Holbox

The whole north shore of the island is one long beach of fine pale sand on very shallow, calm water, and the village sits directly behind it. You can wade a long way out before the water reaches your waist, and the sea runs from about 24°C in winter to 29°C in late summer. The water is often a soft milky green rather than glassy blue, because the Gulf and the Caribbean mix here, and seaweed sometimes washes up.

The best stretches are away from the village: west towards Punta Cocos, quiet and good for sunsets, and east towards Punta Mosquito, where a sandbar runs out into the shallows. Days here are built around the beach, a hammock and the next swim.

Eating on the island means seafood: ceviche, grilled fish, octopus and lobster, served in sand-floored restaurants and beach shacks around the central square and along the shore. Lobster pizza is the island's own speciality, and taco stands near the square feed people cheaply at night. Breakfast cafés with smoothie bowls cater to the backpacker crowd.

It is pleasant and fresh, but small. The choice repeats itself after a few days, prices are set for visitors, and there is no market or deeper Yucatecan cooking scene on the island.

Holbox has almost nothing to see in the usual sense. The village is a grid of sandy streets with brightly painted wooden houses, and its street murals, many painted during an annual art festival, are the closest thing to a sight. There are no museums, historic monuments or ruins on the island, and nobody comes for them.

Evenings centre on the square and the beach: sunset drinks, a few reggae and cocktail bars with sand floors, and hostel bars where backpackers stay up later. On busy nights there may be a beach party, but there are no clubs, and most of the island is quiet well before midnight. It suits a slow evening with a drink, not a night out.

The island lies inside the Yum Balam nature reserve, and wildlife is the draw. From roughly June to September whale sharks gather offshore to feed, and boat trips take visitors to swim beside them, one of the most remarkable wildlife encounters in the region. The lagoon on the island's southern side holds flamingos, pelicans and frigatebirds, with boat trips to Isla Pajaros and the mangrove channels.

On dark nights, bioluminescent plankton glows in the shallows. In winter steady winds make the shallow flats good for kitesurfing, and kayaks and paddleboards work in the calm lagoon. The land itself is flat sand and mangrove, so there is no hiking or cycling beyond the beach paths, and mosquitoes are a real nuisance in the wet season.

Holbox is a place to stay put. The boat trips from the island go to sandbars, mangroves and bird islands rather than to towns, and the mainland port of Chiquila has little to see. The colonial town of Valladolid and the Maya ruins of Ek Balam and Chichen Itza are too far for a comfortable return trip in a day once the ferry is counted, so it is best to see them on another leg of the trip.

For young children the sea is close to ideal: warm, calm and so shallow that they can paddle far from shore. The village has no cars, only golf carts and bicycles, and it feels safe and easygoing. Older children may love a boat trip to see flamingos or, for confident swimmers, the whale sharks.

There is nothing designed for children beyond that, though: no attractions, few playgrounds, sand or mud streets that defeat a pushchair, and mosquitoes after rain. The journey in, by road from Cancun and then ferry, also takes a good part of a day.

Once you are on the island, the village is small enough to walk, and the beach runs right along its edge. Cars are not allowed. People get around on foot or by bicycle, and golf-cart taxis go to the far ends of the beach. The streets are unpaved sand, and after heavy rain they turn to puddles and mud. Wildlife and sandbar outings are by boat from the waterfront.

Getting there is the harder part. You drive or take a bus to the port of Chiquila, a couple of hours from Cancun, then cross by passenger ferry. Cars are left on the mainland.

Shopping is a few small stores and stalls around the central square, selling beachwear, hammocks, jewellery and souvenirs. Nobody plans a visit around it.

Holbox costs more than mainland Mexico. Beachfront hotels in the high season and restaurant meals are priced for visitors, and since everything arrives by ferry, everyday goods cost more too. The boat tours, whale shark swims above all, are a major expense. Backpackers manage on hostels, taco stands and walking everywhere. Many small places take cash only, and the island has few cash machines, so bring cash from the mainland.

There are no theatres or concert venues. Live music means a guitarist or a small band playing in a beach bar or on the square some evenings.

Holbox is very good for slowing down: no cars, no high-rise buildings, sandy streets and hammocks strung over the shallows. Yoga classes, massages on the beach and small spas in the boutique hotels add to it, and the quieter stretches west of the village are especially calm. There is no bathing or spa tradition of its own, so a stay here is restful because of its pace rather than its treatments.