ISLA MUJERES: SWIMMING WITH MANATEES AND SEA LIONS
ISLAND OF GENTLE ENCOUNTERS
When I arrived in Cancún, I had absolutely no plans for this part of the trip. In fact, I had deliberately left one day completely free, imagining that I would spend it exploring downtown Cancún, wandering along the beaches and simply deciding where the day would take me. I had no idea that one last-minute decision would turn that empty day into one of the most unexpected and memorable experiences of my entire time in Mexico.
Just one day before, while looking through the activities available around Cancún, I came across an experience that immediately caught my attention: the chance to swim with manatees. I had never even considered it before, and honestly, I barely knew what opportunities like this existed in the area. I had not been planning to visit Isla Mujeres either. I simply saw those gentle animals on the tour description, became curious, and thought, why not? So, instead of spending my free day in Cancún as originally planned, I booked the tour.
What I did not know at the time was that the day would hold another surprise.
It was only once I was already on the boat, heading towards Isla Mujeres, that I was offered the opportunity to meet a sea lion as well. And there was absolutely no hesitation. When someone tells you that you can get within half a metre of a sea lion, look into its eyes and experience one of these incredible animals up close, that is not really an offer you say no to. Some opportunities simply do not come around twice, and this was definitely one of them.
So what had started as a completely unplanned day suddenly became an adventure built around two incredible animals I had never expected to encounter so closely, followed by an afternoon exploring an island I had only briefly read about before arriving.
And then there was Isla Mujeres itself.
I knew very little about the island before that day, but I quickly discovered a place with a completely different rhythm from Cancún. Its colourful main streets were filled with souvenir shops, restaurants, bars and little stores, with people moving between them and the atmosphere feeling lively, cheerful and unmistakably Caribbean. It was colourful, busy and full of character, and I found myself enjoying simply walking around and taking it all in.
Looking back, I think that is exactly what made this day so special. I had not planned any of it. There was no carefully prepared itinerary, no list of things I absolutely had to see and no expectation that this would become one of the highlights of my trip. I simply saw an opportunity, decided to take it, and ended up swimming with manatees, meeting a sea lion and discovering Isla Mujeres along the way.
Sometimes the best travel memories are the ones you never planned in the first place.
IN THIS POST
QUICK INFORMATION
| Country | Mexico |
| Region | Quintana Roo, Yucatán Peninsula |
| Main Destination | Isla Mujeres |
| Location | Caribbean Sea, off the coast of Cancún |
| Capital | Mexico City |
| Currency | Mexican Peso (MXN) |
| Language | Spanish; many indigenous languages are also spoken |
| Population of Mexico | Around 129 million |
| Population of Isla Mujeres | 13,174 in the island locality (2020) |
| Climate | Tropical, warm throughout the year |
| How I Got There | From Cancún to Isla Mujeres by ferry |
| Ferry Time | Around 15–20 minutes |
| Main Experiences | Swimming with manatees, meeting a sea lion & exploring Isla Mujeres |
| Travel Style | Solo travel |
| Trip Type | Day trip / organised tour |
| Best Time to Visit | Dry season / generally November–April |
SWIMMING WITH MANATEES - THE GENTLE GIANTS
By the time we arrived at the place where the manatees lived, I already knew I had made the right decision by booking this experience. We arrived in the morning, with my time in the water scheduled for 10:30 a.m., while the sea lion experience would follow at 12:30 p.m. After checking in, each of us was given a locker where we could leave our belongings, and then we had some free time to wait until it was finally our turn to enter the water.
There were several animal experiences available, including swimming with dolphins, but for me the choice was obvious. Dolphins are beautiful, intelligent and fascinating animals, but there are countless places around the world where you can see them or swim with them. Manatees are different. They are much harder to encounter, and the opportunity to be in the water with these gentle giants is something you simply do not get everywhere. That rarity was exactly what made me choose them.
And, as I would soon discover, I was very lucky with my timing.
When 10:30 finally arrived, we were called for our experience and slowly made our way into the water. There were only five of us in the group, which honestly surprised me. I had expected many more people, especially because the facility also offered the much more popular dolphin experience. Instead, we had an incredibly small group, which made the whole encounter feel much more personal and peaceful.
