to Isla Mujeres leaves from the Ultramar terminal on Avenida López Portillo, part of the Gran Puerto complex with its white lighthouse-style tower, and the crossing to the island, about 7 km away, takes roughly 20 minutes. Departures run every half hour from early morning until late evening, and locals use the boats as much as visitors, so they fill up at commuting times. A few kilometres further north, at Punta Sam, a separate vehicle ferry carries cars and trucks to the island.
Beyond the terminal the neighbourhood keeps some of its older character: a fishermen's marina with shrimp boats, small piers, seafood restaurants on the water and houses facing the bay, while newer apartment towers rise along the coast road. The Maya site of El Meco lies a short way north on the same road toward Punta Sam.
How to get to Puerto Juárez
Drive from Cancún: 10 min, 7 km
Puerto Juárez is about 2 km north of downtown Cancún along Avenida López Portillo. Colectivos and city buses to the port leave from across the street from the ADO bus station on Avenida Tulum and take a few minutes; some R-1 buses from the Hotel Zone also run to Puerto Juárez. A street taxi from downtown costs around M$100–150 (2022). Arrive at the terminal 30 minutes before your ferry.
Directions to Puerto Juárez on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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From the nearest cities to Puerto Juárez
- Cancún · 7 km by road, 10 min
- Playa del Carmen · 70 km by road, 1 h 5 min
- Valladolid · 162 km by road, 2 h 5 min
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic or stops. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Before you go to Puerto Juárez: hours, prices and tips
- Hours
- Ferries to Isla Mujeres leave every 30 minutes from 05:30 until 23:00; return boats from the island run from 06:00 until about midnight. Schedules change by season. Ruptura 360 (2024) · checked Oct 2026
- Entry
- Ultramar round trip to Isla Mujeres for visitors: M$580 per adult and M$440 per child, including the environmental sanitation fee. Quintana Roo residents pay M$200 round trip with state ID. Riviera Maya News (2025) · checked Oct 2026
- Time needed
- The crossing to Isla Mujeres takes about 18–20 minutes on air-conditioned boats. Wikivoyage, Isla Mujeres (2022) · checked Oct 2026
- Rules
- Be at the terminal 30 minutes before departure. Tickets are non-refundable but valid for six months on any departure of the route. Ultramar (2026) · checked Oct 2026
Hours and prices change, especially around holidays. Each fact links to where we checked it.
Visiting Puerto Juárez: what to see and do
The Ultramar ferry to Isla Mujeres from the Gran Puerto terminal
The view of Isla Mujeres across the bay from the piers
The fishermen's marina with its shrimp boats
Seafood at the waterfront restaurants
The Maya site of El Meco, a short ride north toward Punta Sam
Plan your trip
Places to stay in Puerto Juárez
Compare hotels, posadas, and rentals in and around Puerto Juárez.
Tours & activities
Day trips around Isla Mujeres sometimes stop in Puerto Juárez; a tour is the easy way to see it without a car.
Rental cars
Pick up a car at CUN (Cancún), 26 km from Isla Mujeres as the crow flies; Puerto Juárez is 10 km beyond the pueblo.
Flights
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Cancún (CUN), 26 km from Isla Mujeres, the base for Puerto Juárez.
Mobile data
Signal can drop away from Isla Mujeres: download a map of the way to Puerto Juárez before you set out, or carry an eSIM with data.
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Photos
When to go to Puerto Juárez warm
Puerto Juárez shares the climate of Isla Mujeres, 10 km away. The best months to visit are February, March, April, and July.
See the month-by-month climate of Isla Mujeres
Weather in Puerto Juárez now and the next 7 days
Live forecast from Open-Meteo. Chance of rain is the day's highest.
The closest Pueblo Mágico: Isla Mujeres
Isla Mujeres is the Pueblo Mágico closest to Puerto Juárez, with places to stay, food, and more to see.
Also close to
- Cozumel · Quintana Roo · 78 km away
Closest to Puerto Juárez
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Cancún · City · 3 km away
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El Meco · Archaeological site · 3 km away
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Punta Sam · Village · 6 km away
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Museo Subacuático de Arte (MUSA) · Landmark · 9 km away
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Laguna Nichupté · Lagoon · 10 km away
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Punta Sur · Viewpoint · 10 km away
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Zona Hotelera de Cancún · Town · 10 km away
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Costa Mujeres · Beach · 11 km away
Near Puerto Juárez
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.