Sea Turtle Hatchling Release at Punta Xen

Punta Xen, on the coast road between Champoton and Sabancuy in Campeche, Mexico, is home to a Grupo Ecologista Quelonios turtle camp that protected more than 142,000 hawksbill eggs during the 2026 nesting season. Between April and September the camp invites visitors to evening hatchling releases, held around 19:00 once gulls and frigatebirds have stopped hunting for the day; participants line a sand corridor while the hatchlings make their own way to the surf under their own instinct, which conservation staff consider essential to their survival. No fitness or experience is required beyond standing on soft sand for about an hour, and the release is suitable for most ages, though very young children should be kept close given the low light and the strict no-touching rule. The camp provides no equipment; visitors bring a red-filtered torch if needed and a camera capable of shooting without flash, since flash photography and white light are both banned as they disorient hatchlings. The camp is run directly by Grupo Ecologista Quelonios, a conservation organisation rather than a commercial tour operator, and its nightly beach patrols, egg relocation and hatchery work are funded largely by the voluntary visitor contribution. Camp staff supervise every release closely, keeping visitors on the marked corridor and away from the hatchery pens, and the same staff patrol the beach through the night for poaching and predation, so any issue during a release is handled immediately by trained personnel. Hatching activity builds through the season and peaks from July to September, when the largest and most frequent releases occur; outside the April-to-September window there are no releases to attend.