Things to do in the Mayan Riviera, Mexico

Mayan wonder
Mayan Riviera Things To do

One of the greatest hassles of visiting a foreign place for the first time is trying to figure out what to do and how we can ensure we don’t miss out on anything. Even though we’re on vacation and the main idea is to relax and rejuvenate after a long year of hard work, at the same time we do want to take advantage of our time there and make the most of it (at least I do). So then there’s the question of what to do, what is good to do and what is a waste of time. The good news is I test all these things when I go to a place and you can simply read it up here in my journal, which will save you doing something you don’t enjoy or wasting a day for something your really weren’t that impressed about.

The cool thing about the Mayan Riviera, which is located on the East Coast of Mexico is that there is loads to do. For those of you into history and ancient civilizations there are the Mayan Ruins and Ancient town sites, complete with these amazing pyramids we oh so often find pics of online. Especially last year, with this whole Mayan Calendar coming to an end and thus the world also having to come to an end as my goodness, if they didn’t plan ahead past a couple of thousands of years for sure that means everything will cease to exist (haha just like the whole y2k crazy back in the day, funny stuff…).

Ancient Towns

BB-MayaIn terms of ancient towns I visited both the Chichen Itza ($57 MEX entrance fee) and Tulum National Parks ($51 MEX). The Chichen Itza is something you definitely have to see just because it’s the thing to see there and one of those been there, done that places. That being said, believe it or not, it really is a remarkable piece of architecture and I’m not going to deny that I definitely was impressed with it. I’ve seen a lot of amazing architectural so-called master pieces in a lot of amazing countries and I’m going to put this as the one that I am most glad I visited and would have been very gutted had I not (this is definitely the one thing I absolutely do recommend). The Tulum site is actually more comfortable and feels more like a town than the Chichen Itza site; however, unless you are really interested in this kind of thing I don’t know how necessary a visit is, although it will guarantee you a lot of nice shots. I didn’t visit Coba ruins but would like to mention it here anyway as it is located near Tulum and one of the few Pyramids you are still allowed to climb (climbing the steps of the Chichen Itza was prohibited in 2001 due to an accident but is not a decision I necessarily disagree with, as it also helps maintain the artifact which has taken much effort to restore as clearly visible by comparing the restored side to the untouched one).

The guided tour

I decided to take the easy way for this trip when I was there and went along on a guided tour which, all in all was ok; however, since it was only the Chichen Itza that really interested me I’m not going to deny that actually the rest really didn’t interest me in the slightest and was in fact a kind of waste of time, at least for me. It was nice enough, included a lunch in a Mexican Restaurant with dancing, a visit to a Cenote (underground natural pit/sinkhole common in Mexico) and a visit to a local town; however, these are all things I could have done on my own and really didn’t need a guided tour that ended up taking up the whole day when really it could have been done in half a day by only seeing the things I wanted. that being said I am a travel consultant and have to test out these things, would be a crummy one if I didn’t so voila! The things I do for you…. haha jk ;P At this point I may however note that there are 2 tour options available to choose from when you’re there, one costing around $80, the other $110. The one for $80 is done in the order I mentioned. The one for $110 is all-inclusive, meaning they serve you local beverages (alcoholic and non) throughout the day, you are given a sun umbrella to use and also the order of the different stops is different (both options include lunch). This tour begins with the Chichen Itza site visit and ends with the Cenote, the idea behind this is that you are meant to arrive there before the tourists and also in the morning, rather than in the late afternoon when it is most hot (and yes, it was hot!).

Tulum

Tulum-townAs far as Tulum is concerned it is worth a visit for the beach alone; however, unless you’re into visiting ancient towns and ruins I wouldn’t necessarily say the archeological site there is something you absolutely have to pay entrance to and visit (although as far as the site is concerned it was nice and felt like people actually did once live here). It’s nice and spacious, the beach inside the ancient town is amazing and wild, the water blue and the sand as white as you can imagine; however, it is crowded with the many tourists that had the same idea as you to hit the beach while visiting this ancient town and the beach is in fact quite small and surrounded by rocks and cliffs that the waves crash against, as the water also is pretty wild there. Again, the wild water and crashing against the rocks and cliffs is kinda cool, but at the same time makes you not want to get too close to the edges as it really is quite fierce. As for photos, yes… if you are a photo person and want amazing shots then do visit this place as you’ll find plenty to photograph. Long story short: if you’re going for the photos and are planning on going to Tulum then visit the ancient town but if it’s an amazing beach you’re after don’t bother paying the entrance as the actual Tulum beach (on the top 10 list of beaches of the world, by the way) stretches over miles, is absolutely amazing (the water is perfect!) and free to visit.

Tulum Beach

Mayan-CenoteNature Fans

Regarding the Cenotes it’s not necessary to visit the one on the guided tour (unless you wanna do it all in a day) as there are plenty of them everywhere and you can not only visit these on your own, but much nicer ones then the one included on the tour in the Akumal area. For all you nature fans, the Mayan Riviera offers a vast selection of things to do and is definitely one of the most “fun” places to visit, the options on adventure and nature days are countless! From the Cenotes to the crazy Ziplining, Scuba diving, Snorkeling, Jungle trips, ATV and other natural things like swimming with giant turtles (Akumal) and even these blue vegetarian whale shark things, you will have plenty to choose from here making it an ideal destination for friends, families and adventurous couples.

Luxury/Nightlife/Shopping fansMexican-Michael

One of the other things I decided I definitely wanted to do while in Mexico was visit the hotel zone in Cancun, as this was the place that it all began in and also the properties there alone are amazing and worth the visit. From the Waldorf Astoria to the Ritz Carlton, you’ve got it all in the hotel zone in Cancun. To get there we just hopped onto one of these carpool services and then got onto the R-1 bus, which does a massive circle up and down the hotel zone and departs from pretty much right where you get off the car pool and returns there as well. You can find out more about how to carpool to Cancun in my carpool post.

In my opinion, definite must dos:

  • Chichen Itza

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  • Tulum Beach (the free one)
  • Cancun (Do try and stay in one of these amazing hotels at least for a night if you have money to spend, even if you prefer to stay in a Resort further south if you’d like a good night out, Coco Bongo is good for this and shopping is amazing in the Luxury Shopping Centres in the Hotel Zone as well!)
  • Coco Bongo (the original is in Cancun and there is a second in Playa del Carmen for those further down south as well)
  • Adventure day (if you don’t like the heat I’d suggest an aqua day rather than a jungle day)
  • 5th Avenue in Playa del Carmen if you’re not staying in Cancun but a Resort further south, can get your souvenir shopping done here and also have a chance to brush shoulders with the locals.
  • Personal interest: swim with animals, ziplining etc
  • Local festivals – do try and attend one if there happens to be something going on, always good fun.

Long story short: part of the risk on visiting a resort in the middle of nowhere is always the risk of not having anything much to do. Here in the Mayan Riviera that definitely is not the case and you’ll have plenty of options to choose from, so enjoy!

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