Before entering the water, our guides explained how we should behave around the animals and gave us life jackets that we were required to wear. Once we were ready, we entered the water slowly and approached the manatees without sudden movements, allowing them to come towards us in their own time.
And then I saw them.
There were three manatees waiting for us, two adults and a younger one named Africa. Africa was the youngest of the three and, according to the information we were given, was around 17 years old and weighed almost 600 kilograms.
Six hundred kilograms.
It is difficult to comprehend just how enormous that actually is until an animal that size swims directly towards you.
And yet, somehow, the first thing you notice is not her size.
It is her gentleness.
Manatees are herbivorous marine mammals, often affectionately called “sea cows” because their diet consists almost entirely of aquatic vegetation. They can spend hours feeding on plants and may consume a remarkable amount of vegetation relative to their body weight. They are also capable of remaining underwater for several minutes before surfacing to breathe.
They are not predators, and they do not hunt other animals. In fact, manatees have no natural predators; their greatest threats today come from humans and human activity, particularly boat collisions, habitat loss, fishing gear and other forms of environmental disturbance.
That is one of the things that makes standing beside one so extraordinary. You are next to an animal that can weigh hundreds of kilograms and yet has absolutely no interest in harming you. It simply wants to eat, swim, breathe and continue on with its incredibly peaceful existence.
The guides gave us pieces of lettuce to feed them, and watching Africa gently take the food from my hands was something I will never forget. She would slowly approach, almost as if she were floating towards us, and then carefully take the lettuce before moving away again.
Everything about her movements was slow and graceful.
Sometimes she would come so close that I could gently touch and stroke her. And because she was so incredibly large, there were moments when she would accidentally bump into me while swimming. Of course, she never meant to do it, but when nearly 600 kilograms of manatee decides to change direction next to you, you quickly discover that you are the one who gets moved.
I could literally be pushed through the water by her without her even realizing it.
And somehow, that only made the experience even more incredible.
But there was something else that made this experience particularly meaningful to me.
I would never have chosen to do this if the animals had simply been kept in captivity for the sole purpose of allowing tourists to swim with them and take photographs. That was important to me from the beginning.
The manatees here were there because they needed human care. Some had been rescued after injuries, while others had been found very young and unable to survive independently in the wild. The sanctuary provides them with a protected environment, veterinary care and the conditions they need to survive and, where possible, reproduce and contribute to the conservation of the species.
And that distinction mattered to me.
The Antillean manatee, which occurs in the Caribbean and along the Caribbean coast of Mexico and Central America, is facing significant conservation pressures, and its numbers are declining across much of its range. Threats include habitat loss, boat strikes, poaching, fishing gear and other human-related impacts.
So for me, this was not simply about getting a photograph with an exotic animal.
It was about getting close to an animal that I might never otherwise have had the opportunity to see, while also supporting a place that cares for animals that cannot safely survive without human help.
And yes, of course, I wanted the photographs too.
The photographs were not something we were allowed to take ourselves while in the water. A photographer documented the experience, and the photographs were available as an additional purchase. I knew immediately that I wanted them, all of them. There are some moments that you simply want to be able to look back on years later and remember exactly how you felt.
And then came one of the most unforgettable parts.
Africa came close, and I could touch her, feed her and be beside her in the water. At one point, she even came close enough to give me what felt like a little kiss.
I honestly cannot explain what that felt like.
There I was, standing in the water next to an animal weighing almost 600 kilograms, watching her move with this incredible calmness and grace, while trying to process the fact that something so enormous could also feel so gentle.
I was so happy.
Not the ordinary kind of happy you feel when you visit a beautiful place or eat something delicious on holiday. It was that almost childlike excitement where you cannot stop smiling because you cannot quite believe that the thing happening in front of you is actually happening.
For roughly half an hour, we swam around them, fed them, watched them move through the water and simply enjoyed being in their presence.
And when our time was over and I climbed out of the water, I remember thinking how strange it was that only the day before, I had not even known this experience existed.
I had come to Mexico without planning this day at all.
And now I had just spent half an hour swimming with three of the gentlest giants I had ever encountered.
