Punta Sur - Lighthouse at the End of the Island
Photo: Ken Thomas, public domain (cropped)
A stop on Cozumel: San Miguel and the Island, a free self-guided tour.
At Cozumel's southern tip, the island's parks foundation runs a protected area of beaches, mangroves, lagoons and low forest called Punta Sur. The coast road continues past the park entrance, and inside you drive a park road to the point.
The Celarain lighthouse has stood watch here since 1934, replacing an earlier light established around 1900. You can climb its narrow, steep stairs for a view down the whole island, and the old keeper's house below holds a small museum of navigation.
On the way in you pass El Caracol, a small Maya building from between about 1200 and 1500, decorated with shells. Guides like to say the wind whistled through it to warn of hurricanes, but that is a legend: archaeologists see a temple.
Watch the Columbia lagoon for crocodiles and wading birds from the wooden tower. Turtles nest on these beaches in summer. Check current hours and fees before you go.
Getting here: Continue west on the coast road to the Punta Sur park entrance, then follow the park road south through the mangroves to the lighthouse.
Did you know?: El Caracol takes its name, the snail or conch, from the shells that decorate its small dome.
Photo op: From the beach below the lighthouse, frame the white tower on its point with the turquoise water in front of it.
More on Wikipedia: Punta Sur · American crocodile · Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park
Stops on this tour
- Plaza del Sol - Where the Island Says Hello
- Iglesia de San Miguel - The Archangel Who Hid
- Museo de la Isla - The Island in One Building
- San Gervasio - Pilgrims of the Moon Goddess
- Punta Morena - Where the Island Turns Wild
- Chen Rio - A Pool the Rocks Built
- El Mirador - An Arch in the Surf
- Punta Sur - Lighthouse at the End of the Island
- El Cedral - The Village of the Vow
- Chankanaab - The Little Sea and the Reef
- San Miguel Waterfront - Sunset Over the Channel