Your perfect weekend in San Bruno, Yucatán: a bohemian hideaway nestled along Mexico’s glistening Costa Esmeralda (northern Gulf Coast) just one hour from Mérida’s historic center.
Last updated: April 2024
Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula is teeming with ideal destinations for long, languid weekends spent under the tropical sun. Here, tucked between a flamingo-flecked lagoon and the glistening, northern Gulf coastline – known as the region’s Costa Esmeralda (Emerald Coast) – lies one such locale.
San Bruno: an idyllic seaside community you’ve probably never heard of. It’s home to powder white sands, emerald-hued horizons, shimmering pink lakes and climbable Maya pyramids. Plus, Casa K’u: a mindfully designed boutique hotel effectively cementing San Bruno as a hidden hot spot. It’s here that I recently found myself whiling away balmy days-turned starry skied nights, set to a soundtrack of gently crashing waves, rustling palms and swaying woven hammocks.
Read on for your perfect itinerary to a long, leisurely weekend in San Bruno, Yucatán.
Related: Your Definitive Travel Guide to Izamal: Yucatán’s Sun-Kissed Yellow City
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San Bruno: Fast Facts
Closest international airports: Mérida (1 hour), Cancun (4.5 hours)
Closest points of interest: Progreso (30 minutes), Mérida (1 hour), Izamal (1 hour 15 minutes), Valladolid (2.5 hours), Río Lagartos & Las Coloradas (2.5 hours)
How to arrive: Car rental, ADO bus (to Mérida), taxi/private transfer
How to get around: Car rental (from Mérida), Scooter rental (from Progreso), taxi.
Banks or ATMS? Not in San Bruno, though you’ll find several banks (HSBC, CIBanco, BBVA) 30 minutes away in Progreso.
San Bruno, Yucatán: Stay / Casa K’u
Anchoring the San Bruno experience is Casa K’u: a newly opened boutique hideaway giving Tulum vibes, without the hype. Mindful design unfolds from the welcoming reception desk to the white sand beachfront, underscored by themes of thoughtful hospitality and glorious repose.
Rooms – two oceanfront and four garden view – are spherical, taking the form of fanciful bird’s nests. I stayed in the oceanfront kutz room, translating to “peacock” in Maya. Domed interiors exude cozy minimalism, where comfortable queen beds rest against locally carved hardwood and cooling chukum walls provide natural relief from the Yucatán heat. (Chukum: a centuries-old Maya stucco technique utilizing resin from endemic chukum trees.) Considerate mod-cons include an in-room espresso machine, glass bottled drinking water, organic reed diffusers and a cleverly disguised A/C unit cloaked in contrasting tropical woods.
Step outside to your private bathroom, a separate yet attached enclave featuring a unique, semi-outdoor design. Think: stone-carved sinks, rain shower heads and (plastic-free) organic bath amenities, all housed under a vaulted, palapa-thatched ceiling.
The palm-fringed property further boasts a saltwater pool with daybed-dotted sundeck, oversized woven hammocks, toes-in-the-sand cocktail bar and excellent on-site restaurant. Note Casa K’u is adults-only.
Related: Tulum’s Best Boutique Hotels & Resorts by Neighborhood: Beachfront to Beyond
San Bruno, Yucatán: Eat & Drink / Nido Restaurant
The resident eatery of Casa K’u, Nido Restaurant is home to elevated sea and land fare in a casual yet contemporary setting. Plus: spritzes, margaritas and mezcal from the boho beach bar. Grab a table in Nido’s open-air dining room, or reserve one of two private dining spaces: the intimate beachfront – framed by hanging lights and hammocks – or inside the vaulted, A-framed palapa with views of the kitchen.
A versatile menu is categorized into three culinary experiences. Tertulia offers breakfast plates savory to sweet, while Taberna serves up daytime beach bites ranging from guacamole to ceviche to rock shrimp, steak or vegetarian tacos. At night, Ostería fires up the best of Italian comfort food, like doughy margarita pizza and hearty carbonara pasta.
San Bruno, Yucatán: Sunset Drinks / Grand Marina Kinuh Hotel
Ten minutes from Casa K’u, just before entering the tiny neighboring town of Telchac Puerto, brings you to the secluded oasis of Grand Marina Kinuh Hotel. Here, you can enjoy lagoon-side sundowners overlooking the idyllic marina and mangroves beyond. Stay for dinner to enjoy fabulous coastal cuisine led by Executive Chef and Yucatán native Josué S. Davó Sánchez, seamlessly blending regional and international flavors.