Sometimes the best adventures really are the ones you never planned.
THE SEA LION WHO COULDN’T RETURN TO THE WILD
By the time I finished my time with the manatees, I still had a little while to wait before my next experience at 12:30 p.m. In the meantime, I had lunch at the buffet and discovered another pleasant surprise that I had not expected to be included in the experience: drinks were available throughout the day. I had imagined that we might get one drink with lunch and that would be it, but instead we were free to have as much as we wanted from the available selection. After such an exciting morning, it was the perfect opportunity to sit down, eat something and simply enjoy the surroundings while I waited.
But my mind was already somewhere else.
I wanted to find out where exactly the sea lion experience would take place, so I went to check in and ask about it. That was when I discovered something I honestly could not believe.
I was the only person who had booked the Sea Lion experience.
Not one other person.
Just me.
After seeing how many people were interested in the dolphin activities, I found this almost unbelievable. Here I was, on an island where I had the opportunity to see a sea lion at incredibly close range, and apparently nobody else had chosen it that day. For me, this was one of those moments when I genuinely could not understand why more people weren't interested.
Maybe dolphins simply photograph better. Maybe people recognize them more easily. Maybe swimming with dolphins has become such a familiar holiday experience that people automatically choose it without even looking at the other possibilities.
But a sea lion?
That felt different.
This was an animal I would never simply stumble across while walking around Cancún. It was something I had to deliberately seek out, and now I was about to have what was essentially a private experience with one.
And that was how my little adventure unexpectedly became even more special.
A guide came to collect me, and the two of us headed down towards the sea lion's area. From that moment, I realized just how much attention I was going to receive simply because I was the only guest.
The guide spent a huge amount of time explaining everything to me, the animal's anatomy, its teeth, flippers, claws, behaviour, diet, sounds and the way it interacted with its caregivers. I had so many questions, and he never seemed rushed. Quite the opposite: he seemed genuinely happy to have someone who was interested in learning rather than simply taking a photograph and leaving.
The experience itself was not in the water. Unlike the manatee encounter, I wasn't swimming with the sea lion. I was in a designated area separated from him by a barrier, while the guide remained with me and explained everything. And honestly, I appreciated that. No matter how friendly or well-trained an animal may be, a sea lion is still a powerful wild marine mammal, and keeping a physical barrier between the animal and visitors is an important part of making the encounter safe.
And then I saw him.
He was enormous.
Standing only around 30 centimetres away, with that huge head, powerful body and those enormous teeth, I suddenly understood why this was not an animal you simply walk up to and touch. He was around 20 years old and weighed approximately 300 kilograms, an enormous presence standing only a short distance away from me.
And yet, looking at him from such a short distance, what I felt most strongly was not fear.
It was fascination.
There was something bittersweet about his story.
The sea lion I met was blind, which was the reason he could no longer safely survive in the wild. A blind animal living in the ocean faces enormous risks: boats, difficulty finding food, interactions with other animals and all the challenges that come with navigating an environment where survival depends heavily on your senses.
So he had ended up here, where people could care for him, monitor his health and give him a safe environment in which he could continue living.
That part of the story made me emotional.
Because on one hand, there was something sad about knowing that this enormous animal could no longer have the life he might once have had in the wild. But on the other hand, there was something beautiful about the fact that his life had been extended because people were willing to care for him.
And that was one of the things my guide explained to me in detail, how animals under professional human care can sometimes live significantly longer than they typically do in the wild. He was already around 20 years old, while sea lions in the wild may live only around 15 years, whereas with professional veterinary care, proper food and constant attention, he could potentially live up to around 30 years.
When I heard that, my heart just melted.
This wasn't simply a story about an animal that could no longer return to the ocean. It was also a story about people giving him more time, more years of life, care and safety than he might otherwise have had.
This is probably the part I remember most vividly.
He could vocalize on command.
My guide would give him a signal and he would make his sound, almost as if he were answering him. He could also respond to commands in English and Spanish, and the guide demonstrated some of the behaviours he had learned.
I remember sitting there thinking, How is this even real?
And there is actually a good scientific reason why sea lions are such expressive animals. They are highly social and vocal, communicating through barks, growls, roars and other sounds.
