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> Homepage > Homepage > Welcome > Destinations > Riviera Maya >   Puerto Morelos
 Just 36 km south of Cancún is one of the oldest settlements on the coast, the quiet town of Puerto Morelos. The community has grown so much over the last ten years, that it had to spread west, across the highway and into the jungle. About 100 years ago it boomed as the region’s hardwoods and chicle set sail for the U.S. and Europe through its port. Today the town is best known for its varied lodging: everything from large five-star hotels to budget inns and condominiums, and seafood restaurants. Its beaches are uncrowded and the section of the Great Maya Reef lying offshore has just been declared a national park.
The town square is lined with craft shops and restaurants, there's even a second-hand bookshop stocking a large selection of titles in English and Spanish. Sunday is a good day to visit for the square comes alive with the give and take of a small-scale fair.
Puerto Morelos is a fishing community and the seafood is understandably excellent. Accompanied by pelicans and flocks of gulls, you can watch the fishermen unload their catch on the quay and know that within a short time it will be on your plate in one of the waterfront restaurants.
A string of shops along the highway at the entrance of town hawks all manner of crafts; principal among them is the gentleman selling authentic Panama hats (which connoisseurs know come from Becal, Campeche and not Panama). He’ll explain how the toppers are woven in the caves in his native Campeche where intense humidity keeps the fibers supple.
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© 2004 Editorial Veras. La guía Oficial del Caribe Mexicano.