2 weeks itinerary. Looking for suggestions, comments, etc.
Replies: 5 - Last Post: Nov 26, 2012 4:00 PM Last Post By: marlajfish
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2 weeks itinerary. Looking for suggestions, comments, etc.
Hello fellow travellers!,I was wondering if anyone could perhaps have a look at my itinerary and comment or make suggestions. Am i missing some ''must do'' or does anything doesnt make sense. Well probably rent a car but id like to know if this is doable by public transport none the less. Just in case.
Are we spending too much time in Merida ?
What should we do on day 4 ? We need to stay in the are to wait for our friends to fly in.
Too much ruins ? Which would you eliminate ?
Might skip the stop at Becan, Xpujil and Calakmul to head directly to Tulum from Campeche.
Heres the layout:
31 janvier day 1: Arriving in Cancun. Relax
1 février day 2: Rio Lagartos natural reserve, etc. Back to Cancun to explore/rest
2/02/13 day 3: Daytrip to Cozumel, rent a motorbike and spend the day exploring beaches and snorkeling.
3/02/13 day 4: ???
4/02/13 day 5: Early departure for Valladolid. Stopping at Cenote Dzitnup and Ek Balam ruins. Explore/spend the night in Valladolid.
5/02/13 day 6: Early departure for Chichen Itza. Stopping at Cenote Ik kIl en route. Continue onward to Merida to spend a few days in the area.
6/02/13 day 7:Explore Merida / Cooking class / Market / Plaza / The Cathedral / Centenario Park / etc.
7/02/13 day 8: Day trip Puuc Route. Loltun caves, Museo de cacao, Kabah, Uxmal, back to Merida to rest and explore/enjoy the city some more.
8/02/13 day 9: Daytrip to Celestun reserve then back to Merida to relax before Friday night carnival parade and parties!
9/02/13 day 10: Leave Merida for Campeche. Explore Campeche.
10/02/13 day 11: Explore Campeche
11/02/13 day 12: Leave Campeche early to visit Becan ruins. Spend the night in Xpujil
12/02/13 day 13: Wake up early and go visit Calakmul ruins then head toward Tulum.
13/02/13 day 14: Coba, Aktun Chen caves, playa paraiso
14/02/13 day 15: Puerto Morelos or Akumal : relax, snorkel, dive and beach time
15/02/13 day 16: Puerto Morelos or Akumal : relax, snorkel, dive and beach time
16/02/13 day 17: Puerto Morelos or Akumal : relax, snorkel, dive and beach time
17/02/13 day 18: catch flight home
Thanks! Looking forward reading your comments.
1
1 février day 2: Rio Lagartos natural reserve, etc. Back to Cancun to explore/restI would suggest visiting Rio Lagartos from Valladolid, which is much closer (and a more interesting colonial city) than Cancun.
3/02/13 day 4: ???
Without knowing what your interests are, I would suggest a daytrip to Isla Mujeres, close and easy by public transport.
7/02/13 day 8: Day trip Puuc Route
Are you really interested in Mayan ruins? iI not, consider visiting Uxmal only.
12/02/13 day 13: Wake up early and go visit Calakmul ruins then head toward Tulum
If you have a car, then it's easy to visit Calakmul, but more difficult by public transport.
2
Not too much time in Merida at all. With a bit of luck, you may survive the motor scooter rental in Cozumel. Many tourists are injured or killed in accidents. Cozumel is interesting but rent a VW convertible. You can do it for about 35 dollars a day.3
Overall - a very nice trip, BUT - something's gotta go. Way too rushed in places and the plan isn't logical in some placesSpecifically:
The plan to go to Ria Lagartos from Cancun and return all in one day isn't practical. Especially since you then backtrack to Valladolid just a few days later.
Better to travel to Valladolid and base out of there for day trips to Ria Lagartos, Chitzen Itza, Ek Balam, cenotes.
From there travel to Mérida and base out of there for your day trips to the ruta puuc and Celestún.
Then on to Campeche. Consider visiting the ruins of Edzna from Campeche (unless you are getting full-up of ruins by then).
After that, the day of visiting Clakmul from Xpujil and then driving all the way to Tulum isn't practical - that'll be a long, long day. Better to break it up by staying at Chetumal or Bacalar. Then, next day, go to Puerto Morelos and day trip to Coba, Cozumel, etc. Also consider driving into the Sian ka'an preserve towards Punta Allen or visiting Maya towns in the area.
After that - it's probably time to go home.
4
It's a pity to go two hours (ish) to Celestun, then turn around and go two hours back to Merida instead of simply carrying on to Campeche. Weekends in Merida are fun, though, so it's worth doing if there's no other way to be in Merida on the Friday night.5
Go to Ek Balam. Amazing ruins and they have only recently been excavated so there is NO ONE THERE! When we were there in the off season the caretaker, who's an archeologist, was telling me they were having like 50 people a day compared to thousands and thousands at Chichen Itza. One small section even has original plaster left over from the Mayan days. It's halfway between Merida and Cancun. Stay at the Genesis Eco-Retreat. The owner, Lee, will take you around the tiny Mayan village and you can learn how real Mayan people live today. We loved it there. In fact I skipped the thundering hordes at Chichen Itza because I wanted to soak in the limestone pool at Genesis instead. At Ek Balam, there's also an incredible cenote (sinkhole) you can take stairs down or rappel down into it. Gorgeous. Very cheap.