He also had another feature that fascinated me: those enormous flippers and claws.
My guide showed me how they are built and explained how the animal uses them both in and out of the water. I was basically getting a private biology lesson from someone who clearly knew these animals inside out.
And I loved every second of it.
Because I was the only person who had booked the experience, I had the guide's full attention.
And I also ended up having what felt like my own private photo session.
The professional photographer who normally photographs the guests was suddenly photographing only me. I couldn't use my own phone or camera, because personal cameras and electronic devices are prohibited during the animal interactions for safety reasons; professional photographs are offered separately instead.
So I decided to get them all.
And when I say I got a lot of photographs, I mean a lot.
I ended up with around 50 photographs from the encounter.
I still remember looking at him through the barrier, sometimes only about 30 centimetres away, listening to the guide explain every little detail while the camera kept clicking. I couldn't film the experience myself, which is something I normally might have regretted, but in this case I don't think I needed to.
The photographs were enough to bring me back to that moment.
I could see his enormous teeth.
His eyes.
His whiskers.
His powerful body.
His flippers.
And, most importantly, the expressions and little moments that made him feel like an individual animal rather than simply another attraction on a tourist itinerary.
I spent roughly half an hour with him, but it felt like much longer.
The funny thing is that this entire experience had not even been part of my original plan.
When I left Cancún that morning, I thought the highlight of the day was going to be swimming with manatees. I had booked that experience the day before, specifically because I wanted to see an animal I had never encountered before.
I had no idea the sea lion experience even existed until I was already there.
Then, on the way to Isla Mujeres, I found out that I could book it.
I paid extra.
And that spontaneous decision ended up becoming the highlight of the entire excursion.
I had expected one incredible animal encounter.
Instead, I got two.
And the second one was completely unexpected.
There was something almost surreal about knowing that I had gone from having absolutely no plans for this day, to swimming with manatees in the morning, having lunch and unlimited drinks, and then sitting just centimetres away from an enormous sea lion while a guide explained his entire world to me.
It was extravagant in the best possible way, not because it was luxurious, but because it was so completely unexpected.
Before leaving, I had some more time to relax around the facility. I changed clothes, had a couple more drinks, and, of course, a little tequila, because when you're in Mexico, you might as well embrace the occasion.
The woman working there was incredibly sweet. She kept checking on me, offering me another drink before I had even finished the previous one, and making sure I had everything I needed.
It sounds like such a small thing, but those little gestures stayed with me.
After all the incredible animals I had seen that day, I also remember the people, the guide who gave me his full attention, the photographer who captured dozens of moments for me, and the woman who kept bringing me drinks with a smile.
They made the whole experience feel personal.
Eventually, it was time to leave.
I gathered my things and made my way back towards the boat. As we pulled away from the sanctuary and headed towards Isla Mujeres, I sat there thinking about how completely different this day had turned out from the one I had imagined just 24 hours earlier.
I had planned to spend a free day in Cancún.
Instead, I had found myself face-to-face with two extraordinary marine mammals.
And somehow, the most unexpected part of the day had become the one I knew I would remember for the longest time.
EXPLORING ISLA MUJERES
After leaving the sanctuary, we finally continued towards Isla Mujeres, the small island that I had not originally planned to visit at all. After such an intense morning with the manatees and the sea lion, I was curious to see what the island itself would be like, especially because I had only read a little about it before the trip and didn't really know what to expect.
The first thing that caught my attention was the colour.
Everywhere I looked there were bright, cheerful colours, strong greens, reds, yellows and other vibrant shades that made the streets feel lively and unmistakably Mexican. The colours seemed to be everywhere: on buildings, signs, shops, decorations and little details that made even an ordinary street feel like something worth photographing. And although yellow is not actually one of the colours of the Mexican flag, the combination of green, red and yellow appeared so frequently that it became one of the first visual impressions I associated with the island.
Isla Mujeres is genuinely small, but somehow it manages to fit an incredible amount of life into that small space. The main streets are lined with souvenir shops, restaurants, bars and little stores, many of them packed with colourful objects representing Mexico, Cancún and the Caribbean. Magnets, decorations, handmade-looking souvenirs, sombreros and all kinds of little things that immediately make you think, I'm in Mexico.
