01. October 2020 · Comments Off on Puerto Morelos Town Update: October 2020 · Categories: Beach Reads The Blog · Tags: ,

Hola from Puerto Morelos!

Just a quick update from your favourite Mexican village on the Caribbean in Mexico.

As we told you almost a month ago, the beach in Puerto Morelos is open again. We remain in “yellow” status, which allows the beach to be open and most businesses open to 60% capacity. In order to enter any business or public place, you need to be wearing a mask, and most places will take your temperature (with a non-contact thermometer) and give you some gel to clean your hands. We’re all fairly used to these precautions by now and most of us are following the rules so that we can all be safe.

The square on the port side of town remains under construction. They are working on it every day and they have made some progress, but it does seem to be moving rather slowly. We’re all impatient to get our square back.

The José Morelos bust, which was a part of the portside square, has been given a new home in the Colonia square. There was a short dedication on Wednesday. The bust is of José María Morelos who the town was named after. He was a hero of the 1810 Mexican War of Independence and a fascinating individual. He was a priest and man of the people, but also a very skilled general, who took over leadership of the war after Miguel Hidalgo was executed. You may also know him as the face on the 50 peso bill. For more information on his fascinating life, please click here.

Puerto Morelos had a socially distanced Independence Day celebration at City Hall.

Most restaurants in town are open again, and we even have a few new ones. Lobster House just opened on the square where La Casa del Pescador was, above the Fish Co-op. Lobster is on the menu naturally, as well as fish, steak, pasta, tacos, tostadas, ceviche and even a burger. The owners are the same folks behind the popular La Cabaña del Puerto in the Colonia.

A new cafe is on the way in the Colonia. It’s not open yet, I think their opening was delayed by the COVID shutdown, but it appears they will be open soon. It’s a very big space and even has a large outdoor garden area behind. The cafe is called Elefantitos Rosas, and it looks really beautiful. For now, you can visit them on Facebook and on the web. Once they open, you will find them one block east of the square in the Colonia.

For all the latest on the ever-changing Puerto Morelos restaurant scene, check the PM Restaurant Guide on our InPuertoMorelos website.

We were all happy to see Don Mexkal open again! They had a big Independence Day party to celebrate. Also, opening again recently was Cantina Habanero.

Bike Puerto Morelos!

During the early days of the COVID shutdown in Puerto Morelos, we were not allowed out of our houses unless we were going to the grocery store, which was pretty much the only place open. As a result, many of us made too many grocery trips, plus rediscovered baking cake and bread. Now that we are free again, some of us are rediscovering cycling to lose some of those quarantine kilos.

Overall, Puerto Morelos is a pretty good place to cycle. There are not too many roads and almost no hills of any consequence. There are a few hazards, like potholes, unmarked speed bumps and speedy taxis, but seeing PM from a bike has been rewarding and has helped me to get to know my town even better. An added bonus is that if you get a little too hot or too tired, there are many places to grab a coffee or cool drink. You can also grab some cake! There are lots of places to rent bikes locally, so consider a bike adventure as part of your next trip to Puerto Morelos.

We hope you are making plans to come to see us again soon. All the major Canadian airlines are now offering free COVID insurance. Here are more details about Westjet’s offer, but Air Canada and Air Transat are also offering coverage.



Photo tour of Puerto Morelos. Here are some random photos from around town…

These days, the Caribbean can look like a lake…
You never know who you will run into on the streets of PM.
Nice doggy…

Thanks for reading. Be sure to check our website often for updates and reliable information about Puerto Morelos. Check out our constantly updated Facebook Page, Instagram Page, Twitter Page and our Vacation Rental Page too. Saludos!

02. December 2019 · Comments Off on Town Update Winter 2019: Part 2 · Categories: Beach Reads The Blog · Tags: , , ,

This is Part 2 of our Town Update. If you missed Part 1 click here.

A quick update from Part 1, the fire truck that was making its way from Alberta, with a long delay at the US/Mexican border, finally zoomed into town late on Saturday night. The final push through Mexico did not go too smoothly as they had alternator problems, but with some help from fellow first responders, some extra crowd-funding on Friends of Puerto Morelos and some creative ingenuity, they made it safe and sound. For a video of their arrival, click here.

Puerto Morelos and the fire truck story also made the local news in Edmonton, the whole city has been waiting for this truck to be delivered! Click here for a story the local Global TV station posted on Sunday night.

Now let’s talk more about restaurants, specifically the changes to the ones on the south side of the square. This is an area you may not always venture to… but you should. There are a lot of great places are more pop up every year.

One of your long-time favourite places has moved a just little further south. Spaghettino is now one block south of where it used to be. It is still just past Chedraiu, but now closer to El Campanario. The new location is very nice and you can expect the same great food.

Right across the street from Spaghettino and next to El Campanario is a new taco place called Ta Ki To. As you might expect, they specialize in tacos. So if you are looking for fast, fun and filling, check them out.

