Our Casa is a beautiful oceanfront house in the sleepy village of Chelem which is 6 miles from Progreso and 33 miles from Merida. Chelem is a fishing village with small wooden fishing boats pulled up on the pristine beach and a large village square with numerous small restaurants boasting the freshest seafood cooked to your wishes. Chelem is very quiet during the week but on the weekends the locals come out to socialize and enjoy the many festivals on the square and beach. If you are up for a more livelier time you can drive over the new bridge to Progreso with it's beautiful Malecon (Beachfront) and enjoy the many restaurants and bars. If you're in the mood for some
culture take a short road trip to Merida where the museums are plenty and there is a festival in the main plaza every Sunday with food and craft booths and live music and dancing. The oldest cathedral in the continental Americas is located there on the main plaza in beautiful El Centro Merida. Many Mayan ruins, including Chichen Itza, are within easy driving distance, as are many cenotes (blue holes) for the diving inclined. The best part it is all very inexpensive.

If you are looking for nightlife and shopping, Chelem is not the place you are looking for. On week day mornings you will have the beach to yourself and you can stroll for miles collecting seashells or stop and watch the fishermen cast their nets from their brightly painted open boats. The beach is a little more lively on the weekends but it is a totally different beach scene then what you find on the Caribbean side of the Yucatan Peninsula. This is real Mexico and instead of row upon row of beach chairs lined up to rent for the day what you will find on the playa de Chelem are local families, picnicing and enjoying the warm shallow water, while vendors stroll the beach with boxes of pastries perched on their heads. On Sunday mornings grab a market basket and walk into the village to join the locals as they stop at their favorite stalls in the mercado or along the calle to buy conchinita pibil or ceviche.

Although you have to take the usual precautions of locking doors when you leave and making sure that any valuables are stowed safely away, there is none of the danger here that is reported in the border towns hundreds of miles away.

If you feel like leaving the peaceful solitude of our little village you can always take a short drive (6km) over the bridge to Progreso which has a bustling little downtown, especially on the days the cruise ships come in. Pull up a chair at one of our favorite beach bars to join our friendly band of expats as they watch the antics of the locals and the cruise ship passengers or stroll through the market where you will find everything from handmade hammocks to beautiful talavera pottery to the usual tourist souvenirs. There are also several marinas in Progreso which have fishing charters and boat rentals.

Merida is the secret jewel of Mexico. It is a beautiful colonial city of about a million people that mixes the best of old world beauty and grace with modern convenience. There are countless museums and cathedrals to explore plus several sophisticated shopping centers and international cuisine. Every Saturday night the streets around El Centro in Merida are blocked off and the restaurants move their tables and chairs outside and musicians play on every corner. Children run laughing through the streets at midnight while their parents and grandparents dine leisurely in the cool evening air. No one is worried for their safety. The party continues every Sunday with a fiesta that includes music and dancing and numerous food vendors and artisans.

We like to get up early on Sundays and drive into Progreso to catch the bus to Merida which drops us off right at the Plaza Grande where we can walk to mass at the oldest cathedral in the Americas. We spend the rest of the day strolling through the vendors and shops of El Centro, stopping to enjoy warm sugary churros or crispy panuchos and a cold beer or frosty marguerita before catching the bus home to spend a relaxing evening watching the stars come out as we walk along the beach.

There are many Mayan Ruins and cenotes (blue holes) in the area to travel to for day trips. Chichen Itza is a 2.5 hr. drive or you can arrange tours through operators in Progreso or Merida.

There is a large U.S. and Canandian community here. Our casa is located on the outskirts of town and most of the surrounding homes are second homes for residents of Merida who only visit them during Easter week and the months of July and August. We do have a handful of expat neighbors on our beachroad but for the most part you will have the beach to yourself. Our caretaker speaks fluent English and she will be able to assist you in any way you need.

Open to any dates

We are Mary and Jeff and Stanley, the blind killer bichon. We live in beautiful Colorado at 10,600 feet in the summer and we used to live on a 40 ft. sailboat in the Bahamas in the winter. But after 12 years on a sailboat we were looking for a different kind of abode in a warm climate for the winter. Through a series of calamaties on a trip to Mexico we found this casa and fell in love.

English