I didn't have nearly enough time to properly explore the entire island. We had roughly an hour to an hour and a half, so this was more of a first introduction than a serious exploration. I walked through the main streets, wandered into some of the shops, bought a few souvenirs and eventually made my way towards the beach.
And the beach was beautiful.
A large stretch of soft sand opened up in front of me, with turquoise Caribbean water and people enjoying the afternoon. It wasn't only tourists either. Local people were there as well, spending time by the water and enjoying their own island. I always love seeing that side of a destination because it makes a place feel much more alive than simply seeing a beach filled entirely with visitors.
I also had to try some local street food.
For me, that is one of the simplest ways to experience a country. You can visit the most famous restaurant in a city and have an incredible meal, but sometimes the food you remember most is something you eat standing on the street, surrounded by local people, watching everyday life happening around you. I already love Mexican food, so unsurprisingly, I enjoyed it.
But there was something else about Isla Mujeres that made me smile more than I expected.
Isla Mujeres has a history that goes much deeper than the colourful tourist streets I was walking through that afternoon.
Long before it became a popular Caribbean destination, the island was an important Maya ceremonial site dedicated to Ixchel, a Maya goddess associated with the moon, fertility, love and other aspects of life. Young Maya women came to the island as part of rituals connected with the transition from childhood to adulthood, and offerings in the form of female figurines were left there. When the Spanish expedition led by Francisco Hernández de Córdoba arrived in 1517 and encountered numerous female figurines, the island was given the name Isla Mujeres- Island of Women.
The island's story continued long after that first Spanish encounter. In 1850, more than 250 Maya and Yucatecan fishermen who had fled the Caste War of Yucatán settled on the island and founded the community of Dolores, which would eventually become today's Isla Mujeres.
So beneath all those souvenir shops, colourful buildings and busy streets is an island with centuries of history, from Maya ceremonies and fishing communities to pirates, fishermen and, eventually, the tourism that transformed Isla Mujeres into one of the best-known destinations in the Mexican Caribbean. Mexico's Ministry of Tourism also recognizes Isla Mujeres as a Pueblo Mágico, a designation it received in 2015.
Knowing that while walking through the streets made the island feel a little different to me. It wasn't simply a pretty Caribbean island filled with tourists. There was a much older story underneath everything I was seeing.
One of the most unexpected things I noticed was how enthusiastically the island embraced its Mexican identity.
Everything seemed to be decorated.
And I mean everything.
Even some of the local dogs had become part of the island's colourful atmosphere.
I saw dogs wearing little sombreros, wings and other decorations, and what made it even more amusing was that they seemed completely relaxed about it. They were lying there as if wearing a sombrero was the most normal thing in the world.
It was such a small thing, but it genuinely made me smile.
There was something incredibly cheerful about seeing these little dogs sitting around in their Mexican outfits, surrounded by colourful streets, souvenir shops and the warm Caribbean atmosphere. It was one of those completely unexpected details that you would never put on an itinerary but somehow end up remembering.
And that, for me, is exactly what travel is about.
It isn't only about seeing the places everyone tells you to see.
It is about the little things you could never have planned.
A manatee gently taking lettuce from your hand.
A blind sea lion singing when his caregiver asks him to.
A local dog wearing a tiny sombrero.
A street-food stall.
A colourful little shop.
People sitting on the beach simply enjoying their afternoon.
These are the things that make a destination feel real.
Eventually, our time on Isla Mujeres came to an end. We made our way back towards the boat and waited for everyone to gather before boarding.
The atmosphere on the return journey was completely different from the morning.
On the way there, there had been music, singing, laughter and people excited about what was waiting for them.
Now, everyone seemed to be processing the day.
People were talking about what they had experienced, showing each other photographs and sharing their favourite moments. I sat quietly, looking out at the water, and found myself thinking about how incredibly lucky I was to be there.
Not simply because I was in Mexico.
Not simply because I had visited Isla Mujeres.
But because I had the opportunity to experience something completely different from my everyday life.
