Cancun Travel Diary - Part 2 - Tourist Attractions

Last week I did the first part to my Cancun Travel Diary where I was covering Hyatt Zilara resort and what you can expect if you are staying there. In case you missed it, you can check it out here. Today, I’ll delve a little bit deeper into the tourist attractions.

Tulum:

They are so many beautiful tourist places to see in Mexico; however, most of them require at least half a day or a full day commitment as they are all quite far from each other. We couldn’t quite decide what places we wanted to go see but Mexico is known for the ruins, so that was our must-see place. We literally only had 2 days for tourist attractions, so the ruins took up one of those days. The ruins we went to see are located in Tulum, which is about a 2-hour drive from Cancun.

The ruins are part of Tulum National Park, an archaeological site that sits on Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula. The park resembles a rainforest with a variety of vegetation. It’s full of wildlife like turtles and iguanas and has a lot of cenotes (sinkholes with exposed water underneath caused by a collapse of limestone bedrock) that the Mayans used as a water source and for sacrificial offerings.

Tulum means wall in Maya. It was one of the largest Mayan cities to be invaded by the Spanish. One of the most striking features about Tulum is its proximity to the Caribbean Sea. While at the park, you can take a walk down the steep cliff and enjoy stunning views along the way, to go and take a swim in the clear turquoise water.

Once you go through one of the doorways to the ruins, you will immediately notice the Castillo, which is a castle standing by the cliff overlooking the Caribbean Sea. It is one of the most prominent remaining structures of the Mayan city.

Pro tip: The park is extremely hot! Be sure to bring sunscreen, a hat and a cold bottle of water. You will need it. Oh, and don’t forget your bathing suit while you are at it. You will appreciate a dip in the ocean after your tour of the ruins is over.

The Beach:

After you are done with the ruins, the tour guide will give you about an hour to hang out by the beach and cool off. Be sure to be give yourself enough time to get back to the tour bus as it is quite a long walk from the beach. The beach has some giant rocks that create a perfect backdrop but can also be dangerous when swimming. Keep an eye out for the giant waves depending on the whether the day of your trip.

My one piece bathing suit is from Asos. It’s currently sold out but you check out similar ones here.

Playa Del Carmen:

The next day we went on a half day tour to Playa Del Carmen to drive some ATVs in the middle of the jungle. Playa Del Carmen is another popular tourist town known for its palm-lined beaches and coral reef. It’s about an hour driving from Cancun. I was too scared to ride an ATV by myself, so I hopped on Kevin’s. It was quite a fun adventure, but it confirmed what I already knew - dirt is not my kind of fun LOL.

After the tour, we hang out by the beach for another hour before heading back to our hotel. The beach was not as clean as the one in Cancun - it had a lot of seaweed! There was a beautiful resort close by with over the water bungalows. It had a Maldives kind of vibe. We spent some time by the beach close to it, which had cleaner water.

Since this was a half day tour, we took some time to purchase some souvenirs. We went to a popular market called Mercado 28, which is about 20 minutes from the hotel zone on the local bus. They had a lot of souvenirs but some of the things were quite pricey.

One thing I didn’t like about Mexico is how expensive the tours are. For the most part most tours are expensive but there are ways around it like renting a car to the place and then just paying the entrance fee. You end up paying $20 instead of $200 for two. That wasn’t the case in Mexico. I Highly recommend booking a tour with a company to avoid any trouble. Remember, there are so many other tourists attractions to check out in Mexico such as Chichén-Itzá, which another famous Mayan ruins site with a massive step pyramid. It is about 2 hours and 30 minutes from Cancun. You have to plan for a whole day to visit this site.

All in all, it was a much-needed quick getaway and I highly recommend it. I would definitely go back to Mexico; and their food was amazing.