Rio Lagartos Adventures
Guided Nature Tours by Boat & By Land in the Ria Lagartos Biosphere Reserve , Yucatan
Yucatan is the home to Mexico’s largest flock of Flamingos 40,000+ Over 455 species of birds have been identified.
MIDDAY THERE IS NOT AS MUCH WILD LIFE ACTIVITY AND THERE ARE A LOT OF BOATS TRAFFIC FROM TRAVEL AGENCIES COMING FOR A FAST TOURS
We prefer tours by reservation, and you can choose your starting time.
Reserving online with the booking button will assure your choice of time
with an English speaking guide knowledgeable, informative and professional guides. We will show you so many features of this amazing habitat. And you will have many photo opportunities. We are highly recommended for many nature lovers!
The choices we offer are below: We are not a high volume tour operator with waiting lines. We do not take reservations for shared tours.
Flamingo Lover’s Tour
Flamingo Lovers Tour (3 Hours) English guide
A 3 hour private tour of approximately 50km (30miles) through the estuary of the Ria Lagartos Biosphere Reserve. We navigate the mangrove channels to explore and enjoy the extensive natural diversity. The captain / guide will help you identify the different species of flora and fauna and share their knowledge on the ecology of the area, many different types of birds will be sighted such as flamingos, herons, eagles, pelicans among others. 395 species of birds have been reported in the bio reserve. There is the possibility of observing some crocodiles, we will stop at a wooden platform to explain about the extraction of salt and you can enjoy a mud bath(Bano Maya(optional) in a fine white clay which has very good exfoliating properties. (treatment used in the past by the Mayans for the Skincare) then we will move to an island beach, where you can swim and wash off the clay. The tour ends at Ria Maya Restaurant where you can have a shower lunch ,soft drinks or a cold beer. The Sunset Flamingo lover’s tour does not include the mud bath and the beach as we are returning after dark
Sunset Flamingo Lovers Tour -3 Hrs
Enjoy the remarkable beauty of the bio reserve at sunset!
About the Tour
The Ria Lagartos Bio Reserve begins to come alive again in the mid afternoon after a rest at mid-day. As the sun lowers there is more and more wildlife activity and more species of birds to be seen. It is a wonderful time pof day for a close look at our remarkable Flamingos. As the sun goes lower the light for photography gets better. The tour ends with the sunset.
Bring a bottle of wine and a lunch or we will prepare a ceviche to enjoy during your trip.
Ask your guide
A 3-hour private tour of approximately 50km (30miles) through the estuary of the Ria Lagartos Biosphere Reserve. We navigate the mangrove channels to explore and enjoy the extensive natural diversity. Your captain / guide will help you identify the different species of flora and fauna and share their knowledge on the ecology of the area, many different types of birds will be sighted such as flamingos, herons, eagles, pelicans among others. 395 species of birds have been reported in the bio reserve. There is the possibility of observing some crocodiles, we will stop at a wooden platform to explain about the extraction of salt and you can enjoy a mud bath (Bano Maya(optional) in a fine white clay which has very good exfoliating properties. (treatment used in the past by the Mayans for the Skincare) then we will move to an island beach with only a few palapas for shade where you can swim and wash off the clay. The tour ends at Ria Maya Restaurant where you can have a shower lunch ,soft drinks or a cold beer.
Winter departure time is 3 pm and summer departure is 4 pm.
Rates at the booking bottom !
Nature Lover’s Tour
The Nature Lover’s Tour(4 hours) English Guide
The Nature Lovers tour includes one of our most experienced interpretive nature guides and is designed for those interested in learning more about the wildlife and plants of the Ria Lagartos Bio Reserve. This tour also visits the feeding grounds of the flamingos. The boat trips are the only way to see many of the species that live here, all from the comfort and safety of our well maintained launches. A stop at the mud baths and the beach is optional for those interested in spending more time viewing wildlife. The four hour tour takes you deeper into the mangroves and gives you an opportunity to see many more species of birds, crocodiles and occasionally the mammals that live here. This includes an interpretive guide in French, English or Spanish as requested. There is 60 pesos/person park entrance fee . We provide a cooler with ice and bottled water. All boats have a sunshade, ,binoculars to share and a bird identification book. Life jackets are available for everyone and we meet all Mexican Coast Guard Safety requirements.
