Ecology and Sustainability Are Our Ongoing Goals at akumal Beach resort

For years we have been supporting the Akumal Ecological Center through direct work on the Board of Directors. For the past few years, we have implemented our own initiatives to become Mexico’s premiere eco-friendly resort.

At Akumal Beach Resort, we have constructed wetlands for the 12 rooms in the 200 section of the bungalows. We’ve further decided to invest in a wastewater treatment plant so we now have the entire property on the system.

We are taking part in a program called the Mesoamerican Reef Tourism Initiative. Our staff is provided with ongoing workshops for each department to help further our efforts.

We use low-wattage bulbs in many areas of the hotel and are in the process of converting all bulbs. We have installed water-saving shower heads in the rooms. For years, we have asked our guests to save on water by reusing towels and by requesting that sheets not be changed daily. We also ask our guests to recycle their aluminum, plastic and glass which we then take to the collection center.

We use biodegradable products when we can find a reliable and financially viable supplier. We send the majority of our paper from our offices, already shredded, to the ecological center for recycling. A service picks up all our used cooking oil so we don’t dispose of it into our drainage system.

Our outdoor common area lighting is on sensors to turn off automatically at daylight. More importantly, we use yellow lighting on the beach side to avoid distracting the turtles during turtle nesting season. Our guest rooms have information on our efforts with the reef, Bay management, and turtle protection programs at the Ecological Center.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

Please do not leave any plastic, glass, Styrofoam or any other debris on our beautiful beaches! We appreciate you using biodegradable suntan lotion which can be purchased at Super Chomak.

Protecting sea turtles:

• Avoid making noise from 11 pm – 5 am.
• Keep the beaches dark—do not use flashlights.
• Do not build bonfires or use fireworks.
• Do not leave trash on the beach or in the ocean and pick up any trash you see.

If you see a turtle:

• Keep your distance.
• Do not impede her nesting process by blocking her path, getting too close or taking flash photography.

If you see hatchlings:

• Turn off lights (hatchlings go towards the light).
• Do not touch or handle the hatchlings in anyway. Please remember it is a federal offence to handle sea turtles without proper authorization.
• Contact security or reception to help in relaying immediate concerns.
• Please remember that handling sea turtles without the proper authorization is a federal offense.

Protecting Coral Reefs and Marine Life

• Use biodegradable sunblock.
• Keep a 2 meter distance from corals and other marine species.
• Swim near marine creatures and corals, not over them. You reduce the risk of kicking corals and allow sea turtles to rise to the water’s surface to breathe.
• Keep your distance while any sea life is feeding.
• Harassing, touching or grabbing marine creatures is not allowed, your safety could be at risk.
• Touching corals may kill them.
• Do not touch, walk or stand on corals. Use life jackets.
• Akumal Bay is part of a fish refuge. Fishing within the bays and lagoons is illegal.
• Do not remove anything dead or alive from the sea, it is a federal offense