Round trip Cancun Yucátan  

2 weeks | May 2011 (low sesaon)| road trip | with friend

Round trip Yucakan – Cancun – Isla Mujeres-Puerto Morelos – Playa del Carmen – Tulum- Chichen Itza – Isla Holbox

direct flight Frankfurt to Cancun
travel guides: Lonely Planet Mexico and the Rough Guide Mexico

 

Cancun

Hotel: The Melia Hotel is a big luxury hotel complex: Melia Cancun

 

  Isla Mujeres

To get to the Isla Mujeres take the local bus to the ferry and then with the ferry to the isand. I would reccomend to spend on Isla Mujeres two nights, there are many hotels and hostels, our hostel was the: Bahia Chac Chi

  What to do on Isla Mueres

# Bike tour: A wonderful island, you can explore by bike, one way tour is around one hour. When you are lucky you see some turtles at the turtle viewpoint.

# Snorkeling trip and Isla Contoy: we also did a one day snorkeling trip with “captain Tony tours”: The tour operator  is located in a small street not far away from the center.It was a private tour just with a view people, they know perfect spots in the middle of the sea, we also saw small reef sharks (whooo). When you are lucky you see some turtles swimming in the water next to the boat.

# Isla Contoy: the Island is nice, but you can just visit a little part, sure –it’s a nature resort with a museum. But there are  maaaany boats so don’t think you will have time in the nature on your own on the island: 

 

 

From Isla Mujeres to Puerto Morelos you can take a local bus, the trip is about 3 hours.

 

Puerto Morelos

We had an amazing hostel family owned with a good breakfast I can recommend: Amar INN
In the fisherman village is not a lot to see, sandy white beach, a few nice fish restaurants, a lighthouse, the big advantage is, that you don’t see many tourists there.

 

  What to do in Puerto Morelos

# walking around and explore the village

# You can book a nice snorkel trip to the reef, which is a few minutes by boat away. Just ask at the reception of the Amar Inn.

Playa del Carmen

If you love Party and (free) drinks I can recommend you Playa del Carmen, the hot spot for US travelers. We had a cheap, well located hotel in the center: Hotel Labnah

 

  Things to do in Playa del Carmen

# enjoy beach life and the party there!

# Day trip with the rental car to Coba

Coba

Coba is around two hours drive with the car from Playa del Carmen. It’s easy to find and no fear that something bad will happen on the way. In Coba I could recommend to rent a bike, the best way to explore the amazing area and climb up to have a stunning view: 

….but you need fitness and good shoes 

 

Playa del Carmen to Tulum: We drove with the bus to Tulum. The City has a lot hostels and resorts, I would recommend to sleep in a hostel or hotel at the beach.

Tulum

For nature lovers I would highly recommend Cesiak but: it is closed at the moment, I am sad about this fact and hope it will open again one day (March 2015):

It’s an Eco reserve and you sleep in a luxury tent in the middle oft he nature! You have to brush your tooth outside and shower in a separate area, but when do you have to brush your teeth on a sand dune with beach view? The main building int he keep offers eat and drink(s) till late at night. The volunteers are great there!

 

  Things to do in Tulum

# Visit the ruins of Tulum, but be there as early as possible before the buses with the crowds are arriving.

# Book a kayak tour (at the Cesiak) in the biosphere reserve, it’s a great experience to see special birds, baby crocodiles and the volunteers explore you the flora and fauna of the area. Costs around 40 €.

Bus Tulum to Chichen Itza: The trip takes about two hours with the bus, the bus stop in Tulum is in the center, you can directly buy the ticket at the bus station or online. Check the timetable here: ADO bus

Chichen Itza

Good to spend the nights, but not super fancy but just a 10 minutes walk from the entrance: Chichen Itza Hotel Dolores Alba

  How to explore Chichen Itza

Arrive in the afternoon and buy a ticket for the next day at the entrance. This ticket includes an evening show for the same evening, don’t miss it! It’s an amazing light show and you get a short explanation of Chichen Itza. Spend one day in Chichen Itza and hire a guide for a few hours the main entrance. In my opinion the best ways to explore monuments with this size. 

 

Bus Chichen Itza to Holbox

It’s a nice tour with the locals, you can not drive directly, the last half hour you have to take a taxi from the bus stop to the ferry.
The ferry to Holbox leaves regularly and takes about one hour to the island.

 

Holbox

You can book a hotel in advance (would not recommend) or just enter the island and you will get many offers.

 

  Things to do in Holbox

# Book a whale shark tour, there are many offers in the village

# running, yoga

# order a ceviche

# hire a golf car and drive through the island, visit the wonderful beaches:

 

 

From Holbox you can take the ferry, then the bus to Cancun.

 

Distances:
Cancun – Isla Mujeres: 13 km
Isla Mujeres-Puerto Morelos 47 km
Puerto Morelos – Playa del Carmen 36 km
Playa del Carmen-Tulum 63,7 km
Tulum – Coba 48 km
Tulum Chichen Itza 156 km 2,5 std.
Chitzen Itza – Isla Holbox 202 km