Related: This Pretty Seaside City in the Yucatán is Mexico’s Newest It-Destination
San Bruno, Yucatán: Beach / Casa K’u
The beachfront at Casa K’u is a tranquil haven of powder-soft white sand, sparkling seafoam-green ocean and nary a vendor around. Canvas-shaded daybeds come equipped with oversized pillows and tassled cotton-linen coverings. Catch up on some R&R, go for a dip or wander along the sleepy seaboard to either side. Casa K’u’s beachfront is fully serviced, meaning you can enjoy breakfast-in-daybed or lunch fare from Nido – best paired with a fresh squeezed jugo, spicy margarita or carajillo (double espresso shaken over ice, with a shot of Licor 43).
Looking for a little more action? Kokomo Beach Club next door rents paddleboards, kayaks and jet skies. Or for variety, you can spend the day at the aforementioned Grand Marina Kinuh Hotel. The resort offers day passes to non-hotel guests, granting access to the property’s three, marina-view swimming pools and pristine beachfront.
Related: Checking in: Hacienda Uayamon, a Restored Oasis in Mexico’s Remote Jungle
San Bruno, Yucatán: See & Do / Xcambó Archaeological Site
Just eights minutes by car from Casa K’u – crossing a bridge with views of the Laguna Rosada (Pink Lagoon) on either side – you’ll reach Xcambó: a fascinating Maya archaeological site flying astonishingly under-the-radar. The site thrived as a vital commercial port during the Early Classic period (c. 350 – 550 AD), primarily trading salt from the nearby saline flats of the lagoon. Surrounded by lush, crocodile-inhabited mangroves, it’s fitting that the Maya name Xcambó not only translates to “a place where bartering is done,” but also “celestial crocodile.”
Here, you can climb several stone pyramids (to sweeping jungle views), wander through the carcass of a colonial-era Spanish church and marvel at two Maya stucco masks representing Venus and the Sun. Plan to spend around an hour exploring the site, best visited at opening time (8am) to beat the Yucatán heat – not to mention the day-trippers arriving midday from the nearby Progreso cruise port.
Shop local: The endearing Maya man overseeing entry at Xcambó also happens to sell locally harvested Maya honey. Should your travels allow, it’s well worth stocking up on a bottle or two to support the local community – plus enjoy the region’s famed natural superfood.
Xcambó is open 8am – 4pm daily; entry of $90 pesos (approx $5 USD). Payment is accepted in cash only (pesos) and best to bring exact change.
San Bruno: Flamingos
Drive slow across the aforementioned bridge over Laguna Rosada, or better yet, pull over. This is the best place in the lagoon to spot wild pink flamingos wading in the water. You most likely won’t see them up close, but if you keep your eyes peeled you may spot flocks of pink flamingos in the distance – or flying overhead.
San Bruno, Yucatán: See & Do / Xtampú Salt Flats (Pink Lakes)
On your way back across the bridge over Laguna Rosada, pull over to gaze at the pink lakes – which are actually operational salt flats – at Salinera Xtampú. This family-owned saline mine has been in production since ancient Maya times, when the extracted sea salt was administered and traded through Xcambó.
It won’t take long to wander through the site, home to several small salt pools that may or may not appear bright pink depending on the season and time of day you visit. To see them at their pinkest, you’ll want to visit midday when the sun is shining directly above. The pools take on this pink color due to the magenta-hued plankton, algae and brine shrimp that inhabit the water. The same microorganisms, in fact, that flamingos feed on – hence their pink plumes.
Unlike the IG-famed pink lakes of nearby Las Coloradas, you can expect little to no crowds. Professional cameras are permitted though drones are not. While you won’t find touting tour guides here, the son of the family who owns the salinera is happy to provide insight – in Spanish, or Maya, only.
Salt flats-to-table: stop by the tiny souvenir stall on your way out to take a bag of Maya-harvested sea salt home with you. The cost is minimal and you’ll be directly supporting the local family who owns and operates the salinera.
Salinera Xtampú is open from 9am – 5pm daily, making this a perfect stop post-Xcambó. Entry is $20 pesos (approx $1 USD) and cash (pesos) only. Best to bring exact change.
TIP: Arrive to Xcambó right at opening time – 8am – followed by Salinera Xtampú immediately after. You’ll probably have both places entirely to yourself.
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San Bruno, Yucatán: See & Do / Progreso Malecón
Thirty minutes from San Bruno brings you to the popular malecón (boardwalk) of Progreso: Yucatán state’s biggest beach town. The seaside promenade is lazy by day and bustling by night, dotted with eateries, souvenir shops, coconut vendors and kitschy photo ops. A worthwhile afternoon from San Bruno, start your stroll at these colorful Progreso letters and end on the pedestrian fishing pier (not to be confused with the commercial cruise pier located just before it).
Along the way, stop for a drink or bite at Almadía, Mobula or Maya KA. You can also explore the Meteorite Museum, dedicated to dinosaurs and the asteroid impact – right off this very seashore – that wiped them out.
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