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Tankah Bay Real Estate for Sale
A calm bay behind an outer reef, just north of Tulum. Almost everything we list here is beachfront.
Tankah Bay
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Tankah Bay real estate is the beachfront end of our Tulum book: almost everything we list here is on the water, and asking prices sit among the highest of any area we cover.
What it is like
Tankah sits roughly ten kilometers north of Tulum, between the town and Soliman Bay. The bay is sheltered by mangrove behind and protected by an outer reef in front, so the water inside stays calm and largely free of current, running about two to four meters deep. The sand is coarser than the Tulum hotel zone, made of pulverized coral and shell rather than fine white powder, which is worth knowing before you arrive expecting one and find the other.
The snorkeling is the reason people know Tankah. The reef holds coral and large schools of fish and you can swim to it from the beach.
Casa Cenote
Casa Cenote, also called Cenote Manatí, sits about 500 meters from the beach. It runs some 200 meters long and you can swim, snorkel or kayak its full length through mangrove roots, past turtles and blue crabs, and occasionally past Panchito, the resident crocodile. The combination of a cenote and open sea within a few minutes of each other is specific to this stretch of coast.
What is for sale
Beachfront apartments and penthouses above all, then villas and a few small hotels, and a good share of it is finished. Three bedrooms is the most common layout, and asking prices run from $349,900 USD to $6,500,000 USD. The dated figures are under Rental and market data below.
There is no entry level product here. The floor is high, because the land is beachfront and there is very little of it.
Who it suits
Buyers who want water access rather than walkability, and who are comfortable being outside town. It suits a second home owner, a high end rental operator, and anyone whose priority is swimming and snorkeling from their own stretch of coast.
What to watch
You are outside Tulum, about eleven minutes from the town center by car, so a car is not optional. Restaurants and shops are limited and mostly attached to the small hotels along the bay. The houses here run on their own wells or cisterns and their own treatment, so ask for the running costs as well as the price.
Beachfront ownership in Mexico carries its own considerations. The first 20 meters inland from the high tide line is federal zone (ZOFEMAT), used under a federal concession rather than owned. And within 50 km of the coast a foreign buyer holds through a fideicomiso, a bank trust renewed every 50 years that carries full rights to use, rent, improve, sell and bequeath. Both are normal and both are worth understanding before you make an offer rather than after.
The figures on this page are asking prices from our own current listings. They are not closed transactions and they are not comparables.
Quick facts
Beach
On the beach for almost everything we list
Town centre
About 11 min by car to the center of Tulum
Condo prices
Apartments and penthouses $349,900 to $1,978,000 USD asking
Lot prices
Beachfront land rarely comes to market; ask us and we will tell you what is available
Land tenure
Private titled land; foreigners hold through a fideicomiso, a bank trust renewed every 50 years. The first 20 meters inland from the high tide line is federal zone (ZOFEMAT), used under concession
HOA fees
Set building by building, and most standalone villas have none; we quote the fee on each listing
Short-term rentals
Permitted, subject to each building's rules; RETUR-Q registration and a state operating license; lodging tax, 16% IVA and income tax apply
Infrastructure
Outside the town water and sewer networks: own wells or cisterns and own wastewater treatment; most on grid power, many with solar alongside
Who this area suits
Tankah Bay suits buyers who want water access rather than walkability, and who are comfortable being outside town. It suits a second home owner who will swim and snorkel from their own stretch of coast, an owner who lets to guests who book for the reef and the cenote rather than for a beach club, and anyone who has looked at the hotel zone and wanted the sea without the scene.
It also suits a buyer who has understood what beachfront in Mexico involves, the federal zone at the shoreline, the fideicomiso for foreign owners and the upkeep a house takes when it faces the Caribbean, and is not put off by any of it.
It is the wrong place for a buyer who wants restaurants, shops or a town within reach: Tulum is a drive away, a car is not optional, and the dining is mostly attached to the small hotels along the bay. It is the wrong place for the powder sand expectation: Tankah's sand is coarser, pulverized coral and shell, and the water inside the reef is calm and shallow rather than open. And it is not an entry level market. The floor is high because the land is beachfront and there is very little of it.
