Lagoon Flamingo Tours

Behind El Cuyo the land disappears into a network of shallow lagoons, part of the Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve. Flamingos feed here in flocks of hundreds, particularly between April and October when the lagoon waters are at their saltiest, and you can also expect roseate spoonbills, frigatebirds, egrets, herons and, with luck, ospreys hunting overhead.

Local boatmen run two-hour lancha trips through the mangrove channels and out into the open lagoon to see the flamingos at close range. Book at the small kiosks on the malecón or through one of the village guesthouses; mornings are calmer and the light is better. Around 600–800 pesos for a boat that takes up to six people.

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A story
The Yucatán flamingos are the brightest pink flamingos in the world, with a tone the field guides describe as "vermilion." The colour comes entirely from the brine shrimp and blue-green algae they filter out of the salt lagoons here — captive birds fed standard pellets fade within months to pale ghosts of themselves.