Top Notch!! Best freshwater lagoon I've seen!
My wife and I stayed at Casa Del Arbol and my Bacalar experience was marvelous. Bacalar was breathtaking. I had a few videos reviewing its strengths and weaknesses but the videos take up too much space for this platform. The water and the beauty at some locations in the lagoon are 10 out of 10. But not at every location.
Bacalar is worth visiting whether you live in Australia, Idaho, Mali, or anywhere else you live on planet Earth. It is one of the most beautiful places I have seen and one of Mexico's most beautiful locations.
Strengths:
The lagoon really is breathtaking: the diaphanous water- aqua and turquoise when shallow, cobalt and cyan as it gets deeper, and navy in the 300 meter deep cenotes- the great swimming, stromatolites, serene paddle boarding and kayaking, and its shallow, accessible waters more than 100 meters out make this the most beautiful fresh water location I have seen.
I took those pictures from 10/28/2021- 11/2/2021.
Weaknesses:
The seaweed at the entry, the sand that feels like quicksand, and ubiquity of boats on the lagoon prevent this location from being perfect.
Sinking Sand
For me, Bacalar's only real weakness is the feeling of the sand at the entrance point. It felt like quicksand. I climbed down from the pier and as soon as my feet touched the sand, they kept sinking. It was very uncomfortable. Having never visited Bacalar, I didn't know what was up, but mama didn't raise no fool. I wasn't just going to sink so I hopped up and started swimming. I swam out a few meters until the water became too shallow. Once it got too shallow for me to keep swimming, I had to stand up and I found that the sand was regular and my feet did not sink.
I have been told that the sand near the dock was some type of calcium and it was only a few inches deep about; but I didn't like it. I never let my feet sink all the way and I swam directly to the dock.
Seaweed
At almost every entry into Bacalar, there is seaweed, lily pads, etc. Casa del Arbol gets around the seaweed in an ingenious fashion by building a pier and separate entry into water out beyond past the seaweed. But it does detract a little.
Boats everywhere
This is only an issue for people who like to swim and it is an issue everywhere. It adds to the danger however. If you go for a swim, then you have to take kayakers who are visible to the ship boat captains.
-
CRITERIA
- Size of lagoon- 16.22 miles
o Distance from water to sand: The entry into the beach comes from a walk from a pier and dock to the water. The builders very intelligently built the pier such that it juts out onto the reef past the lily pads and sea weed.
- Sand type
T A mix of creepy calcium that feels like quicksand, regular sand, stromatolites, and stones.
- Water Appearance
Diaphanous out to 1000 meters: I know this because I swam it and used my Garmin watch to see how far I could swim.
- Cleanliness
Completely clean. There are nightly boats ensuring that there is no trash, no food, and no crap in the water.
- Water Temperature
Warm. Not even that cold rush that hits whenever you first enter a beach.
- Safety
Safe. There are only two risks: (1) once the water gets deep, the current gets strong and it becomes hard to swim in a straight line, and (2) there are a number of boats of various sizes all over the lagoon and if you are swimming you could get hit and drown. Do not swim before sunrise and if you must, swim with buddies in kayaks that are visible from the deck of the boat or ship.
There are almost no dangerous fish there because of the lack of nutrients in the lagoon!
- Available Activities
o Swimming distances, Free diving, Snorkeling, Scuba, Partying/ beautiful women congregating, tour boats, rapids, Cenote tours
- Level of Calm
o Waves available but swimming available past waves- current weak
o
Swimming great- no surfing possible light waves
- Animals
Almost none.
- Plant Life/ Other
o Seaweed/kelp in the entrance points. The houses have ingenious methods of bypassing the seaweed and lily pads.
- Access
Private
- Price
You don't necessarily have to pay per se but it is a resort community. You are not getting here without renting a residence or hotel.
- Land Pests
Not even mosquitoes despite being a giant fresh water source.
- Overall
Simply breathtaking. One of the best places I have ever seen. If you live in Australia or Easter Island, it is still worth flying across the planet and coming to Mexico.
