The color of the water is blue-green but not turquoise. As the tide goes out, ripples are left in the sand. Also, small pools of water are left in places. These are good spots to find large shells. Oh, those shells. I have never been a "sheller", but I became one on this beach. You don't have to search for shells--they are just there. I do not know the types you will find, but they are certainly varied.

As you walk up the beach (toward Puerto Penasco), you will see several vacation homes, some still under construction. There are many more shells in this area than directly in front of the Mayan Palace.

This beach is great for morning strolls, evening strolls, or just strolls anytime of the day! It is also great for families with children.

There is an undertow so this is not a beach to let young ones just float around in the ocean unsupervised. You might think it is because of how shallow it seems. We did see one "rescue" of a teenager who went too far out in the ocean and could not get back in. He was fine in the end but it was very scary, so stay close to your kids and even the "big kids" who might have had too much to drink.

Remember this is Mexico and they don't have the same type of equipment to do rescues as the US. In this case, a plastic canoe and shovel. There are no life guards so you have to but responsible for knowing where you family is at all times. If you get in trouble, there are some wonderful hotel staff who were willing to jump in and swim to the person in need, but it's best just not to ever need them.