Nature reserve 9 km south of Tulum
A vast UNESCO-listed reserve of lagoons, mangroves and reef south of Tulum, with boat trips to see dolphins, birds and manatees.
Sian Ka'an begins just south of Tulum's beach hotels and runs down the coast for more than 100 kilometers. Protected as a biosphere reserve since 1986 and listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1987, it covers more than half a million hectares of low forest, savanna, freshwater wetlands, mangroves, coastal lagoons, and a stretch of the Mesoamerican Reef. The name is usually translated from Maya as "where the sky is born".
Very little of it is built on. A single dirt road runs south along a thin strip of land between the sea and the lagoons, through the reserve's entrance arch and past Boca Paila, where the lagoons meet the Caribbean, to the fishing village of Punta Allen. The rest is water and forest, home to more than 300 bird species, jaguars and other wild cats, crocodiles, manatees, and nesting sea turtles.
Most visitors see it from the water. The two classic trips are a boat ride out of Punta Allen into Ascension Bay to look for dolphins and turtles and to snorkel on the reef, and a ride across the Muyil lagoons from the ruins of Muyil to an ancient Maya canal where you float with the current through the mangroves. Both are run by local cooperatives, and they show a side of Tulum that has nothing to do with beach clubs.
What to see and do
Float down the ancient Maya canal through the mangroves on a boat trip from Muyil.
Take a boat from Punta Allen into Ascension Bay to look for dolphins, turtles and manatees, and snorkel on the reef.
Bring binoculars: herons, frigatebirds, roseate spoonbills and ospreys are common along the lagoons.
Walk the empty beaches along the road south of the entrance arch.
Use biodegradable sunscreen or none at all; regular sunscreen harms the reef and lagoons.
Getting there
There are two ways in from Tulum. The coastal entrance is about 15 minutes south of town: follow the beach road past the hotels to the reserve's arch, where CONANP charges an entry fee. From there a slow, often potholed dirt road continues to Boca Paila and Punta Allen, which can take a few hours each way. The easier way into the lagoons is from Muyil, about 25 minutes south of Tulum on Highway 307, where boat cooperatives leave from the dock by the ruins. Many Tulum agencies sell full-day tours that include transport.
9 km south of Tulum
Directions from Tulum on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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Places to stay in Sian Ka'an
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Tours & activities
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Weather warm
Sian Ka'an shares the climate of Tulum, 9 km away. The best months to visit are Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr.
Make Tulum your base
Sian Ka'an is an easy trip from Tulum, a Pueblo Mágico with places to stay, food, and more to see.
More around Tulum
-
Cenote Calavera
· Cenote · 2 km away
A small cenote just outside town with three holes in the rock like a skull; people jump in through the biggest one. -
Gran Cenote
· Cenote · 4 km away
Tulum's best-known cenote, a few minutes up the Cobá road: clear water, cave passages and turtles that swim among the snorkelers. -
Cenote Dos Ojos
· Cenote · 15 km away
Two linked sinkholes about 20 minutes north, the entrance to a vast flooded cave system; superb for snorkeling and cavern diving. -
Muyil
· Archaeological site · 21 km away
One of the oldest Maya sites on the coast, in the forest beside the Sian Ka'an lagoons; reopened in 2026 after restoration work. -
Akumal
· Town · 26 km away
A bay north of Tulum where sea turtles graze on seagrass; snorkel with an authorized guide in small groups, as reserve rules require. -
Cobá
· Archaeological site · 41 km away
A huge Maya city in the forest between two lakes, with long white roads to bike and the 42-meter Nohoch Mul pyramid. -
Punta Allen
· Town · 46 km away
A lobster-fishing village at the end of the Sian Ka'an road, with boat trips to see dolphins and good fly fishing in the flats.
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.