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TravelTips24 : North America : Mexico : Yucatán Peninsula : Quintana Roo : Chetumal

Chetumal

Chetumal is the capital of Quintana Roo in Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. It is located on the Bay of Chetumal, a sheltered inlet of the Caribbean Sea at the mouth of the Rio Hondo. This bay, together with the Rio Hondo, forms the border between Mexico and Belize.

Culture and History

Travel to Chetumal & Visa Requirements

Flights and airtickets to Chetumal

Chetumal Airport (CTM) offers a limited selection of flights to major cities in Mexico. It is also possible to fly into airports across the border, in Belize, and cross by land into Chetumal.

By car

Mexico's Federal Route 186 traverses the sparsely populated southern half of the Yucatán between Escárcega and Chetumal. After Ucum, the only municipality with services such as gas and lodging between Escárcega and Chetumal is Xpujil. Federal Route 307 branches off Route 186 to the north towards Cancun, from a point about 30 km west of Chetumal.

Buses to Chetumal

Several bus companies offer routes across the Peninsula to Escárcega, or north to Cancun and other cities on the Mayan Riviera.

By boat

Tours & Getting around Chetumal

Getting from Chetumal to Belize can be done by taking the bus in the Ado bus station or using a private transfer like[1]It is especially efficient if you need to catch a flight or ferry in Corozal to go the Ambergris Caye. Carlos Gibson is an agent for both Tropic Air and Maya Island Air. Also the Thunderbolt ferry leaving at 7am and 3pm daily to San Pedro.

There are several bus stations in Chetumal. Buses for Belize leave from a station adjacent to the New Market. Most locals and Taxi drivers will know where the New Market is, even if they don't know where that bus station is. Buses for destinations within Mexico leave from a separate terminal.

Chetumal attractions and sightseeing

Chetumal city tours

  • Beach. Chetumal and points to the north along the Bay of Chetumal offer quiet and inexpensive beach accommodations, away from the intensive urban development of cities on the Mayan Riviera to the north.
  • Reef diving and snorkeling, with access to the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef.
  • Ecotourism.
  • Archeology. Mayan archeological sites

Learn

Work

Chetumal souvenirs & shopping

Chetumal Restaurants: cheap, moderate and expensive

Budget

Mid-range

Splurge

Chetumal nightlife, bars, clubs & pubs

Chetumal cheap and luxurious hotels, youth hostels & lodging

Budget

Hotel Ucum has a pool and budget prices for it and its restaurant. 832-0711 832-6186 Av. Mahatma Gandhi 167.

Mid-range

Hotel Villafontana is on Heroes near the tourist information booth and the museum. $90 Belizean (US$ 45) a night for a double with air conditioning. Clean and a good location. Hotel staff were friendly, but of no use in finding anything around town (July 2007).

Splurge

  • Holiday Inn Chetumal
  • Los Cocos Hotel Chetumal

Contact

Stay safe

Cope

Get out

Frequent buses leave from one terminal for other towns in Mexico. The bus station/stop at the New Market is the departure point for buses going to Belize, with frequent service to Corozal, Orange Walk, and other towns.

This page was last edited at 17:31, on 7 August 2008 by Wikitravel user Episteme. Based on work by Mike Sharp, metzenberg@yahoo.com, Philipp Schäufele, Dwayne Shreve and Tom Holland, Wikitravel user(s) Morph and W66LinkBot and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel.

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