Buy here for the water. The bay does the rest.
Rental and market data
Data as of September 2026. Asking figures are from our own live listings on 24 September 2026, across 18 properties on Tankah Bay. Ten of them are finished and 15 are beachfront.
Median asking price $1,357,335 USD across all types, from $349,900 USD to $6,500,000 USD. Apartments and penthouses $349,900 to $1,978,000 USD, median $950,000 (13 listings); beachfront villas $1,214,670 to $1,900,000 USD; and two small beachfront hotels.
Asking price per m², built. Finished, about $5,950 USD (about $553 per sq ft), across eight properties from $2,215 to $9,733. Pre-construction, about $5,300 USD (about $491 per sq ft), across eight from $4,137 to $8,268.
Short term rental. We do not print a rental figure for this page. The trackers publish Tulum wide averages, and a town wide average misdescribes beachfront houses on a quiet bay. What matters is the house and how it is run, so ask us for the current owner's actual figures on any listing.
These are asking prices. They are not closed transactions and they are not comparables.
Where it is
Nearby areas
Tulum Beach, the hotel zone: fine white sand, beach clubs and the restaurants Tulum is known for, on one road south of the ruins.
Soliman Bay, the next bay north: the same reef sheltered water, a private lane of houses and almost nothing commercial.
Akumal, further north: the turtle bay between Tulum and Playa del Carmen, an established village with its services in place.
Tankah Bay
The draw
- Almost everything we list is on the beach
- A reef protected bay with calm, current free water
- Snorkeling straight off your own beach
What you get
- Beachfront villas, apartments and penthouses
- Many already finished, from $349,900 USD
- A few small beachfront hotels
On the doorstep
- Casa Cenote, 200 meters of swimmable cenote
- The outer reef, reachable from the sand
- Small hotel restaurants along the bay
Getting around
- About 11 minutes from the town center
- Car essential
- Soliman Bay and Akumal to the north
2 Bedroom Luxury Beachfront Condo in Tankah Bay | Antal, Tulum.
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What is the sand and sea like at Tankah?
Coarser than the hotel zone, pulverized coral and shell rather than fine powder, and the water inside the reef is calm, largely free of current and about two to four meters deep. The snorkeling is the reason people know Tankah: the outer reef holds coral and large schools of fish, and you can swim to it from the beach.
What is Casa Cenote?
Casa Cenote, also called Cenote Manati, sits about 500 meters from the beach. It runs some 200 meters long and you can swim, snorkel or kayak its full length through mangrove roots, past turtles and blue crabs, and occasionally past Panchito, the resident crocodile. A cenote and open sea within a few minutes of each other is specific to this stretch of coast.
Can a foreigner own beachfront property at Tankah?
Yes. Tankah lies inside Mexico's restricted zone, within 50 km of the coast, so a foreign buyer holds through a fideicomiso, a bank trust renewed every 50 years that carries full rights to use, rent, improve, sell and bequeath. The first 20 meters inland from the high tide line is federal zone (ZOFEMAT), used under a federal concession rather than owned. The purchase is completed before a notario, a government appointed notary who acts as the legal authority on the transaction. This is general information rather than legal or tax advice; confirm the details with the notario on your purchase and with your own tax advisor.
How are Tankah homes supplied with water and power?
Tankah is outside the town's water and sewer networks: houses and buildings draw water from their own wells or cisterns and treat their own wastewater, and most are on grid power, many with solar alongside. We confirm each property's setup on its listing.
What does it cost to run a beachfront house at Tankah?
There is no single figure, because it depends on the house and how it is run. The lines to budget are staff, electricity (a large air conditioned house usually falls on CFE's high consumption tariff), salt air upkeep of pools, metalwork and air conditioning, sargassum raking in season, water and treatment servicing, insurance, property tax and the annual ZOFEMAT concession fee. We give the current owner's actual figures on each listing.
