Xcalak has world class fly fishing for the flats sports fish: bonefish, tarpon, and permit. As well as shots at many other species such as barracuda, jack crevalle, snook, and various jacks and snapper. If you work it, getting a flats grand slam for your trip is well within the realm of possibility with a grand slam in a day very possible. Although there are DIY fly fishing opportunities available, for example you can take one of our Stand Up Paddle Boards and fish the lagoons behind the hotel for baby tarpon and snook, or look for tailing bonefish in the turtle grass off the beach. We highly recommend using the local guides. Not only will they be able to get you to the fish in Chetumal bay with their pangas, and you will catch more fish, you will be helping to support the community. Furthermore, the guides here charge a fraction of what you would pay for a guide in Florida, or even in Utah! Let us know if you are interested in fly fishing and we can set you up with guides.
The Great Mayan Reef, just a couple of hundred yards off the beach, runs from Cozumel to Honduras. Second in size to only Australia's Great Barrier Reef, this reef system affords numerous, spectacular diving opportunities. Xcalak supports two dive shops XTC and Costa de Coco's. These expert shops offer PADI diver certification and of course facilitate night dives, Banco Chinchorro (one of four coral atoll dives in the Caribbean) and many other adventures.
Plan on visiting the large Mayan Ruins at Tulum and Coba. Plan some time to hit one or both of these spectacular sites. A smaller site, but in many ways as interesting is Muyil, which is about 20 minutes south of Tulum. From Xcalak, heading to Chetumal about 2 1/2 hours you will come to the Ruta Maya, and Kohunlich, Kinichna, and Dzibanche.
Just sitting on the beach you are likely to see great blue heron, snowy egrets, and other wading birds hunting in the turtle grass just off the beach. Seasonally Xcalak is visited by roseate spoonbills, which migrate south from Florida and Texas during the winter. You can also take a boat ride to bird island in Chetumal bay with hundreds of nesting wood storks.
Grab your snorkel, mask and fins, and you can hit the water right in front of the beach. There are dozens of coral heads right out in front of Acocote Eco-Inn. You can snorkel out to the reef. On the inside of the reef, there are rarely any waves, the water is bathtub warm and it doesn't get much deeper than 6 or 7 feet at the deepest. Most areas you can stand up in. We have moray eels, spotted eagle rays, sea turtles, squirrel fish, puffer fish, trigger fish, and parrot fish among many others, in the pristine water right out front.
Unfortunately we also have lion fish in the area. Lion fish are an invasive species from the Pacific Ocean that have no natural predators in the Caribbean. If you do see one, let us know and we can go spear it and make a wonderful ceviche. (only the spines are venomous. The meat is perfectly safe and delicious!)