Akumal Bay is one of THE best places to snorkel in the Riviera Maya (Akumal Bay means “bay of turtles”).  While the bay has undergone some procedural changes since 2017 with stricter access, snorkeling, and tour regulations, anyone can see Mother Nature’s bounty without taking a tour.  If you want to be right on the bay, the two all-inclusive resort options are Secrets Akumal and Akumal Bay Beach and Wellness Resort..  If you are staying somewhere else, you can rent a car and drive to Akumal, take a cab into Akumal, or take a colectivo  to Akumal and walk from the highway dropoff into Akumal–the beach is just a short walk from the town of Akumal.  If not staying at a nearby condo or all-inclusive resort on the bay, it will cost you about $5 p/p to enter the beach area.

With the buoys in the bay, a no-tour option would be to get in the water in front of Akumal Bay Beach and Wellness Resort and try and “drift” over next door to Secrets Akumal as close as you can get to the buoyed-off areas.  There may be new regulations put in place by PROFEPA (Mexico’s Environmental Protection agency) which may limit how far off from shore one can snorkel without taking a tour, just check with the Akumal Dive Center to rent equipment or check for any changes in snorkeling regulations.  Just keep in mind that you do NOT have to take a tour to snorkel in Akumal Bay–some people may say so just to get you to purchase a tour.  No fins, please, in order to protect the coral reef, and don’t forget your reef-safe sunscreen!

Here’s a short video to show you what you can experience while snorkeling in this beautiful bay.  (Yes, there is the occasional barracuda).  What do you think?  Have you ever snorkeled here?