Progreso Mexico Travel

Progreso Mexico: If Mérida’s heat has you dying for a quick beach fix, or if you want to see the longest pier (6.5km) in Mexico, head to Progreso (aka Puerto Progreso). The front strip (malecón) can get packed with diners, drinkers, and over sunned tourists, as can the beach (even though it’s loooong). Nevertheless, Progreso maintains a relaxed beach-town vibe. As with other Gulf beaches, the water is murky, even on calm days. Winds can hit full force in the afternoon and evenings, especially from December to March when Los notes (northern winds) kick up.

Nuevo Progreso Mexico

The crystal-clear emerald surf rolls gently onto the white sandy beach. Combined with the pungent salty air and gentle sea breeze, it’s nearly lulling me to sleep on my towel under one of the empty palapas on the oceanfront. Except for a local dog frolicking along the water, I’m the only one on this stretch of beach, as far as I can see.

That’s not because I’m here in the “low” season. The town of Progreso, Mexico, is on the Gulf of Mexico, and it hardly matters when you go to the beach. With a yearly average high temperature of 83 F and an average low of 73 F, there are no bad beach days in this paradise.

From my empty beach, I take a 15-minute walk south along the malecón (boardwalk), which brings me back to Progreso’s four-mile-long pier—the longest in the world. Here, the beach scene is bustling with mostly locals. Friends sit chatting in lounge chairs, live mariachi bands are playing, and solo musicians are walking around singing to anyone who will listen. Small restaurants line the malecón serving Leon Negra (the local beer), shot glasses of the licorice-flavored native drink called Xtabentun, and salt-laced margaritas.

Progreso Yucatan Mexico

Even though Progreso shares Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula with Cancun, it is not a glamorous tourist destination. (That’s not to say you have to rough it here. For those wishing to be pampered, you can get a full-body massage right on the beach for $10 an hour.) Just 30 minutes north of the vibrant colonial city of Mérida, this town is “classic” Mexico. It lacks the progress of the Caribbean side of the Yucatan peninsula, making it an authentic and favored retreat of Mérida’s residents and North American ex-pats.

The recently expanded malecón is paved in a pleasant, undulating pattern inviting patrons to cross the street into the small downtown where you’ll find lively cantinas and savory-smelling tapas wafting from outdoor cafes. A stuffed chile relleno lunch (enough for two) is $10; margaritas are $5 for two glasses.

Further down, the open-air market can barely contain the tables spilling forth with locally handmade crafts, multicolored blankets, and one-of-a-kind pieces of art and jewelry. A pair of earrings, as brilliant green as the ocean just a block away, with intricately inlaid mother-of-pearl flowers costs just $2.

The market is relaxed and low-key. While waiting for customers, two shop owners are content to sit swinging and chatting in the very hammocks they are trying to sell.

In the farmer’s market, I can find a good variety of inexpensive seasonal fruits and vegetables. Avocados sell for less than $1 for two pounds. Tomatoes are 75 cents for a little over two pounds.

If you’re looking for an affordable, laid-back fishing and beach community, this is it. Because Progreso is still relatively less developed than popular tourist beach spots like Cancun and Riviera Maya, here, just a few minutes from the malecón, you can find an attractive new two-bedroom beach home with an open floor plan and high-end finishes for just $140,000. It comes with a pool, courtyard, and ocean views. Travel even a little bit inland and you’ll pay even less.

Progreso Mexico Cruise Port

Enjoy the bustling energy that radiates from this beautiful historical city. Go sightseeing and experience the colonial town in all its splendor. You can do this through guided excursions, or DIY excursions.

The busiest place in the city is Plaza grande the City’s square, which hosts a number of historically significant ancient buildings such as the San Adelfonso Cathedral, built in the 15th century.

Make sure you have your travel gear from Amazon when you visit these places.

There are plenty of food places and shopping areas in this part of the town. You can indulge in an authentic Mexican shopping experience. Grabbing their authentically handcrafted Mayan figurines, t-shirts, sunglasses, cheap trinkets, and jewelry to remember the place by.

