.jpg) Aerial view of southern portion of Isla Mujeres | |
 Interactive map of Isla Mujeres | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 21°14′N86°44′W / 21.233°N 86.733°W /21.233; -86.733 |
| Adjacent to | Gulf of Mexico,Caribbean Sea |
| Length | 7 km (4.3 mi) |
| Width | 0.65 km (0.404 mi) |
| Administration | |
Mexico | |
| State | Quintana Roo |
| Municipality | Isla Mujeres |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 12,642 (2010) |
Isla Mujeres (Spanish pronunciation:['islamu'xeɾes],Spanish for "Women Island", formally “Isla de Mujeres”) is an island where theGulf of Mexico and theCaribbean Sea meet, about 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) off theYucatán Peninsula coast in the State ofQuintana Roo,Mexico. It is approximately 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) long and 650 metres (2,130 ft) wide. To the east is theCaribbean Sea with a strongsurf and rocky coast, and to the west the skyline ofCancún can be seen across the water. In the 2010 census, the namesake town on the island had a population of 12,642.[1] The town is the seat ofIsla Mujeres Municipality. It is located within the Eastern Standard Time Zone, which is UTC-5.[2]
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InPre-Columbian times, the island was sacred to theMaya goddess of childbirth and medicine,Ixchel. When theSpanish arrived in the 16th century they named it "Isla Mujeres" after the many images of goddesses. The first information available about Isla Mujeres is from between 564 and 1516, when it was part of the Maya provinceEkab. There were four Maya provinces in the area of the modernstate ofQuintana Roo. The Maya exploited the salt the island produced in thesalinas (small, interiorlagoons), using it in food preservation and medicine and as a currency.
A temple to Ixchel stood in what is nowHacienda Mundaca (Mundaca Plantation). The island was also a favorite stopping place forpirates in the early 1800s. The shallow lagoon on the mainland side was a good place for sailors to sit out major storms, careen their hulls, and trade for salt. PiratesHenry Morgan,Jean Lafitte, and Hernán Mundaca spent time there. Mundaca lived on the island for quite some time, building a largehacienda with which he hoped to entice a local beauty, Martiniana (Prisca) Gómez Pantoja, into marriage. She married someone else, to his regret. A bit of the hacienda remains, and once served as a zoo.[citation needed]
A small Mayatemple was once on the island's southern tip, but in 1988Hurricane Gilbert extensively damaged it, leaving most of its foundation but only a very small part of the structure.[3]
Since the 1970s, along with nearbyCancún and itsHotel Zone, there has been substantialtourist development in Isla Mujeres.[4] Like much of the tourism industry, Isla Mujeres waseconomically devastated by theCOVID-19 pandemic, although case numbers remained relatively low on the island.[5][6]
Transportation on Isla Mujeres consists primarily of taxis,golf carts, andmoped scooters. As of 2005[update] there were 121 taxis, 500 golf carts, and 1500 moped scooters.[7] A bus service also runs from the downtown to the different neighborhoods, calledcolonias in Spanish (where most locals live). The island was formerly served byIsla Mujeres National Airport, but the airport and landing strip have closed.
Three main ferry and catamaran companies (UltraMar, Cancun Sailing, and Jetway) run to the island fromPuerto Juárez, Cancún, and Gran Puerto. Many party boats also make day trips to Isla Mujeres. The island is popular withday trippers, but activity quiets down in the evening after the tour groups leave.[8]
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Isla Mujeres has fostered a strong restaurant industry and culture, with many restaurants throughout the island. There are numerous places to eat fresh seafood cooked with local and traditional recipes, and other restaurants offer Mexican,Yucatecan, Italian, Caribbean, Mediterranean, Israeli, French, Thai, Cuban, and Maya cuisine, among others. In the north is El Centro (downtown), whose central axis, Hidalgo Street, is the main dining and entertainment area. Also on the north end is the famous beach Playa Norte, which recovered quickly afterHurricane Wilma hit the area in 2005. Besides these attractions,swimming with dolphins can also be experienced at the Island.[9] Isla Mujeres has been a popular location for destination weddings for several decades,[10] with the island's larger hotels sometimes used for wedding parties. Weddings are performed throughout the island, primarily at beachside venues on its west and north sides.[11][12]
Isla Mujeres is close to manycoral reefs, such as the one in Garrafon Park, an attraction popular forsnorkeling andscuba diving. TheCancún Underwater Museum, created by English sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor, is off the island's western coast.[13] Isla Mujeres is also home to a population ofsea turtles. There used to be a facility named Tortugrana on the southern end of the island for the rehabilitation and breeding of sea turtles, but this closed in 2021.[14][15]
The island's relative proximity toCuba has made it a popular stepping stone forCubans trying to reach theUnited States in recent years.[16]
Isla Mujeres is considered one of the world's best places to catchsailfish.[17]
Many homes have been built on the island, including those of people who have lived on the island for generations, affluent condos or houses for seasonal use,snowbirds, fishermen, and those working in the tourism and restaurant industry. The island also has a dedicated yacht and boating presence, with many docks on the west coast, including some designated for seasonal use. In general, the island's population declines in the winter due to thedecline of tourism during that season. Some island residents ferry to and from Cancún daily for school or work.
Shopping on the island for residents was limited for many decades, making day trips to Cancún (sometimes on a specialized ferry for automobiles and shipping trucks) necessary to purchase items such as a television or foods not stocked at one of the many minisupers (locally run convenience stores) or the downtown supermercado (supermarket) in the city square. As the tourism industry increased in the late 2000s, businesses such asChedraui[18] began to establish a presence, reducing residents' need to go to Cancún.
The island has many stadiums, including a full-scalebaseball park and organizedfootball venue, along with makeshift dirt or sand fields on which local children and organized teams play. Technology on the island (particularly in thecolonias) was humble for many years, as it was slow to adopt innovations in entertainment beyond the standard television. By the early '00s, technologies such ascable television, thearcade cabinet (most commonly an original or repurposedNeo Geo) andcellular phones began to become commonplace in local households.
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Isla Mujeres is the home ofMexican naval base Quinta Región Naval.[19]
Very little violent crime has been reported on the island over its history. The island has a reputation for its relaxed nature, as the safety of both residents and tourists is unusually high.[20][21] The biggest danger to residents has historically been the threat oftropical storms andhurricanes, some of which, such asHurricane Carmen andHurricane Wilma, have caused devastating damage.[22]
Isla Mujeres travel guide from Wikivoyage State ofQuintana Roo | |||||||||||
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