I had been in the water with animals I had never imagined I would see so closely. I had learned about endangered wildlife, listened to a sea lion sing, walked through the colourful streets of a Mexican island, tasted local food and watched people live their ordinary lives in a place that was completely extraordinary to me.
I don't take that for granted.
Travel has a way of making you appreciate things that you might otherwise overlook. It shows you how differently people live, what they value, what they eat, how they decorate their streets, how they spend their free time and what makes them smile.
And sometimes it shows you something as simple as a little dog wearing a sombrero that somehow stays in your memory.
As the boat carried us back towards Cancún, I looked out at the water and realized how beautiful the entire day had been.
I had started the morning expecting one experience with manatees. I was leaving with memories of manatees, a sea lion, Isla Mujeres, Mexican street food, colourful streets, local people and countless little moments I could never have planned.
When we finally arrived back where our journey had started, I was tired, happy and completely fulfilled. I ordered a Grab, which was surprisingly affordable in Mexico, and headed back to my hotel to shower and change.
But the day wasn't quite over for me yet.
After everything I had experienced, I couldn't just stay in the hotel.
So, as soon as I was ready, I went back out again to explore the streets of Cancún.
MY FAVOURITE MOMENTS FROM THIS DAY
Looking back at this day, it is difficult to choose only a few favourite moments because almost everything about it happened unexpectedly. I had originally planned to spend the day in Cancún, and instead I found myself swimming with manatees, meeting a sea lion I had not even known I would see, and exploring an island I had barely planned to visit.
But if I had to choose one feeling that stayed with me the most, it would be the feeling of surprise.
Nothing about this day happened exactly as I had imagined it. I booked the manatee experience only one day before, discovered the sea lion experience almost by accident, ended up being the only person who booked it, and then finished the day wandering through the colourful streets of Isla Mujeres.
There were the big moments, of course, the animals, the water, the incredible encounters, but there were also the tiny ones that made the day feel alive: tasting street food, browsing little souvenir shops, watching local people enjoy the beach, seeing dogs dressed in tiny sombreros and sitting on the boat afterwards, looking out at the Caribbean and realizing how lucky I was to be there.
Maybe that is why this day stayed with me so strongly.
It wasn't one single experience.
It was the combination of all those unexpected little moments that turned an ordinary free day in my itinerary into one of the most memorable days of my time in Mexico.
IS IT WORTH IT?
For me, absolutely.
But not because I managed to fit two animal encounters and a visit to Isla Mujeres into one day. What made this experience worth the money was the fact that it gave me something I could not have planned, predicted or replicated in the same way somewhere else.
I booked it almost spontaneously, without knowing what the day would become, and that spontaneity ended up being part of its magic. I learned something new, experienced animals I had never seen this closely, met people who genuinely cared about what they were doing and discovered a place I had barely known anything about before arriving.
I also appreciated that the experience was not simply about entertainment. The animals had their own stories, their own needs and their own reasons for being there, and learning about that side of the experience made it much more meaningful to me.
Was it cheap?
No.
Would I spend the money on it again?
Absolutely.
Some things you buy on a trip are quickly forgotten. A meal disappears, a souvenir ends up in a drawer, and a taxi ride is forgotten the moment you reach your destination.
But some experiences stay with you.
This was one of them.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Getting There
The experience started from Cancún in 9am (be there 30min earlier) , with transportation by boat to the facility where the animal encounters took place. The day was organized around the activities, so it was important to arrive in time for the scheduled experience.
For my visit, the manatee experience was scheduled for 10:30 a.m., followed by the sea lion experience at 12:30 p.m. Between the activities, there was enough time to have lunch, relax and enjoy the facilities.
Manatee Experience
The manatee experience lasted approximately 30 minutes and was carried out in the water with a small group. In my case, there were only five people in the water, which made the experience feel particularly personal.
Before entering the water, we were given life jackets and instructions on how to behave around the animals. There were also lockers available where we could leave our belongings.
During the experience, we were able to swim around the manatees, observe them closely, gently interact with them and feed them pieces of lettuce provided by the staff.
One important thing to know is that personal photography was not allowed during the encounter. Professional photographers were responsible for taking the photographs, which could then be purchased separately.
