Cancun

[socktape]

Originally Posted by OBCT

I'm going to Cancun (actually Playa del Carmen) in a couple of weeks myself, so this thread is timely.

- Would you guys say that all 3 of the suggested ruins are worth paying a guided tour for on a single trip?
- If you only were to pay for a guided tour to one of the three ruins, which would it be? Chitzen Itza due to the long distance?
- How decent would self-guided tours to Tulum and Coba be?

What do you recommend for general transportation between towns/points of interest? What's the comfort/price difference between bus, taxi, car rental, etc?

One more question: What's the best area for (free?) snorkelling down there? Other than the rental equipment, of course. We're not interested in a guided snorkel tour, just an afternoon dip in some nice clear water (with some wildlife), hopefully.

Thanks for all the good advice already!

1. If you are going for only a week I wouldn't go to all three unless seeing ruins is really your thing. That being said each site has its own uniqueness and a guide would be able to help you out. If you can, get with a couple of other people and split the cost. Most sites have guys at the gates willing to be guides and get you in the park. They buy multiple season's passes and get you in that way and then take you around. Tulum has one of the best beaches in the world... make sure you bring your trunks!

Word of advice... if you are comfortable doing it, skip the tours. Do it yourself using transit(collectivo) or rent a car. It will probably work out cheaper and you are on your own timeline(the key thing here). Nothing more crappy when you are out in the bay snorkeling and you find a baracuda/turtle/stingray to follow around but... time to go the bus is leaving.


2. If you haggle with them you can get a guide relatively cheap so all three is really an option. We averaged about US$10/pp but you might be able to do better.

3. can't really comment on this as we didn't go this route. They have little markers at Tulum that you can read but it wouldn't be the same.

From what I understand as well there are a bunch of ruins up and down the beach around Playa del Carmen... go for a walk and you might find some interesting stuff.


last one: The best place on the cheap(and arguably the best place in general) is at Akumal. There are two kind of areas here, one where you don't have to pay to get in and another where you do. Both have a lot to see but the pay part is a little better and more sheltered. It isn't much to get in about $10 or so. There is a rental place there and food etc.

As far as I know there aren't any tours here so you have to get there buy taxi, rental or collectivo(if you don't mind a little walk this is the cheapest about 2-2.50 each way per person).

there are a lot of travel forums that cover these in more detail.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g...Vacations.html
follow the forum link
http://palladiumaddict.net/PAForum/v...45ff7266e1d322
This one is for the palladium resort but there is a lot of good info for what you can do and how to go about it... just have to read into it.

[OBCT]

Originally Posted by wpgflamesfan

When are you headed down. I might be there at the same time and maybe we could do a mini cp summit at the sports bar down there and catch a game.

We're there November 24th-29th. There are Flames games on the 25th, 27th and 28th.

That could be fun. I'll be there with my parents, and some family friends from the Calgary area. They're all Flames fans (though CFL is their real love), and could probably be persuaded into an evening of hockey and cold beverage as well.

I don't know what area your hotel is, but I've heard good things about End Zone Sports Bar. It's also very close to our hotel.

[FurnaceFace]

I don't remember the exact cost of flying but from Cozumel it was something like $150 and the ferry/bus was $100. Probably $50 more or something like that but worth every penny. Went back and looked at my pics and the airline was Aeroferinco but not sure they are still around. It was a fun flight, the twin prop (think Jazz flights to Edmonton) was Russian made and had all the Fasten Seat Belt signs in Cyrillic. I did find private Cessna flights but they were $300 a pop at least.

Tulum is the simplest ruin to get but I don't think it's got the same feel at Chichen. Chichen is one of the top ruins. I haven't been to Coba but it looks pretty good.







Note the lack of people in my shots.

For snorkelling you can find any number of places in the ocean. Akumal is likely the best area but there are spots all up the coast. Best is to do an internet search for spots near your hotel or hit up tripadvisor etc for reviews from people who were at your hotel.