Sunrise Nature Lovers Tour-4Hrs
See the estuary come alive for the day
About the tour
The Sunrise Nature Lover’s tour Is the best choice for those can start early. The Ria Lagartos Estuary is best seen before any of the daily traffic begins. It is an opportunity to see the estuary come alive for the day. The maximum number of birds and other wildlife are seen at this time of day before the normal tours begin. It is also the best time/light for photography. The day also has less wildlife activity as the sun reaches its peak mid-day. The 5am summer start time and the 6am winter start times make it necessary to spend the night before in Rio Lagartos. Ria Maya has 3 rooms we reserve for our birding and fishing customers and there are other excellent accommodations in Rio Lagartos. Contact us for a room.
A cooler with bottled water is available at no cost.
As there are no restaurants open early enough, coffee and sweet breads are served at no cost. Our restaurant is open for a complete breakfast or lunch when we return.
The Nature Lovers tour includes one of our most experienced interpretive nature guides and is designed for those interested in learning more about the wildlife and plants of the Ria Lagartos Bio Reserve. This tour also visits the feeding grounds of the flamingos. The boat trips are the only way to see many of the species that live here, all from the comfort and safety of our well maintained launches. A stop at the mud baths and the beach is optional for those interested in spending more time viewing wildlife. The four hour tour takes you deeper into the mangroves and gives you an opportunity to see many more species of birds, crocodiles and occasionally the mammals that live here. This includes an interpretive guide in English or Spanish . There is 60 pesos/person park entrance fee . We provide a cooler with ice and bottled water. All boats have a sunshade, ,binoculars to share and a bird identification book. Life jackets are available for everyone and we meet all Mexican Coast Guard Safety requirements.
Winter departure time is 5:00 am and summer departure is 6:00am.
Rates at the booking bottom !
We are the most experienced and professional guides in Rio Lagartos. Diego Nuñez started eco tourism 25 years ago. All of the guides are licensed and trained and have great respect for the wildlife of the area. NATURE-ORIENTED TOURISM.
knowledgeable, informative and professional guides. We will show you so many features of this amazing habitat. And you will have many photo opportunities. We are highly recommended for many nature lovers! do high quality custom tours with experienced guides that have a minimum impact on the environment. We Care for and respect nature.
CROCODILE MID-DAY BOAT TRIP 2HR
The crocodile tours are offered in the mid-day when they are sunning themselves.We back into the mangroves to search for them. There are two species of crocodiles in the Ria Lagartos Bio Reserve.
Standard Flamingo & Crocodiles Boat Tour 2hr
Our most basic tour. Because of the distance to the flamingo feeding grounds this 2 hour tour does not include much extra time to look for crocodiles and other wildlife. The Flamingo Lovers Tour(3hrs and the Nature Lovers Tours(4 hours) include the time necessary to see more wildlife.
We do not visit the pink water on our tours. The bright pink ponds cannot be reached by boat.
We offer the following options for Birding, Photography, Nature & Flamingo trips (listed below) that you can book online here.
Read and Write Reviews. Premiados por Travellers’ Choice 2024 !
Birding/Photography Boat Tour in the Ria Lagartos Bio Reserve
4 hours English or Spanish Guide
Birding/Photography trips are designed especially for Birders & Photographers.
They are slower, longer and penetrate deeper into the mangroves. The guides are skilled at finding the species of birds you are looking for and getting close enough for a chance at making a good shot.
Not disturbing the wildlife is an
important part of this.
The launches we use are a stable platform for photographing, even with long lenses. The launches make it possible to safely reach places that would be otherwise impossible. The trips are 4 hours long and can be designed to find the species you are looking for. The Bird List of the Bio Reserve can be used to
to make a wish list for photography here. We will do our best to help you find them.
For those interested we also do photography tours by land.
Rates at the booking bottom !
Birding/Photography Tour By Land In Rio Lagartos 4 hrs.
Rio Lagartos bio-reserve is the best place for birding in the state of Yucatan and on the Yucatan Peninsula! We have a wide variety of habitats close by and we can design birding tours to find the species you are looking for. With a few separate tours you have a chance to see a great many of the birds on the Rio Lagartos Bio Reserve list, The new total of species you can encounter here is 395.
We have more bird species than any other area of the Yucatan Peninsula(we have over 70% of the total)
You can expect around 60-90 species in a birding day in Rio Lagartos.
The Land birding are done by Diego personally includes ground transportation.
