All about Yucalpetén Pig Beach in Mexico

Between Chelem and Progreso on the Emerald Coast there is a pretty and unusual beach. The unofficial name "Pig Beach" is already extraordinary and in fact the beach was named so because it is home to small Vietnamese pigs.

But let's take it one step at a time. In mid-2021, authorities were notified about strange noises coming from an empty lot in Progreso. While inspecting, the municipality found eight newborn piglets and their dying mother.

Where the mother came from was unknown. Progreso's ecological police corps (founded 2019) took care of the family, but the mother did not survive. One day, someone had the idea to take the piggies to the beach - and lo and behold, the little animals seemed to really like it.

So the idea was born to create a new tourist attraction, modelled on Pig Beach in the Bahamas. Since the beach area in question had unfortunately become quite littered over the years, the first thing to do was to clean up the beach.

Then a stable was built for the pigs as well as some other infrastructure and Petunia, Pepa, Walt, Rocky and the others were able to move in and became little local celebrities. Because of the sun, the pigs are of course in their pen most of the time.

If you want to see them on the beach and maybe have a swim with them, you have to come Thursday to Sunday at noon, then the pigs have an hour's run. In the meantime, the pigs have also had their first offspring.

The Emerald Coast

The Emerald Coast (Costa Esmeralda in Spanish) is an unofficial name for the the 98 km long coastal area in the north of the Yucatan Peninsula. The name comes from the emerald colored water.

Some interesting figures:

A few tips

You should be gentle and careful towards the pigs. Please don't feed them, carry or drag them or let children harass them. Yucalpéten also has a small marina that you can visit. The beach is quite nice, but keep in mind that there are no restaurants or other facilities around.

How do you get to Yucalpetén from Mérida?

From Mérida, take the highway to Progreso and then turn left at the exit to Chelem. After coming down the bridge, take a left on Calle 22 and then a right on Indeco. The entrance is at the end of the road, to the left.