Cancún, a Mexican city on the Yucatán Peninsula bordering the Caribbean Sea, is known for its beaches, numerous resorts and nightlife. It’s a place of white sand beaches and clear blue waters, making it nothing less than Heaven on Earth. We were extremely excited for this paradise of a vacation. The best time to visit Cancún is from December to April. We planned our trip in January, 2020. Let’s start with some basic information:
- US citizens/H1B visa holder don’t need visas to go to Mexico, but make sure you have a passport.
- I suggest getting the Google Translate app and downloading Spanish offline.
- Also download the offline map of Cancun on your Google Maps app
- Having some cash in local currency while traveling is always a good idea, especially in Mexico because you’d need cash to tip your guide or at some places exchange rate is not good, so better to have some cash. You will find many places in HotelZone who provide good exchange rate.(Don’t exchange currency at Airport)
Fly and Stay
We have planned for 8 days trip to Cancun. We took package from Costco which includes round way air tickets, pickup and drop off from Airport to Resort and accommodation with daily breakfast and resort coupons inclusive. Trust me you will find best deals from Costco, even you can customize your trip based on your needs.
Costco provide so many hotel options, we booked our resort in Hotel Zone as it is one of the safest areas in Cancun, lined up with numerous beautiful yet fairly budget friendly resorts along the strip of pristine white sand beaches. There are multiple bars and restaurants in and around Hotel Zone to keep you entertained as well.
TIP: Keep in mind that most of the excursions take about an hour and a half to two hours of travel from Hotel Zone, so you will have to wake up early and have an early start, no matter if you’re driving or taking a group tour.
Getting Around
Surprisingly, there’s no Uber or Lyft in Cancun. Instead, there’s a mediocre taxi-hailing app called Easy , but you won’t miss it much since the cheapest and easiest way to visit many attractions in and around Cancun is either by public transport, on foot or through local group tours.
Local R1 & R2 buses run every few minutes between Hotel Zone and downtown throughout the night, which makes getting to many cool clubs and restaurants in downtown fairly convenient and inexpensive!
Day 1: Relax at the Beaches
We landed to Cancun at 10:30AM and reached our resort Grand Fiesta American Coral Beach around 12:45 PM, we were little tired due to night flight which was via Miami, So thought of taking rest for sometime. Then around 4PM we went out to see local area, and check for tours to visit historic beautiful sites. You will get some discount if you book tours from vendors available at Hotel.
Day 2: Isla Mujeres
Isla Mujeres is a Mexican island in the Caribbean Sea, 13 kilometers off the coast from Cancún. You will find beautiful white sand beaches, calm crystal and clear turquoise water and the Caribbean sea is at its most vibrant.
We took a ferry from our hotel to Isla Murjee( We got ferry tickets from Hotel as it was included in our package). Ferry starts at 8AM in the morning, ruins after every 1 hour from Cancun to Isla Murjee and last ferry timing is 5:00PM,
After reaching to Isla Murjee, We hired a cute little golf cart for a day and zipped along the south-eastern coast, taking shots of the craggy hills as the giant waves splashed into them. There are various other attractions along the route. From a small museum detailing the naval history of the island to some impressive houses along the east coast and the streets which are filled with quaint colorful little houses
MUSA is an innovative project designed to counteract the effects of climate change on our oceans and reef systems. The sculptures change overtime, as coral grows and marine life establishes itself. It is must do thing in Isla Murjee, Cancun.
Day 3: Tulum and Coba
We booked Group Tour to visit Coba and Tulum tour from Alltournative, they have really amazing guide, we learnt a lot about Maya Culture from them.
Coba : A nice walk through the jungle part of the ruins ending with the pyramid which we climbed to the top. The view from there was beautiful. The climb down is a little intimidating but a lot of fun. You could rent bikes and ride them around the area too. We got ripped off at the beverages hut next to the pyramid but it was very hot and we needed to cool off after the climb and descent.
Tulum is a town on the Caribbean coastline of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula. It’s known for its beaches and well-preserved ruins of an ancient Mayan port city. The main building is a large stone structure called El Castillo (castle), perched on a rocky cliff above the white sand beach and turquoise sea.