The Yucatan’s Endemic Species
Yucatan Wren (Campylorhynchus yucatanicus)
Mexican Sheartail(Doricha eliza)
Yucatan Flycatcher(Myiarchus yucatanensis)
Orange Orioles (Icterus auratus)
Yucatan Jay (Cyanocorax yucatanicus)
Yucatán Black-throated Bobwhite (Colinus nigrogularis)
Yucatan Woodpecker or Red-vented Woodpecker( Melanerpes pygmaeus)
The following are commonly seen on our land birding trips
Lesser Road runner
White-lored Gnatcatcher (Polioptila albiloris)
Lesser Roadrunner (Geococcyx velox)
Turquoise-browed Motmot (Eumomota superciliosa)
Blue-crowned Motmot (Momotus momota)
Zenaida Dove (Zenaida aurita)
Canivet’s Emerald or Fork-tailed Emerald (Chlorostilbon canivetii)
Blue-black Grassquit (Volatinia jacarina splendens)
Gray-crowned Yellowthroats (Geothlypis poliocephala)
Rufous necked Wood-rail (Aramides axillaris).
Grey necked wood rail (Aramides cajaneus)
Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture also known as the Savannah Vulture (Cathartes burrovianus)
King Vulture(Sarcoramphus papa) monotypic New World Vultures (Cathartidae)
Zone-tailed (Buteo albonotatus)
Crane Hawk (Geranospiza caerulescens)
Laughing Falcon also called the Snake Hawk (Herpetotheres cachinnans),
Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria cinnamomea/solitaia)
American Pygmy-Kingfisher (Chloroceryle aenea)
jabirú o tuyuyu (Jabiru mycteria)
Hooded Warbler (Setophaga citrina)
Yellow Warblers (Setophaga petechia, formerly Dendroica petechia)
Gray-cheeked Thrush (Catharus minimus)
Blackburnian Warbler (Setophaga fusca)
Yellow-throated Vireo – Vireo flavifrons
Rufous-browed Peppershrike – Cyclarhis gujanensis (+insularis)
Northern Parula – Parula americana
Yellow Warbler – Dendroica petechia (bryanti)
Magnolia Warbler – Dendroica magnolia
Palm Warbler – Dendroica palmarum
Black-and-white Warbler – Mniotilta varia
Rose-breasted Grosbeak – Pheucticus ludovicianus
Indigo Bunting – Passerina cyanea
Painted Bunting – Passerina ciris
White-collared Seedeater – Sporophila torqueola morelleti
Eastern Meadowlark – Sturnella magna
Great-tailed Grackle – Quiscalus mexicanus
Hooded Oriole – Icterus cucullatus
Tennessee Warblers. Oreothlypis peregrina
Mangrove Vireo. (Vireo pallens)
Mangrove Cuckoo (Coccyzus minor)
Cinnamon Hummingbird (Amazilia rutila)
Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris)
Magnolia Warbler (Dendroica magnolia).
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)
Vermillion Flycatchers (Pyrocephalus rubinus)
Northern Waterthrush, (Parkesia noveboracensis)
Barn Swallow – Hirundo rustica erythrogaster
Green Jay – Cyanocorax incas
Ladder-backed Woodpecker – Picoides scalaris
Least Flycatcher – Empidonax minimus
Great Kiskadee – Pitangus sulfuratus
Social Flycatcher – Myiozetetes similis
Tropical Kingbird – Tyrannus melancholicus
Other notable birds included :
White-winged Dove – Zenaida asiatica
Common Ground-Dove – Columbina passerina
Ruddy Ground-Dove – Columbina talpacoti
Aztec Parakeet – Aratinga astec
Groove-billed Ani – Crotophaga sulcirostris
Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus)
Plain Chachalaca (Ortalis vetula)
Dusky-capped Flycatcher (Myiarchus tuberculifer)
Mangrove Swallows (Tachycineta albilinea).
Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius),
Common Ground-dove (Columbina passerina pallescens)
Rudy ground dove (Columbina talpacoti)
Squirrel Cuckoo (Piaya cayana termophila),
Black-headed Trogon (Trogon melanocephalus melanocephalus)
White-tailed Hawk (Buteo albicaudatus)
Gray Hawk (Buteo nitidus or plagiatus)
Northern Caracara, or Crested Caracara (Caracara cheriway)
Great Black Hawk (Buteogallus urubitinga)
Roadside Hawk (Buteo magnirostris)
Hook-billed Kite, Chondrohierax uncinatus
Short-tailed Hawk (Buteo brachyurus fuliginosus)
Lesser Nighthawks (Chordeiles acutipennis micromeris),
Northern Cardinals (Cardinalis cardinali yucatanicus)
Ferruginous Pygmy-owl (Glaucidium brasilianum
Snowy (Egretta thula brewsteri),
Great Egrets(Ardea alba egretta)
White Ibises (Eudocimus albus)
Common Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus cachinnans)