Wander further downtown to explore the beautiful Paseo de Montejo Avenue. The stunning boulevard is lined by trees and features beautiful colonial French mansions. The architectural beauty exuded by the carved wooden doors, beautifully sculpted roof edges, pillars, and balconies is a sight to behold. The white color of the buildings sparkles in the Mexican sun. The color is attributed to the limestone used to build houses on this island. Giving the place the name La Ciudad Blanca, meaning the white city.

Some of the excursions offered that feature touring this city also include a tour of The Grand Mayan museum. Where you experience a firsthand view of Merida’s historical past. And explore artifacts retrieved from the Mayan ruins during the excavations. Such as the famous seven dolls, figurines, excavated at the Dzibilchaltun ruins.

While at the museum visit the gift shop for more authentic souvenirs. Or grab lunch at the cafeteria if all that walking works up an appetite.

Progreso Mexico Excursions

The list of possible day trips from Merida, Mexico is long. You’ve got hundreds of cenotes nearby, beautiful archaeological sites, nature reserves and so many colorful colonial towns to choose from. With no shortage of things to explore near the bustling capital city, we planned a couple of exciting day trips from Merida as part of our 99 Days in Mexico series. First on the list was our visit to one of the most popular beaches near Merida. While we loved the long stretch of white sand and turquoise water, we had our eyes set on exploring beyond Progreso once we heard we could see both flamingos and pink salt flats nearby.

Progreso, Yucatan is a port city located about 40 km north of Merida and is a popular destination for beach-lovers living in Merida. Getting from Merida to Progreso is convenient, affordable and easy for anyone wanting to DIY their own day trip to the beach. There is frequent bus service from Merida to Progreso via Auto Progreso and buses depart from the station in Merida located on Calle 62 between Calle 65 and 67. The bus station is less than a 10-minute walk from the main square in town and is labeled as Auto Progreso on Google Maps. The first bus leaves at 5 am and service runs all day until 10 pm with buses leaving every 10 minutes or so. Tickets are purchased at the ticket booth (cash only) and the drive takes around an hour depending on traffic. We paid $36 pesos each for round trip tickets from Merida to Progreso (March 2018).

Dentist In Progreso Mexico

Our two priorities for this excursion in Progreso were flamingos and pink salt flats. We had the option of taking a group tour from Merida to Progreso for $650 pesos each but opted out because we knew it would be better to take the local bus to Progreso ourselves and see what our options were there. Once we got off the bus in Progreso and started making our way towards the beach, we were approached for a similar tour at $450 pesos each. Knowing we could do even better, we decided to explore some of the beach and Malecon first before joining a tour. At the Malecon, the same tour was selling for $300 pesos but admission to El Corchito and Xcambo were not included ($405 pesos would be the total price). We thought about hiring a taxi for a few hours since that would likely come at a cheaper price and with greater flexibility but had no luck flagging one down. All of these similar tours in Progreso seemed to be about 3 hours long and were departing at 12 noon. The fours stops advertised are El Corchito, flamingos, pink salt flats, and Maya ruins which makes for an amazing day trip from Merida for less than $30 CAD. In the end, we were the only two people who signed up and had a private tour for nearly half the price as those offered from Merida!

The first stop on our excursion in Progreso was possibly the most surprising part of the day. El Corchito is an eco-reserve near Progreso with cenotes, mangroves, and a very family-friendly atmosphere. After a short boat ride to cross the river, we entered an area of mangroves and were greeted by dozens of raccoons. There are 3 cenotes at El Corchito, all different depths, and sizes. These cenotes don’t quite compare to others we’ve seen in Tulum and Cuzama because the water isn’t as clear but I would still recommend a visit. We saw a baby alligator, lizards, lots of birds, raccoons, coatis, and even those small fish that nibble at your feet. As perfect as this oasis would be for a picnic, food is not permitted in this part of the reserve and we did see a sly raccoon trying to get at someone’s backpack.