Home renovation in Holbox
Survey, permits and renovation with one contractor, for owners who live outside Mexico.
On Holbox, a renovation lives or dies on logistics: every bag of cement, every window and every crew member crosses from Chiquilá by barge or ferry. Houses and small hotels here take sand, salt and heavy use, and many need new palapa roofs, waterproofing and water treatment.
Palapa roofs and fire
Thatched palapa roofs are part of Holbox’s look and wear out within years in salt and sun. We replace them with fire-treated thatch on sound timber, check the structure underneath and add fire separation from kitchens and electrical panels.
Water treatment on a small island
Older houses often rely on septic tanks in sand with a water table close to the surface. A renovation is the moment to install a proper treatment plant and water storage, which the island’s environment and the Yum Balam rules increasingly require.
Consolidated barge loads
We order everything before demolition, consolidate barge loads, house crews on the island and keep a buffer stock for windy days. That is what keeps a renovation on schedule when the crossing closes.
Realistic budget and programme in Holbox
A full renovation on Holbox runs at MXN 11,000 to 21,000 per m² renovated (roughly USD 600 – 1,145/m²), the highest on the coast because of double freight, barge logistics and crew housing.
A typical house or small hotel takes four to seven months. Works that change the structure or footprint need the Lázaro Cárdenas municipal licence and must respect the Yum Balam management plan.
What we renovate: from a survey to a finished house
Every renovation starts with a survey of what is there: structure, rebar corrosion, slabs, waterproofing, installations and windows. We report what must be fixed, what should be upgraded and what can stay, with a line-item budget for each, before anything is demolished.
We then handle the whole job: permits or condominium approvals, demolition, structural repairs, waterproofing, electrical, plumbing and air conditioning, kitchens, bathrooms, joinery, pools and finishes. One contract, one site manager, and a programme that tells you when each room is back in use.
Renovating while you are abroad
Most of our renovation clients are not in Mexico during the works. You receive a weekly report with dated photographs, a video call from site when decisions are needed, and a live budget where every change is priced and signed before it is executed.
If the house is rented, we phase the work to protect bookings where possible, and we hand over with photographs of hidden work, warranties and manuals, so the next guest or tenant finds a house that works.
The ground in Holbox: what it imposes on the project
- Municipality: Lázaro Cárdenas
- Environmental regime: CONANP (Yum Balam) + SEMARNAT + municipal
- Ground: sand bar over limestone
- Water table: very high, close to the surface
- Salt exposure: very high
A car-free island in a federal protected area: low heights, limited footprint and every load crossing by barge.
- Check the lot against the Yum Balam management plan before paying for design; it fixes what can be built.
- Plan deliveries in consolidated barge loads and keep a site buffer for days when the crossing is closed.
See the 47 mapped zones of the corridor in the zone checker.
Frequently asked questions
How often does a palapa roof need replacing on Holbox?
Depending on material and exposure, roughly every eight to fifteen years, with maintenance in between. We replace it with fire-treated thatch and inspect the structure beneath.
Why does renovation on Holbox take longer?
Because materials and crews cross by barge, move on sand without trucks and wait out windy days. Planning purchases before demolition is what keeps the schedule.
Do I need a permit to renovate?
Repairs and finishes usually need only a notice or a minor-works permit; structural changes, extensions and façade changes need a municipal licence, and condominiums need the administration’s approval. We confirm which applies before quoting.
What warranty do you give on a renovation?
One year on finishes and installations and five years on structural repairs and waterproofing we execute, with photographs of hidden work and manuals for new equipment.
House construction in Holbox · Luxury villas in Holbox · Villa and hotel construction in Holbox · Commercial construction in Holbox · Home Renovation in Playa del Carmen · zone checker