Playa Free Tortugas

I went via the statue as mentioned in previous reviews. The route is rocky so wear sturdy shoes, but it gets you to the beach free of charge. I took my own snorkeling gear (which I rented in town for 100 pesos) and swam towards the buoys from the private part. The reef is amazing, so many fish, I saw a manta ray and also two turtles!!! If you cross the buoys ten someone will eventually come and tell you politely to leave but I had enough time to see a turtle there.

I love this beach! Great place for families and an awesome place to sea turtles 🐢 in the their natural habit. I had a chance to go snorkeling with them and enjoyed watching them eat and swim. They are so big and carefree! It was a memorable experience for sure!

It is important to mention that you have to open a gate to enter the abandoned property. It did not feel right, but still we did it and even met a couple of locals who were most likely treapassing just like us. There is a little natural beach which is cool but VERY rocky, you have to be really careful with the see urchins that cover the whole shore. When you are deeper in, you can begin to snorkel but watch out for the boats since they are passing at that place where you will be swimming. The captains might tell you to wear life vests but thats it. If you swim across the buoys the guard will immediately shout at you to leave. Well then you swim a little further back :). We saw one turtle and were able to swim close to it for quite some time, we saw amazing fish, eagle stingray and the coral reef is amazing. Do not miss it!

!!!For your information: The beach is public, only the property which you cross to get there is private. Once you are at the water, there is no problem. But if you feel uneasy entering a property (which is still private even though abandoned) you can just walk further, there will be a secutity check/gate with a guard, he will ask you where you are going, just tell him that you want to look at the area and find some good restaurants... he let us pass. After 1km you will find a statue of the founder of Akumal, there you have your public enter! You will have to walk all the way back on the rocks but that way is 100% legal. :) For those who do not want to get scammed but are afraid to trespass. ;)

Great place and for free.
Thanks to Dimitry's post here.

Don't stop at the entrance for the parking guys who are asking you for fee. They nearly jumped infront of my car to stop us.
Just look at the old abandoned houses to park somewhere between them.
I've seen sting rays and turtles. You have to swim towards the tourist groups.

Thanks to the guy who reviewed this place first, we came here after seeing the prices and layout of Akumal beach and deciding it wasn't for us. Thanks!

Walk left along the water after you've passed the abandoned buildings, and you'll quickly get to a natural beach. Walk a bit further, and you'll get to a small bay where it's possible to access the water with relative ease for snorkeling.

We didn't see any turtles, but quite a few fishes of different sizes and colours, and some nice coral. I believe turtles should be seeable if you go further out and towards Akumal beach. This is a good alternative for people who are after a more natural experience, for free.

The beach is not free. At the entrance there are different stands that will explain you how it works. If you want to swim with the turtles the price will vary from one stand to another and it depends on the service. I paid 500 pesos, others paid 650. I guess you have to negotiate. They will provide you all the material. I did not take the boat. We walked from the beach to few meters further.
With a guide and a group of 3 people, I saw turtles and fishes. The tour lasted one hour.
I recommend it

You may access this beach for free (no need to pay Mexican scammers entrance fee in amount of 120 mxn and pay them 600 mxn again to swim with the turtles)

You may do it for free, beach and sea are free for anyone

Just please swim carefully, there are many boats and yachts

Please bring your own snorkel equipment because it's public beach

How to get here: go all the way into the Akumal and you will see a turn pike, you need to go right before this turnpike.

Entrance is right across the road near the building which is under construction (there is also a sign that says you are entering private property, but the property is not private, all buildings near the beach are abandoned)

You should go through rocky area on the beach in the direction of the paid beach and you will reach the destination in 5 mins.

Have a scammers free time and enjoy your snorkel! I saw two turtles myself! You should swim towards the paid beach and I'm sure you'll see it too! :)

We paid for an excursion that included touring Tulum - the Mayan ruins, swimming with the turtles at the playa, and swimming through a cenote. The playa was very nice. Lots of boats were available to take people out to snorkel and to see the turtles. On our excursion, we saw green turtles, a starfish, and a stingray. It's a little bit difficult to swim with the waves of the ocean but we managed and got a lot of exercise too.

Amazing place to snorkel! I saw a couple turtles and made memories for life!

Hazael was our tour guide. He was phenomenal! Highly recommend this to anyone traveling to Cancun or Cazumel

Has a great time snorkeling. We saw so many turtles and beautiful fish.

Booked through TUI and gained access to the beach without waiting in any queues. You are advised not to use sun cream or only use biodegradable cream. We were taken out on a boat into the bay where we snorkeled. We were able to see turtles, fish and rays. It could become quite crowded around where the turtles were spotted but they did not seem bothered. At the end we swam back ashore. Over all it was an excellent experience.

A great place to snorkel or dive and see plenty of turtles or other sealife. Ine dive we saw, 2 different turtle species, 3 squid, nurse shark, lobster and of course lots of fish.
Beat the tickets sellers by getting a tour or ahead online.

I saw 3 turtles during the scuba 🤿 diving experience it was so neat. I also saw giant starfish and many cool fish. It's beautiful and well maintained.

Went there twice in 4 week time. First time the gate was open, but the second time the gate was closed (not locked). We just opened it and walked to the beach. It is very rocky and sharp, so water shoes are very handy!;) you can also walk further via a resort to the beach, no one will stop you and the beach itself is free, they just blocked all the entry points. But after swimming/snorkelling you can exit via the beach, next to the dive shop.

Snorkelling was very nice, reef is beautiful and there are lots of fish. Second time we saw a turtle, but that is not a given from this spot, i think the tours try to keep them away from this spot

We are a group of 9, 4 adults.. went snorkeling for the turtles.. equipment was provided (vest, snorkel mask), two guides swam with us to the location of the turtles,.. Many other groups also guided to the turtles.. Saw 2 turtles and 2 star fish.. apparently turtles not fond of big crowds.. After about an hour gave up on turtle search.. showers and changing rooms, rest rooms are clean.. had lunch at restaurant inside.. good food, especially the quesadilla.. highly recommended for kids and young adults.. Guides were friendly and helpful..

This is great, thanks Dmitry! I went late in the day (4pm) and saw a couple of turtles. I even got lucky and saw an Eagle Ray! Best way to see them is swim across towards where the roped off areas are. You might get shouted at by some tour guides, but I think if you stay out of their area, you aren’t doing anything wrong. Enjoy!

So I definitely didn’t do this an ethical way, but I parked at the hotel closest to this beach (gate was open 💁🏼‍♂) then crossed over a couple private villas (also gate open) to a back walkway to the abandoned properties to reach the beach. Didn’t see a turtle but it was nice!

Amazing beach..if you would like to swim with turtles.. beautiful. you need to pay at the entrance.

Really worth a visit if you want to see sea turtles, also watched a stingray and a barracuda as well as other small fish. I think it's good if you go early at 11 am the tours arrive in big numbers