Also, Café Mar de Niebla has moved… and when we say “moved”, we mean it! They actually moved the entire building! You may remember, the cafe used to be behind the taxi stand on the main town square. Now it is in front of the Mayan Handicraft centre and across from Spaghettino. They sell coffee and ice cream, two of our favourite things!

In the same area, DK will be opening again soon. They tell us that they are just getting the band back together after a long summer break and then they will be serving up the same wonderful food & drink with an Asian flair. (Try the Bruce Lee if you dare)

The folks at Lola y Moya have a very pretty new location with some lovely murals. They are just 40 meters north of where they used to be. They still have the same great specialty coffees and tasty daytime treats. They are open now, but make sure to join them for their grand re-opening on Saturday, December 7th at 8:00 am.

And last but not least, there is a new place in town for tacos and beer. It is called Taqueria Los Tocayos and it is located on the east side of the Chedraui Selecto across from Hacienda Morelos. We have not heard any reports yet, so check them out and let us know!

Ok, enough about restaurants for now… Another change you will find is that there may be a few more holes in the streets of PM and some folks digging more of them. This is thanks to Aguakan, the water company as they are hooking more homes to the sanitary sewer system. We’ve all been on septic systems on the north end of town up to now. This will probably not change anything for visitors to our town. Most places will still not want you to flush your toilet paper because the plumbing can’t handle it, but the good news is, it will be much better for our beach and environment.

Speaking of the environment… plastic bags are no longer being given out in any of the Puerto Morelos grocery stores. It is now up to you to bring your own or for the place, you are renting from to supply them as we do at Casa de los Viajeros. 🙂

So that is it for Part 2 of our town update. Watch for Part 3 coming soon! Don’t miss a post! SUBSCRIBE today to Beach Reads InPuertoMorelos.com, We keep you up to date on your favourite beach village.

28. November 2019 · Comments Off on InPuertoMorelos.com Winter Update: Part 1 · Categories: Beach Reads The Blog · Tags: ,

Some things in Puerto Morelos never change. The streets stay mostly quiet, the fish keep swimming in the reef and the lighthouse still leans. There have been quite a few changes over the summer in Puerto Morelos though, so let’s dive right into what is new and notable in your favourite Mexican town.

DON’T MISS OUR PUERTO MORELOS RESTAURANT GUIDE

At this time of year, a lot of new restaurants pop up, change or move, and this season is no exception. We have news about a lot of places, so we will tell you about them over a course of a few blog posts, so as not to give you restaurant fatigue. If you want to cut right to the chase you can visit our Puerto Morelos Restaurant Guide that we are constantly updating.

Over the spring and summer, extensive renovations changed the former Cancun Billy’s space into the upscale Mar-Bella Fish Market Resturant. The transformation is beautiful and made good use of its seafront location. If the name sounds familiar, that’s because this restaurant is part of a small chain that also has locations in Cancun and Isla Mujeres. Their focus is seafood, but the concept may be a little different from what you are used to. You order what you want by weight, and then you choose how they prepare it. Early reviews are very good, with high praise for food and service. Reviewers do note that the prices are on the high side.

Sadly the long-time PM institution Las Palmeras has closed. Palmeras had been around in some form since we first came to Puerto Morelos over 17 years ago. It has been replaced with Boquinete Seafood and Grill. They have a great location on the beach just south of the town square, so this is a place worth checking out. We hear rumours of lobster tacos! Sounds muy yum.

These are just two of the many new restaurants that have opened over the summer, and there are many more. We also know of at least four more places that are about to open soon. So don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter so you don’t miss all the news.

November 2019

Another one of the other big changes in town has been the construction of “The Fives”, a large multi-story hotel/condo complex that is being built on four lots which once housed the grand home locally known as “The Taj Mahal” at the end of Rojo Gomez. You can find out more about the house here, and the new complex (which was locally protested to no avail) here.

Sadly, there was also a palapa fire at Moonlight Condos (see video here) earlier this week on the morning of Sunday, November 24, 2019. No one was hurt and the fire was mostly contained to the top floor of the building. The owners say they will reopen soon. The town’s new red fire truck did respond to the fire. This is the first of two firetrucks for Puerto Morelos. The second (yellow) one is currently on its way south from Canada. They just crossed the US/Mex border yesterday! It’s been a long journey! You can find out the whole story here. And watch their progress through Mexico as Chris keeps us up to date with his posts to Friends of Puerto Morelos on Facebook.



November 2019

Over the summer sargasso barriers were put in place, and these along with the right currents have brought our beaches back to their gorgeous normal. See for yourself by looking at the various local webcams available that show you a live shot of our beach. Warning, staring at the webcams may also make you want to book a trip to PM!

The city has also dropped anchors near the shore for the fishing boats to tie up to when they dock for the night. This means our beach is now clear of ropes for the first time. No more tripping over them! Nicer for walking along the beach and the area in front of the Malecon has never looked better.

So this is just the start of our InPuertoMorelos.com town updates. Watch for Part 2 coming soon! Don’t miss a post! SUBSCRIBE today to Beach Reads InPuertoMorelos.com. We will keep you up to date on your favourite beach village. Hasta Pronto!