How does sargassum at Tankah compare with the hotel zone?
The reef that closes off the bay breaks up some of the weed before it reaches the shore, and local reports describe Tankah and Soliman as often clearer than the open hotel zone beaches in heavy weeks. It still arrives here in the same months, and in a heavy year like 2026 no stretch of this coast is free of it.
Can I rent out a house at Tankah?
Short term letting is permitted, subject to each building's own rules. Owners register with the state tourism registry (RETUR-Q) and hold a state operating license, and rental income carries the state lodging tax, 16% IVA and income tax. Many houses here are standalone villas with no building rules at all, but where a property sits in a condominium, read its rules before you make an offer. This is general information rather than tax advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to the most common questions about our properties, services, and buying process. If you need more help, feel free to reach out to us
Yes. Foreigners can own property in Mexico via a “fideicomiso”: a trust with a Mexican bank facilitated by a notary. The bank acts as a trustee and follows instructions from the property owner. Via this arrangement, foreigners can have all rights to use, occupy, lease, build, improve, and sell their property. On average, it takes 60 to 90 days to complete a property purchase. Tulum Land & Property works closely with a trusted team of lawyers and notaries who ensure that all legal processes proceed smoothly. Another way of owning property in Mexico is by creating a Mexican corporation. This is recommended when investors plan to own several properties.
Most pre-construction properties require a refundable deposit of $5,000 USD to secure the unit. Our properties are in high demand so this deposit secures the unit while contracts are drafted. Typically buyers make a down payment of 30% but larger down payments lead to larger discounts. The rest of the payments are made according to negotiable payment plans spreading the cost over the construction time, allowing investors to enjoy better liquidity before delivery.
It depends on the property, the street, how it is furnished and how it is run, so we do not quote a single return figure for any market. Where we hold published short term rental data for an area, such as AirDNA's occupancy and nightly rate figures, it appears in the market data on that area's page, attributed to its source. Where a seller or developer supplies figures for a specific home, we tell you whose figures they are and suggest you verify them independently.
For foreigners investing in Mexico, the best way to obtain finance is to do so at home. In the US, you may take a Home Equity Loan or Home Equity Line of Credit (click here). Many pre-construction developments also offer payment plans that spread the cost over the construction period. Financing in Mexico is typically 8% to 9% plus fees and involves a lengthy process.
Closing costs are typically 7% of the property value. This includes the acquisition tax, recordation fee, certificate of no liens, municipal appraisal, legal and closing fees, and public notary fees. The yearly property tax in Mexico is typically 0.1% of the property value. HOA fees typically start from $2.5 USD per square meter per month depending on the amenities included. The cost of furniture and appliances must also be considered in your budget. Our team of experts can help you understand these costs, schedule a call with us to get started (click here).
To ensure a property has a clear title, conduct a title search through a reputable notary or legal professional. This process verifies that the seller has legal ownership and that there are no liens or encumbrances on the property. Working with experienced local professionals can help navigate this process.
Our markets are generally safe places to visit and to live. On Numbeo, whose crime index is built from residents' and visitors' own reports, Tulum currently scores lower than many large US cities, Miami among them. Like any busy tourist destination the region has occasional serious incidents, and these rarely involve visitors or residents going about their day. The usual travel precautions apply, as they would anywhere popular with visitors, and forums for first time travellers to Mexico carry plenty of practical advice on avoiding scams and petty theft.
Many of the condos and villas we sell come with amenities, depending on the location. Usual amenities include: pool, spa, rooftop, fitness and yoga centre, co-working space, etc.
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Tulum Beach, the hotel zone: fine white sand, beach clubs and the restaurants Tulum is known for, on one road south of the ruins.
Soliman Bay, the next bay north: the same reef sheltered water, a private lane of houses and almost nothing commercial.
Akumal, further north: the turtle bay between Tulum and Playa del Carmen, an established village with its services in place.