Looking for a beach club with...

[dopey1200]

Hi, I just started looking at all of the beach clubs up and down the coast & I'm feeling overwhelmed. I see that some of these resorts are hotels too, so I'm concerned about over-crowding. I'd prefer one that has a maximum number of guests per day. There will be 3 other ships in port that day. I'd like a guaranteed chair in the shade & decent snorkeling right off the beach (does that even exist in Mahahual?). I thought I was sold on Maya Chan till I read about the murky water & that you have to swim out pretty far before it's clear. If I'm in the Caribbean, I want crystal clear blue water! 😉 Transportation included would be nice, but I guess that's pretty rare. Thank you in advance for your help. 

[crewsweeper]

Go with Maya Chan or with Almaplena. Both limited guests  both away from main malecon. Book now to get a space.

But all water any where will be murky if murky at one spot. Plus the "hotels" along the malecon are small 2-3 story structures.  Not the giant resorts like in Coz or Cancun.

 

[Heather1972]

It's always a gamble with the beaches in the western caribbean about how clean/clear the water is. Expect seaweed, be happy if there isn't any. I would suggest Yaya Beach over Maya Chan. Yaya Beach at least cleans up all the seaweed that lands on the beach.  

[crewsweeper]

3 hours ago, Heather1972 said:

It's always a gamble with the beaches in the western caribbean about how clean/clear the water is. Expect seaweed, be happy if there isn't any. I would suggest Yaya Beach over Maya Chan. Yaya Beach at least cleans up all the seaweed that lands on the beach.  

And so does Tropicante, Pez Quadro, Pitaya, Krazy Lobster, Jaimes Blue Reef, Nohoch Kay, Blue Kay, et.al.

Every beach club along the malecon pitches in to clean up the sargassum.  It's in all their best interests.

 

But none can do anything about murky water as they are all along the same shore line.  One reason the OP may NOT want to go to YaYas is the crowds from ship excursions and the closeness of other beach clubs on a 3 ship day.

[Heather1972]

One of the reasons I suggested Yaya over the other restaurants/bars along the malecon is that Yaya does NOT place their chairs on top of one another. Everyone gets plenty of personal space. Yes, even with 3 ships in port. I couldn't say the same about Tropicante. Too close for comfort! 

[c-leg5]

I would suggest Blue Kay if you want beach snorkeling and space but be careful of charging.

 

Most places on malecon and Maya Chan require short boat ride  to access reef unless you are a strong swimmer. We have watched snorkeling tours from Luna de Plata.

 

Hayhu advertises snorkeling but we haven’t been yet so I don’t know if it is from the beach.

Edited December 11, 2019 by c-leg5