Yucatan Peninsula What to Expect

If you take the bus to Belize from here be prepaired to drive 6 hours in a "chicken bus" an old american schoolbus (for kids) with tiny and narrow seats!

If you find yourself in Cancun, but you absolutely despise the drunken college kids and the party scene, this tip is for you. You should take a whole day excursion trip to one of the oldest and most important archaeological sites in the Maya people's history - Chichen Itza. It is about 4 hour bus ride if you travel by a Gray Hound-type bus. If you get one of the locals to take you, it is a slightly less comfortable 2 hour ride in a beat up van or a car, wihout air conditioning. During the day, you should try to see all of the ruins and durng the night, you should stay for a spectacular fire show, performed on the main structure in the place. The cost is about 60 dollars American and worth every penny. Again, if you go with a local and don't book a tour, the price significantly decreases to 20 dollars per person

Cancun has become a popular destination among americans and canadians, specially in spring. if you want to save all those kids vomiting and partying like if it's their last day on earth, go either on late summer or fall. if you have the chance to eat real yucateco stuff, go to Los almendros in downtown Cancun or go in bus to the market thats in the downtown too. Buy some chorizo de Valladolid and tortillas. Ask for 'cebollitas en escabeche' and you have everything for a feast! Now, one wise advice is not to swim if you're drunk...Cancun bay is well-known for its treacherous sea, I've seen the locals take out from the water 100 kgs. guys drowned, so don't get fooled by its beauty. Take your precautions...and this is an advice from someone who surfs and has particpated in 2 triatlons...so, be careful.

Billy the Kid's tacos is the place for a cheap meal.

If you travel with kids, go to a Riu hotel

One of the best beaches ever !!

the funnest way to see this island is to rent a golf cart for the day and zip around. dont miss out on el garafon and its zipline and snorkeling!

I just got back from this place! wow, what a nice spot. The people in this part of the Mexico were just the friendliest, most sincere people I've ever met, and they just couldn't do enough for us. And although English is widely spoken, some knowledge of Spanish goes a long way.

The ruins were beautiful, and although I had a mild interest in swimming in the cenotes (underwater limestone caves), I HIGHLY recommend one cenote in particular: Dos Ojos (two eyes). And make sure you take/buy an underwater camera with you. The colour of the water as the sun streams through the cave opening and into the water is STUNNING.

We rented a car through the resort where we were staying (70$ US/day) - unlimited mileage, but make sure you can drive a car with standard transmission.

there is a michoacana right next to the basketball-field - the aguas are fine, as usual, but try the licuado de fresa - it is muy sabroso!

Hi! If you don't care much for crowds or if it's not imperative for you to take a tour. I suggest that you rent a car and drive to Chichen-Itza. For about 40-60$ a day, you can bank in the Chichen-Itza and the Coba ruins in a day. My friend and I rented a car early in the morning at 7:30, were on en route to Chichen Itza and arrived there at about 10am. The drive was safe and we got to drive through little towns scoping out arts and crafts. When we got to Chichen Itza, the entrance fee was 101 Mx Pesos which is about 10$. There are guides that will give you the tour of the place for about $50. But we didn't really see the point of that. We were able to catch some of what the guides were saying to other groups while we were scoping the different ruins. In reality, the site is so spectacular that you don't really want to pay attention to anyone talking. If you know what I mean. Make sure to leave Chichen Itza by 1:30 if you want to make it to Coba with Ample time to see the Coba Pyramid (the highest in all of the peninsula)and go up on it. Yes, at Coba you can still go on the ruins during your visit. The entrance to Coba was 51 Mx Pesos about 5$. Make sure to rent a bike unless you want to hike in the heat like we did with my friend. Over all, during our whole day we spent $95 for a trip to Chichen Itza and Coba, including gas for two people... a real bargain.

One of the best beaches ever !!

the funnest way to see this island is to rent a golf cart for the day and zip around. dont miss out on el garafon and its zipline and snorkeling!

I just got back from this place! wow, what a nice spot. The people in this part of the Mexico were just the friendliest, most sincere people I've ever met, and they just couldn't do enough for us. And although English is widely spoken, some knowledge of Spanish goes a long way.

The ruins were beautiful, and although I had a mild interest in swimming in the cenotes (underwater limestone caves), I HIGHLY recommend one cenote in particular: Dos Ojos (two eyes). And make sure you take/buy an underwater camera with you. The colour of the water as the sun streams through the cave opening and into the water is STUNNING.

We rented a car through the resort where we were staying (70$ US/day) - unlimited mileage, but make sure you can drive a car with standard transmission.

there is a michoacana right next to the basketball-field - the aguas are fine, as usual, but try the licuado de fresa - it is muy sabroso!

Hi! If you don't care much for crowds or if it's not imperative for you to take a tour. I suggest that you rent a car and drive to Chichen-Itza. For about 40-60$ a day, you can bank in the Chichen-Itza and the Coba ruins in a day. My friend and I rented a car early in the morning at 7:30, were on en route to Chichen Itza and arrived there at about 10am. The drive was safe and we got to drive through little towns scoping out arts and crafts. When we got to Chichen Itza, the entrance fee was 101 Mx Pesos which is about 10$. There are guides that will give you the tour of the place for about $50. But we didn't really see the point of that. We were able to catch some of what the guides were saying to other groups while we were scoping the different ruins. In reality, the site is so spectacular that you don't really want to pay attention to anyone talking. If you know what I mean. Make sure to leave Chichen Itza by 1:30 if you want to make it to Coba with Ample time to see the Coba Pyramid (the highest in all of the peninsula)and go up on it. Yes, at Coba you can still go on the ruins during your visit. The entrance to Coba was 51 Mx Pesos about 5$. Make sure to rent a bike unless you want to hike in the heat like we did with my friend. Over all, during our whole day we spent $95 for a trip to Chichen Itza and Coba, including gas for two people... a real bargain.

Wear super casual/beachy clothes! It's a very laid back city :) Remember to NOT drink their water! Drink bottled water and make sure the ice you get is from purified water. I highly recommend Hotel Aventua Mexicana! Cute, cozy and private hotel.. www. aventura mexicana .com

bring your own water the water even the bottled water is full of bugs

Great resort town! Loved the architecture.

Wear sunblock even if you are going out to eat lunch, the last thing you need is a sunburn in cancun.

Riding the bus in the tourist area can be fun! The bus only costs like 9.5 cents (however that works. lol). But be careful, do not attempt to trek to Mercado Veintiocho at night, it's locate off the "strip" and therefore not in the best of areas. But go there during the day, there's a great seafood restaurant in there and fairly decent prices. Forget the typical tour-bus type of tourist attractions, look for an "Adventure Tour" - they're the best!! But if at all possible, avoid eating any food from local villages...the "stomach flu" will be soon to follow. Ensure that when you depart from your hotel to head home that you have everything you can with. Double check and triple check. For example, if you accidentally leave a bag behind you can kiss it goodbye, the hotel staff will happily relieve you of this bag and then when you call them from the airport they will claim no such bag was found (hey, it happened to me!!) Haggling with taxi drivers can actually be fun and exciting. Chatting with them can payoff: they're a good resource of various tid-bits of info.