Sea Lion Experience
The sea lion experience was something I added separately on the day itself after discovering that it was available. I paid approximately US$25 extra for the experience, although I no longer have the exact receipt, so I would treat this as an approximate price rather than a fixed current price.
Unlike the manatee experience, this was not a swimming activity. The encounter took place from a designated viewing area separated from the sea lion by a barrier.
The experience lasted approximately 30 minutes and included a private guide/caretaker who explained the animal's behaviour, anatomy, teeth, claws, size, diet and other interesting details. Because I was the only person who had booked the experience that day, I essentially had a private session with the guide.
For safety reasons, guests were not allowed to touch the sea lion. We remained behind the designated barrier while the caretaker interacted with him and demonstrated his different behaviours.
Food & Drinks
One thing that genuinely surprised me was how much was included.
The experience included a buffet lunch, and there were also drinks available throughout the visit. I had expected perhaps one drink with lunch, so I was pleasantly surprised that we could have as many drinks as we wanted from what was available.
After the activities, I also stayed for a little while longer, enjoying a few cocktails and some tequila before eventually heading towards the boat to continue to Isla Mujeres.
Photography
Photography was not included in the standard experience.
We were not allowed to take our own photographs or videos during the animal encounters. Instead, professional photographers documented the experiences, and the photographs were available for purchase separately.
I decided to purchase the photographs from both experiences. I believe I paid approximately US$50 for the manatee photographs and another US$50 for the sea lion photographs, so around US$100 in total.
I ended up with roughly 50 photographs from the sea lion experience alone, and although the photo packages were expensive, I am genuinely happy that I bought them. These are the kind of experiences where having photographs to look back on years later feels worth it.
What to Bring
For this type of experience, I would recommend bringing:
- Swimsuit
- Towel
- Change of clothes
- Sunscreen
- Sunglasses
- Hat
- Waterproof bag for valuables
- Cash or card for additional purchases
- Extra money if you want professional photographs
And most importantly, bring only what you actually need into the experience area, because your belongings can be left safely in the provided lockers.
What Is Not Allowed
The rules are there primarily for the safety and wellbeing of both visitors and animals.
For the manatee experience, you need to follow the staff's instructions when entering the water and interacting with the animals.
For the sea lion experience, touching the animal is not permitted for visitors. You remain behind the designated barrier and allow the caretaker to handle the interaction.
Personal cameras and phones are also not permitted during the animal encounters, which is why photography is handled by the facility's professional photographers.
One Thing I Would Know Before Booking
If I were booking this experience again, the one thing I would keep in mind is that the manatee experience and the sea lion experience are separate activities.
I originally booked only the manatee experience. The sea lion encounter was something I discovered later and decided to add on the spot. If you are interested in both, I would therefore ask about availability when you arrive rather than assuming it is automatically part of the same package.
And if you care about having photographs, ask about the photo package and price before the experience, because photography is an additional cost.
How Much Time Do You Need?
For the way I experienced it, I would reserve most of the day rather than treating it as a quick activity.
My day looked roughly like this:
Morning arrival → 10:30 a.m. manatee experience → lunch & free time → 12:30 p.m. sea lion experience → changing and relaxing → boat to Isla Mujeres → approximately 1–1.5 hours exploring the island → boat back to Cancún cca 05:30pm.
That gave me enough time to enjoy the experiences without feeling like I was constantly rushing from one activity to another.
My Final Tip
If you are choosing between the different animal experiences available, look beyond the most obvious option.
Dolphins may be the experience that immediately catches your eye, but I am very glad I stopped scrolling and noticed the manatees instead. And even more importantly, I am glad I asked what else was available once I arrived.
Because the best part of my entire day was something I didn't even know existed when I left Cancún that morning.
NEXT STOP - CHICHÉN ITZÁ & CENOTE CHICHIKAN
From the turquoise waters of Isla Mujeres, my Mexican adventure continues into the heart of the Yucatán Peninsula, where ancient Maya history meets the mysterious underground world of cenotes.
My next stop takes me to one of Mexico's most iconic archaeological sites, Chichén Itzá, followed by a completely different kind of experience at Cenote Chichikan, where I discovered another side of the Yucatán, far beneath the surface.
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