Day 4: Chichen Itza
Chichen Itza is one of the “New 7 Wonders of the World” due to its large concentration of culturally-significant, ancient manmade wonders and its placing in the top 7 of all nominees during international voting.
Chichen Itza is home to a number of architectural and natural wonders, including El Castillo, the Great Ball Court, the Temple of the Warriors, the Sacred Cenote, and more. The term Chichen Itza means ‘the mouth at the well of Itza’. It is believed Itza means ‘water magicians’, deriving from the Mayan Itz for ‘magic’ and á for ‘water’.
We booked tickets online from Playa Del Carmen Tours and took evening tour of Lights and sound, at that time the park is less crowded, so you can click good pictures 😎 and can witness the beautiful sunset view of the pyramid.
Chichén Itzá at night is a must see!!!you can walk around a park under a stars and realize why the Mayans understood the night sky so well. The night ends with an awesome light show that goes through the history of the Mayans.
Day 5: Downtown
Buses will take you to almost every place around downtown and there are bus stops in front of almost every hotel in the Hotel Zone. If you want to go to club Coco Bongo, Market 28, or Parque Las Palapas then you need to take the R2 bus. The bus ride costs 10 pesos one way (or $1 if you’re paying in USD), so it’s a pretty cheap option to travel.
So we went to Mercado Market 28, they have variety of stuff and if you know bargaining, then you will enjoying doing shopping there with authentic delicious Mexican street food.
Day 6: Xcarte
Xcaret is a huge park with lots to do and something for everyone, so be prepared to walk!. It has a fantastic beach, snorkeling area, great buffets, amazing wildlife, and cultural activities attractions like Underground Rivers, Beach, lagoon & pools, Tropical Jungle Trail, Rotating Scenic Tower, in addition to a great final show, recommended for all ages since there are different circuits.
The best thing about this park is, you can connect with nature. When we first entered and saw this huge park it was like we have entered into some different world which is full of adventure.
Somewhere in Xcaret Jungle
Xcaret Beach 
Underwater Trek
Day 7: Ek Balam and Cenote
Ekʼ Balam means “Black Jaguar” in the Yucatec Mayan language, as it is often referred to, was a powerful symbol of the Mayan civilization. The city of Ek Balam thrived for more than a thousand years from 100 BC to 900 AD. This is a recent excavation site of the city. The entrance price to Ek Balam is 413 pesos.
The site is not large but loaded with amazing Mayan architecture, this site served as the tomb of Ek Balam first King Ukit Kan Le’k Tok’. The huge teeth-like structure in front that makes the entrance look like a big monster mouth. For Mayans, this means an entry to the underworld. There are many well preserved pyramids and other buildings here that you can climb on and enjoyed breathtaking views!
Day 8: Cancun Hotel Zone
La Isla Shopping Village is a bustling area in Hotel Zone full of amazing restaurants, bars, street performers and shopping brands. From Coach to Louis Vuitton, you will find almost everything here.
You will find an Amazing sunset view, We had an amazing dinner with a beautiful sunset at Thai & Elefanta Restaurant, they serve delicious Thai and Indian cusinies. If you want to have dinner with sunset, you need to make reservation.
Have a Night to Remember at Coco Bongo
Coco Bongo is nothing like your usual night club; with flying acrobats, elaborate musical performances and an ultimate party atmosphere, a night at Coco Bongo will surely be a night to remember!. This is just at walkable distance from our Hotel.
Remember to be there before their opening time because the lines tend to get pretty long, and yah this happens every single night. I’d suggest you buy the tickets online in advance because there were long lines at the ticket counter too and you wouldn’t want to waste even a second standing in line when so much fun awaits! The ticket prices might seem a bit much at first but your ticket also includes an open bar, so make the most of it!
Day 9: Ready for Departure
We had spa for relaxing ourself before departure and enjoyed Hotel facilities.
Packing Tips:
- Don’t forget to pack Sunscreen and Mosquito Rebel.
- You will need many swimsuit set because most of the places has water activities to do.
- Keep water bottles and snacks item while visiting any sites.
Zesty Soul 