"Isla Mujeres (Island of Women)" Isla Mujeres by Dabs

Isla Mujeres Travel Guide: 202 reviews and 549 photos

Escape to Isla Mujeres

Isla Mujeres is a nice, relaxing, laid back spot to escape to should the party atmosphere of Cancun become a bit too much. It's just a short ferry ride from Cancun but a world away from the huge resorts, the pounding music and the hustle of the mainland.

Origin of name

There are several theories on how Isla Mujeres got it's name, the first and most accepted theory is that when Francisco Hernandez de Cordoba arrived at the island in 1517, he found a small enclosure with idols bearing female features, perhaps at a Mayan temple to the goddess of fertility, Ixchel.

Another theory says that when the first Spanish conquistadors landed on the island in the 1500s, the local men were all out fishing and the Spanish thought the island was inhabited only by women.

The third theory stems from the Maya, they had named the island after Ixchel, the Mayan goddess of fertility and the virgin girls were sent there before marriage so that they could be fertile and have safe deliveries.

Regardless VT men, don't expect to arrive here and be surrounded by women!!!!! I'm quite sure the population is more evenly distributed ;-)

Earlier visits from Cancun

Resident pelican

Our first visit to Isla Mujeres was in the late 1980s on one of our first visits to Cancun. We got there via a spring breaker infested booze cruise, the wind happened to be quite strong that day so we did not get a chance to snorkel and all the young foolish college students doing shots of tequila were regretting it later that afternoon as the catamaran was doing a wee bit of rolling!

Our 2nd visit was sometime in the late 1990s using the economy method, the public ferry, and then finding a small boat to take us out snorkeling. If you are not a big party animal, this may be the best way to get over there, it certainly was the one I preferred.

Daytrip from Playa del Carmen

Isla Mujeres

I hadn't intended on visiting Isla Mujeres on this trip in 2005, it's much closer to Cancun than Playa del Carmen and we had visited on two previous trips when we had stayed in Cancun. But a lot of the catamaran trips weren't running from Playa del Carmen and this one was less expensive for a full day trip than the 1/2 day ones running closer to our resort.

We traveled on the Don Diego, a trimaran which is slightly smaller than a catamaran, that left from the docks near Cancun. Had Cancun been a little busier, this would have been the typical booze cruise but there were only about 10 passengers, several of which that were looking rather green even before the drinking started.

Pros and Cons

Pros:Easy day trip from Cancun, more laid back than Cancun

Last visit to Isla Mujeres: Dec 2005
Intro Updated Dec 29, 2005
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Reviews (8)

Hurricane Wilma damage Warnings and Dangers (1)

Hurrican Wilma slammed into Cancun in October 2005 and while they are rebuilding quickly you can still see some damage... more travel advice

Hang out on the beach Things to Do (3)

more travel advice

Native birds-pelicans Local Customs (2)

We saw these pelicans at the docks near downtown Isla Mujeres, occasionally they would leave their perches and go off in... more travel advice

Native birds-egret Local Customs (2)

We spotted this egret fishing from the 2nd beach we stopped at, he kept his eye on us as he fished and when we got too... more travel advice

Transportation (2)
See All Getting there from Cancun

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Comments (11)

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betska Dec 4, 2011 at 7:42 PM

This is one of my favourite spots in Mexico. A day trip out to Contoy National Park topped it off.
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LoriPori Dec 3, 2007 at 5:39 AM

Hans and I enjoyed our day trip to Isla Mujeres - such a lovely spot to walk around and enjoy a Sunday afternoon.
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SWFC_Fan Nov 15, 2007 at 11:46 AM

I really enjoyed my day on Isla Mujeres - it's much more relaxed than Cancun, and the beaches are superb. As you say, with the UltraMar ferries it's the perfect day trip from Cancun! If I ever return to the Yucatan, this is where I'll stay next time :-)
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Krkrboy Aug 15, 2007 at 9:09 AM

Isla Mujeres- Island of the women where there are no women if you are looking for one! ;-)
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barryg23 Apr 19, 2007 at 1:53 PM

This will be last country we'll see on the big trip. I'm not too attracted to Cancun but Isla Mujeres sounds nice.
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starship Apr 5, 2007 at 5:23 AM

Never been to Isla Mujeres, but I like your tips here. I'd certainly like to try it though! No boose-cruises for me, I'd take the slow boat.
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mazzap Mar 27, 2007 at 11:13 AM

Yes, we're off to Mexico for 2 weeks on Friday this week :-) Hope to pop over to Isla Mujeres off course, thanks for the useful tips and especially loved your pic of the elegant egret! Marion x.
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VeronicaG Jan 2, 2007 at 10:13 AM

Isla Mujeres looks like a great destination--glad it didn't suffer greatly from the devastation that Cancun experienced! Regards from Texas...
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Nemorino Dec 29, 2005 at 11:11 AM

Nice photos. Is there any explanation of how this island got its name?
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keida84 Dec 27, 2005 at 4:44 PM

Booze cruise attitudeis best summed up by Star Wars character JarJar Binks, "How wude!" Nice little page on the Isla Mujeres, I especially like the air parachute photo...talk about p**ing your pants! ;-) Sorry, I could not resist that. Kat