Tulum’s Sea Turtle Festival Ends Its 24th Edition With Sand Sculptures at Xcacel

The 24th Sea Turtle Festival in Tulum concluded at the Xcacel-Xcacelito sanctuary with sand-sculpting and drawing contests, environmental workshops, and a turtle-themed film program for families.

The three-day program moved between Akumal, Tulum, and Xcacel, drawing families, environmentalists, and the conservation groups that work along this stretch of the Riviera Maya. The final day was held on the sanctuary grounds.

The festival takes place each year as the nesting season winds down on the Quintana Roo coast. It is one of the most direct ways the organizations that monitor these beaches reach the residents who live near them and the visitors who use them, and this year's closing message aimed squarely at what people do once they leave the sand.

Sand sculptures, drawing contests, and turtle cinema on the final day

The closing program mixed competition with hands-on learning. Participants entered sand sculpture and drawing contests while environmental workshops, children's games, and photography exhibits ran alongside them. A screening program billed as turtle cinema filled out the schedule.

The awareness activities centered on two subjects: the turtles themselves and the beaches where they lay their eggs.

Who organizes the sea turtle festival in Tulum and Akumal

The festival depends on a coalition. This year's participants included the Kanan Aak program, the Centro Ecológico Akumal (Akumal Ecological Center), and the Tulum city government's Department of Environmental Sustainability, among other organizations.

The Centro Ecológico Akumal is a longtime presence in the town known locally as the land of turtles, where its staff and volunteers have tracked nesting activity on the beaches for years.

The roster tends to be broad. Last year's organizing committee, according to Riviera Maya News, also included Flora, Fauna y Cultura de México, Fundación Ecobahía, the Universidad Tecnológica de Tulum, the state Institute of Biodiversity and Protected Natural Areas, and the Xcacel-Xcacelito reserve itself.

Angulo Cáceres ties turtle protection to litter on city streets

Jorge Armando Angulo Cáceres, director of environmental sustainability for the Tulum city government, told attendees that preserving natural resources is an essential responsibility if the municipality wants to secure the future of the next generations.

He then brought the point down to street level. Angulo Cáceres asked residents to care for the environment through simple actions, such as keeping trash off the streets, and said that protecting ecosystems begins with each person's habits.

In a coastal town, the distance between a downtown sidewalk and a nesting beach is short.

Xcacel-Xcacelito, a protected nesting beach north of Tulum

The choice of venue for the finale carries its own meaning. Xcacel-Xcacelito is a state reserve dedicated to sea turtles, located north of Tulum along Federal Highway 307, a short drive from Akumal. Its beaches are among the nesting sites on this coast with active monitoring by local organizations, volunteers, and government agencies.

Loggerhead and green turtles are the species most commonly found nesting along this part of the Riviera Maya. Their nests and hatchlings are the focus of the patrols and records these groups keep each season.

The festival has built its program around that work for more than two decades. The Tulum Times covered last year's 23rd edition, which opened with a traditional Mayan ceremony on the beach in Akumal.

Whether the call to change everyday habits takes hold will show on these same beaches when nesting turtles return next season, and monitoring crews begin a new count.

What would get you to join a sea turtle conservation activity in Tulum or Akumal? Join the conversation and share your perspective with us on Instagram and Facebook at @thetulumtimes.