Map of Quintana Roo
Quintana Roo is a first-level division of Mexico. Its largest mapped city is Cancún, with about 542,043 people in the metropolitan area. The interactive map below is centred on Quintana Roo, and the tables list its 5 mapped cities along with the ports, World Heritage Sites nearest to them.
- Cities Mapped
- 5
- Largest City
- Cancún
- Country
- Mexico
Interactive Map of Quintana Roo
About Quintana Roo
Quintana Roo, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Quintana Roo, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, constitute the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 11 municipalities, and its capital city is Chetumal.
Quintana Roo is located on the eastern part of the Yucatán Peninsula and is bordered by the states of Campeche to the west and Yucatán to the northwest, and by the Orange Walk and Corozal districts of Belize, along with an offshore borderline with Belize District to the south. As Mexico's easternmost state, Quintana Roo has a coastline to the east with the Caribbean Sea and to the north with the Gulf of Mexico. The state previously covered 44,705 square kilometers (17,261 sq mi) and shared a small border with Guatemala in the southwest of the state. However, in 2013, Mexico's Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation resolved the boundary dispute between Quintana Roo, Campeche, and Yucatán stemming from the creation of the Calakmul municipality by Campeche in 1997, siding with Campeche and thereby benefiting Yucatán.
Quintana Roo is home to the city of Cancún, the islands of Cozumel and Isla Mujeres, and the towns of Bacalar, Playa del Carmen and Akumal, as well as the ancient Maya ruins of Chacchoben, Cobá, Kohunlich, Muyil, Tulum, Xel-Há, San Gervasio and Xcaret. The Sian Ka'an biosphere reserve is also located in the state. The statewide population is expanding at a rapid rate due to the construction of hotels and the demand for workers. Many migrants come from Yucatán, Campeche, Tabasco, and Veracruz. The state is frequently hit by severe hurricanes due to its exposed location, among the most severe being Hurricane Dean in 2007, which made landfall with sustained winds of 280 km/h (170 mph), with gusts up to 320 km/h (200 mph).
Summary adapted from Wikipedia: Quintana Roo (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Quintana Roo in Depth
History
The area that makes up present-day Quintana Roo was long part of Yucatán, sharing its history. Beginning around 2000 BC, the Mayans transformed the area that would become Quintana Roo into an agricultural forest. Selective management of forest trees was developed that has continued to shape the region's forests. Archaeological evidence also shows the presence of ancient home gardens, including managed tree plots and cacao groves.
Spanish colonization affected the region beginning in the 16th century. With the Caste War of Yucatán, which started in the 1840s, all non-Indigenous peoples were driven from the region. The independent Maya nation of Chan Santa Cruz was based on what is now the town of Felipe Carrillo Puerto.
Geography
According to the Köppen climate classification, much of the state has a tropical wet and dry climate (Aw) while the island of Cozumel has a tropical monsoon climate (Am). The mean annual temperature is 26 °C (78.8 °F). The hottest months are April and August, in which the average high is 33 °C (91.4 °F), while January is the coldest month with an average low of 17 °C (62.6 °F). Extreme temperatures can range from a low of 10 °C (50.0 °F) in the coldest months to 36 °C (96.8 °F) in the hottest months. Quintana Roo averages 1,300 mm (51 in) of precipitation per year, which falls throughout the year, though June to October are the wetter months. Hurricanes can occasionally hit the coastal areas during the hurricane season, particularly from September to November.
Tourism
Quintana Roo's tourist boom began in the 1970s. Tourism resulted in the development of coastal hotels and resorts, in addition to ecotourism inland and in coastal regions, which have increased the development of the region as well as the gross domestic product. Quintana Roo ranks sixth among Mexican states according to the United Nations Human Development index (HDI).
The Riviera Maya is located along the Caribbean coastline, including Cancún, Playa del Carmen, Puerto Morelos, Akumal, the Hotel Zone, and Cozumel.
There are a number of Mayan archeological sites in Quintana Roo, including Chacchoben, Coba, Kohunlich, Muyil, San Gervasio, Tulum, Xcaret, Xelha, and Yo'okop.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Quintana Roo (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Quintana Roo: Key Facts
| Population | 1,857,985 (2020) |
|---|---|
| Area | 44,705 km² |
| Capital | Chetumal |
| Head of government | Mara Lezama Espinosa |
| Established | 8 October 1974 |
Facts from Wikidata Q80245 (CC0).
History of Quintana Roo: Empires and States
The atlas records 6 polities whose mapped territory included part of Quintana Roo, from Mayan City-States in 299 CE to 2024 CE. They are listed in the order they first appear.
| Polity | Period here |
|---|---|
| Mayan City-States | 299–849 CE |
| Later Mayan City-States | 850–1546 CE |
| The Spanish Empire | 1547–1821 CE |
| Federated Republic of Mexico | 1824–1864 CE |
| Centralist Mexico | 1836–1845 CE |
| Mexico | 1868–2024 CE |
Historical Maps of Quintana Roo
Quintana Roo on the world map in each year one of these states held it:
Derived by testing mapped cities against dated territorial polygons. Dates are when the polygons cover this place, not the polity's whole lifespan, and polities absent from the source dataset are not listed.
Visiting Quintana Roo
Quintana Roo, also called the Mexican Caribbean, is a state of Mexico that is part of the Yucatán Peninsula. Its shoreline along the Caribbean has grown in just a few decades into a major tourism destination. It includes large resort cities built for the Yanqui/Euro tropical vacation business, small communities with a more local Maya-Mexicano character, and fascinating ancient Maya archaeological sites.
Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Quintana Roo (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Largest Cities in Quintana Roo
5 cities mapped. Ranked by metropolitan population. A port city's harbour is written up on the page of its sea.
| # | Name | Population | Region | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cancún | 542,043 | Quintana Roo | Populated place |
| 2 | Chetumal | 154,517 | Quintana Roo | Admin-1 capital |
| 3 | Cozumel | 73,934 | Quintana Roo | Populated place |
| 4 | Felipe Carrillo Puerto | 24,807 | Quintana Roo | Populated place |
| 5 | Isla Mujeres | 12,491 | Quintana Roo | Populated place |
Ports in Quintana Roo
1 port mapped. Ranked by approach channel depth, the figure that limits which ships can call. Harbours link to their write-up on the page of the sea or coast they lie on. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.
| # | Name | Channel Depth | Class | Sea | Max Vessel |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Miguel de Cozumel | 31.1 m | Very Small | Caribbean Sea | medium vessels |
UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Quintana Roo
1 World Heritage Site mapped. Listed by year of inscription, earliest first. Sites shared with another country appear under each. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.
| # | Name | Inscribed | Type | Criteria |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sian Ka'an | 1987 | Natural | (vii) (x) |
Quintana Roo: Quick Answers
- Where is Quintana Roo?
- Quintana Roo is a first-level division of Mexico, in North America. Its mapped cities centre on 20.1938° N, 87.3683° W.
- What is the largest city in Quintana Roo?
- Cancún is the largest city mapped in Quintana Roo, with a metropolitan population of about 542,043.
- How many cities are in Quintana Roo?
- YearMaps maps 5 cities and towns in Quintana Roo, with a combined metropolitan population of about 807,792. This counts mapped settlements, not every municipality.