Isla Holbox- the island where you can still vacay like an adult, with a toddler!

Shallow, pristine water lying in between white sandbars were the biggest draw for us to bring our toddler to Holbox. I mean what little boy doesn’t want to sit in the water, pour sand into a dump truck and try to catch little fish all day? And while this is keeping your toddler busy, you and your significant other are lying in the same shallow water, getting a beautiful Mexican sunburn drinking mezcal/tequila cocktails wondering when said kid is going to nap. Kidding kidding….

Isla Holbox is still pretty off-the-map, which makes this place even more intriguing. Eco-friendly boutique hotels, unpaved roads, street art everywhere you turn, no cars to be found and welcoming locals give this island seriously perfect vacation vibes.

How to get there: (the two options we have tried)

Fly to Cancun, charter a private plane with Xomex to Holbox Island. The private flight costs $1000 RT and takes 25 minutes.
Fly to Cancun, take a private shuttle to Chiquila (small fishing village) which takes 2 hours. Then jump on a ferry to Holbox which takes 20 minutes. This costs about $250 RT.

We have done both of these and obviously getting there quicker is preferred, but I do have to say that the longer shuttle and ferry were not bad at all. We had the driver stop at a gas station right outside of Cancun airport where we picked up some Coronas and snacks and were on our way. Listening to music and seeing all of the cute Mexican towns on the way to Chiquila made the drive go much faster. And then the ferry was great! You sit on the open-air roof, and enjoy the salty wind and beautiful views of the gulf until you arrive at Holbox port. Ferries run every 30 minutes.

From here there are taxi’s aka golf carts waiting to take you to your hotel. These are very cheap – I believe it was around 3 USD.

Stay: Aldea Kuka, brand new eco-friendly boutique hotel. We have stayed here twice now. While it is on the pricier side for Holbox it is 100% worth it if you want to splurge! (about $500/night). The rooms are gorgeous; we stayed in “Kuka 1” and had amazing views of the gulf. The main floor has a king bed, a huge soaking tub, 2 headed rain shower, and they set up the most adorable toddler bed for Finn! The room also has a loft with a hammock and 2 twin beds. From the loft you step outside onto the balcony where there is yet another comfy hammock and chair that overlooks the hotel grounds and the Gulf of Mexico is right in front of you!

The hotel grounds are beautiful! The infinity pool is covered in black iridescent tiles and looks gorgeous for pictures! Right at the pool deck is their new restaurant with an amazing outdoor seating area. Across the way there are different comfy seating areas to spend the evening drinking a cocktail under the bistro lights. Find a bean bag, lounge chair or outdoor couch to listen to the house music by the DJ. The seating around the tiki bar includes hammocks and swings!

The perfect day in Isla Holbox

Breakfast: Le Jardin Panaderia/Cafeteria. They have a cute little indoor children’s garden/playroom so you can watch them play and eat breakfast at the same time! Be sure to get there early, lines get long. Order the fruit plate and chocolate croissant!
- Other breakfast spots to check out: Rosa Mexicano, Limoncito

Explore the town for a little bit! It is so fun to just walk around after breakfast and look at the little boutique shops, find hidden street art and see who is going to have the best happy hour deals that evening! There is a great playground right in the center square which is mostly shaded too. We went there everyday after breakfast to give Finn a little play time before the beach.
- Be sure to rent bikes and explore the island a bit too! There are bikes you can rent with child seats attached

Walk the sand bars to Punta Mosquito- this isn’t the most baby/toddler friendly activity as you walk a pretty good distance. We biked to the end of the beach road and then walked during low tide on the sand bars out in the gulf which took about 30 minutes each way. We scoped out a few flamingos but I think that we weren’t fully in season when we did this (December). It’s an absolutely beautiful walk, white sand as far as you can see, different shades of blue and green water.

Beach time: Aldea Kuka has amazing cabanas perfect for little ones because they are huge and shaded. The great thing about the beaches in Holbox are the sandbars. There are so many sandbars and the water is shallow in between which is the perfect area for toddlers to play. And for parents to lounge with a drink in-hand.
- Beach vendors here are not the obnoxious type you often see in larger tourist destinations. Instead, they are food vendors selling all of the good things! Cocos frios- fresh coconut chopped right in front of you (be sure to get a shot of spiced rum added from the hotel bar), Paletas (fresh fruit popsicles, cold brew coffee, empanadas, and our favorite: mango con chile!

Nap time: toddler naps on lounge sofa, and the parents order double spicy margs and read. The bartenders at Aldea Kuka are wonderful, coming to check on you often and making sure you always have a drink if you want one. The bar also plays great house music which is so relaxing while lounging and reading.

Lunch: Walk down the beach road shoe-less to Raices Beach Club. In the afternoons there is live reggae that you can enjoy while eating a fresh whole fried fish or delicious garlic shrimp! There is a playground here too which is awesome to let the kids play together while you order one more Tecate…
- Other lunch spots that are a must: Alma Bar – the shrimp ceviche is everything (and the rooftop pool isn’t bad either)!

In the evening be sure you are ready to go by sunset which while we were there was 6:30-7pm (February). Sunsets in Holbox are one of my favorite things to do. People make such a big production of it and clap at the end. It’s magical. All the beach bars face their tables and chairs towards the sunset and have sunset happy hour specials. The big thing to do in Holbox though is to sit on the pier during sunset.

Dinner- Roots is a must. Which you are going to read time and time again. You have to get the Pizza De Langosta (Lobster Pizza an Isla Holbox special) and Chapulines y Champinones (Grasshoppers and Mushroom Pizza). The atmosphere here is so cool, outdoors, huge wooden tables, live music once again.
- Also check out: LUUMA, Basico, Parador 33 and Taco queto

After Dinner- explore the town some more. The town square is so lively at night, live music, locals on the playground and marquesitas (like crepes rolled up) and taco street carts. We had to get Finn gelato every single night. One of our favorites was the “Holbox” flavor which was charcoal, honey and vanilla at La Gelateria.

Our favorite evening: spent the day on the beach, stayed in our bathing suits, walked along the beach to a bar for drinks. Kept walking until we reached the other end of the beach where everyone was congregating to watch the sunset. We sat on rocks, watched the sunset and had margs. Then we walked through the streets barefoot, Finn insisted on gelato before dinner. A local bar had an amazing singer and Finn and I danced in the road for a song or two. Then we walked to Taco Queto. Ordered tacos to go. Went back to our hotel, sat on the hotel floor and ate with Finn and drank wine. Taco Queto is a MUST! Order: aracherra, chorizo and al pastor tacos. They are magical.