Zone checker — Riviera Maya, 38 zones
Pick the zone your lot sits in. One click shows which authority decides, which permits go into the file, how the ground and the water table behave, and the three or four factors that actually move your cost and your calendar.
The most expensive mistake in the Riviera Maya is not picking the wrong builder — it is buying land without knowing which regime it falls under. A lot 200 metres from the sea and one 2 kilometres inland are designed, permitted and priced differently. This tool condenses what Recrea checks before drawing the first line. For cost per square metre use the cost calculator; for the paperwork itself, the permits and DRO guide.
This reads the paperwork, not the quality of the land. A complexity-5 zone builds just as well; the permit simply takes longer and costs more.
Municipal means a single filing. SEMA adds the state authority. SEMARNAT and ZOFEMAT are federal, and they are what move the calendar by months rather than weeks.
It decides the foundation type, whether the pool needs anchoring, and whether drainage can go to an absorption well or requires a treatment plant.
It sets the steel: 316 near the sea, 304 inland. That is the difference between hardware intact at ten years and hardware pitted at two.
The peninsula’s karst hides voids. A soil study is not a formality — it is what stops the foundation being redesigned mid-build.
| Zone | Municipality | Complexity | Environmental regime | Water table | Salt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Akumal | Tulum | 4 · Very high | SEMA + SEMARNAT (federal shoreline, dune, turtle nesting) | high on the front row | severe |
| Aldea Zamá | Tulum | 2 · Moderate | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | moderate |
| Bahía Petempich | Puerto Morelos | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT (federal shoreline concession) | very high | severe |
| Bahía Solimán | Tulum | 5 · Maximum | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT (federal shoreline concession) | high | severe |
| Cancún | Benito Juárez | 1 · Straightforward | municipal; FONATUR in the hotel zone | deep inland | moderate |
| Chan Chemuyil | Tulum | 2 · Moderate | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | moderate |
| Ciudad Mayakoba | Solidaridad | 1 · Straightforward | municipal only | deep | low |
| Corasol | Solidaridad | 1 · Straightforward | municipal only | deep | low to moderate |
| Cozumel | Cozumel | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT, marine park | high on the coast | severe |
| El Cielo, Playa del Carmen | Solidaridad | 1 · Straightforward | municipal only | deep | low |
| Holistika, Tulum | Tulum | 2 · Moderate | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | low |
| Isla Mujeres | Isla Mujeres | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT, marine park | very high; fragile freshwater lens | severe |
| La Veleta | Tulum | 3 · High | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | low |
| Mayakoba | Solidaridad | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT (mangrove and lagoons) | very high | moderate |
| Playa Magna | Benito Juárez | 1 · Straightforward | municipal only | deep | moderate |
| Playa Mujeres | Isla Mujeres (continental) | 5 · Maximum | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT (federal shoreline concession) | very high | severe |
| Playa del Carmen | Solidaridad | 1 · Straightforward | municipal only | deep | moderate |
| Playa del Secreto | Puerto Morelos | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT (federal shoreline concession) | very high | severe |
| Playacar | Solidaridad | 1 · Straightforward | municipal; mature trees protected by the development | deep | moderate, severe in Phase I |
| Puerto Aventuras | Solidaridad | 3 · High | municipal + ZOFEMAT on the marina frontage | high next to the canal | severe by the basin |
| Puerto Morelos | Puerto Morelos | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT (reef national park) + ZOFEMAT | high near the coast | severe on the front row |
| Punta Bete | Solidaridad | 5 · Maximum | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT (federal shoreline concession) | very high | severe |
| Punta Brava | Puerto Morelos | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT (federal shoreline concession) | very high | severe |
| Punta Maroma | Solidaridad | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT (federal shoreline concession) | very high | severe |
| Punta Paraíso | Solidaridad | 3 · High | SEMARNAT on the coastal strip | high | severe |
| Región 12, Tulum | Tulum | 2 · Moderate | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | low |
| Región 15, Tulum | Tulum | 3 · High | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | low |
| Región 8, Tulum | Tulum | 2 · Moderate | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | low |
| Ruta de los Cenotes | Puerto Morelos | 3 · High | SEMARNAT (cenotes and jungle) | close to cenotes | low |
| Selvamar, Playa del Carmen | Solidaridad | 1 · Straightforward | municipal only | deep | low |
| Selvazama | Tulum | 2 · Moderate | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | low |
| Tankah | Tulum | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT (federal shoreline concession) | high | severe |
| Tulum | Tulum | 3 · High | SEMA; SEMARNAT on the coastal strip | mid depth | depends on the sub-zone |
| Tulum Centro | Tulum | 2 · Moderate | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | low |
| Tulum Country Club | Tulum | 2 · Moderate | SEMA (Quintana Roo state environmental authority) | mid depth | low |
| Xpu-Há | Solidaridad | 4 · Very high | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT (federal shoreline concession) | very high | severe |
| Zazil-Ha / Coco Beach | Solidaridad | 3 · High | municipal + ZOFEMAT on the beachfront | high | severe |
| Zona Hotelera, Tulum | Tulum | 5 · Maximum | SEMARNAT + ZOFEMAT — the most restricted strip on the coast | very high | severe |
No. It summarises the regulatory frame and the typical conditions of each zone so you know what to expect before buying or designing. The real ruling comes from the lot’s land-use certificate and the soil study.
Because nearly every project in the Tulum municipality goes through the state environmental authority, and the coastal strip additionally through SEMARNAT and ZOFEMAT. Inland Playa del Carmen is usually a municipal filing only.
It is the federal maritime-land strip: the 20 metres measured from the high-tide line. It is not sold with the lot — it is concessioned and paid for annually, and any work on it carries its own permit.
Almost never worth it. In the very-high-water-table zones water shows up at shallow depth and the cost of pumping and waterproofing exceeds the value of the space gained.
Municipal filing only: 4 to 10 weeks. With state SEMA: 3 to 6 months. With SEMARNAT and ZOFEMAT: 6 to 12 months. Those are timelines for a complete, well-assembled file.
Your review helps other owners decide, and helps us improve.
Write a reviewRead our Google reviews