You cannot miss Punta Allen on your way to anywhere. It is the end of a very bad road. That is the beauty of it. When you get there, you are in a place like no other. The Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve encircles Punta Allen and is alive with birds, animals and the most beautiful Caribbean vistas imaginable. At dusk, large colonies of herons return to their nests in the lagoon's mangroves. They are very noisy, especially during winter when several thousand of them migrate to the region to mate.

It can take up to fourto five hours to get to Punta Allen from Cancún. Once you turn off the road,you drive slowly along the gorgeous Caribbean on a pot hole infested dirt road. The hard journey is well worth it when you arrive. What a sight! The beach on one side and huge lagoons on the other. The jungle of the Sian Ka'an biosphere reserve is close at hand. The tiny fishing village is on the shores of Assention Bay, the second largest bay in the south of the state along with adjacent Saint's Spirit Bay.

Punta Allen is Mexico's largest and most prolific lobster reserve. It covers a total of 296 thousand square acres. Punta Allen's population is variable. Fishermen from all over the state come here and set up camp for the lobster season. The government varies the season every year in order to give lobsters larvae enough time to mature to the regulated size for the international market.

In the clear, shallow waters of the bay, visitors can watch fishermen diving to catch lobster bare handed then have a couple grilled for dinner. Though the water is shallow and pretty, the beaches are not as wide and sandy as those just one kilometer north. Here there is abundant sea grass and the currents are slow. Visitors can hire local fisherman as tour guides. They'll take you to the bays, cenotes (fresh water sinkholes) and lagoons that surround Punta Allen. Tourism is the primary income for the local population when lobster season is over. The lagoon's habitats are share by crocodiles and manatees. Taking a tour to look for the shy, endangered manatee is one of this region's rare treats