In 1821 Yalahau was known as the “New Malaga”.

A 30-minute boat ride away from Holbox you will find Yalahau Lagoon, a crystal clear natural water spring that is often confused with a “Cenote” this place has kept several secrets throughout its history. People call it the Fountain of Youth since its cold fresh waters will revitalize every cell of your body once you take a Dive.

In ancient times its waters were very popular amongst Mayan Travellers and Spanish “Conquistadores”. It has also served as a hideout for pirates such as Pirate Molas the terror of the Spanish crown in the Yucatan Peninsula

After several failed attempts to settle in Cabo Catoche and boost the region’s economy, in 1821 the governor of the time, Marshall Juan Maria Echeverria, Considered the possibility of solving the shipping and transportation problem of the agricultural products in the region of Valladolid, by creating a port in the nearest coast of that population, He also sought to end with the daring pirates who had already seized the nearby coasts.

Echeverria pointed to justify the location choice for the new town, to the inability to build ships at sea that would protect trade, the lack of sheltered harbors with good anchorage off the coast of the province, deprived them of the visit and trade with the passing by merchant ships due to the constant raiding of pirates; It was then determined to populate Cabo Catoche and build in Yalahau a new port called New Malaga, the only one in the area that had all the necessary shelter against dangerous winds and enemies.

It was then that the Spaniard Miguel Molas founded the town, although this information must be taken with a certain caution, due to the fact that he could also have been the first military commander in the port intended to “scare off pirates.”

At the end of the first half of the nineteenth century, Yalahau was one of the centers producing raw materials (logwood and crops) on the peninsula and its shores set sail from Sisal and other ports.