Xel-Ha has one of the few beaches on the Yucatan Peninsula where marine turtles feel safe enough to come ashore, every year, and lay their eggs. Marine turtles make of our park their sanctuary and fill us with wonder every season as we see the same turtles come back.
The lives of sea turtles are quite a mystery due to the fact that only the females return to land in order to place their eggs on the sandy beaches. It is also said that marine turtles return to place their eggs on the beach that they were born, recognizing the beach by the smell and taste of the sand from which they were born. Xel-Ha is a safe haven to the Loggerhead and Green turtle which return every year to leave their eggs.
The turtle season runs April through November. The females come ashore, excavate and lay their eggs. We then recover the eggs for their safety and carefully rebury them in the Turtle Camp, where they are guarded until they hatch.
Hatchlings are released at night, to reduce the threat of predators thus increasing their chance of survival. And every year we release over 20,000 baby turtles into the sea. At Xel-Ha we give visitors the opportunity to participate in the release of hatchlings on specific evenings with the hope that by having the visitors release the turtles into the wild we may begin to see a change in conscience regarding marine life and its conservation.
Turtle Camp at Xel-Ha
A portion of every entry fee is applied to maintain the turtle camp. Thank you for joining our team in the conservation of Loggerhead and Green turtles.
