As you saw in my previous articles, I decided to write about each country separately and explain our holiday. I also find it difficult to say all I want to and explain all we have experienced in only one article without being too boring and long. So I write a separate one with tips for your next trip to Mexico, some small bits of information that would have been useful for us to know before or perhaps to really consider when we planned our trip.

Mexico is really big and if you have enough time to go around you can visit tons of ruins in all areas. Nature is exquisite in the Yucatan Peninsula so reserve some time to experience the jungle and all its animals, as well as the water and all it has to offer.

Here below some small pieces of advice, all based on my experience from this past holiday.

1. Do not spend too much time in Cancun. The city is not really exceptional. The beach side of Cancun has tons of huge hotels, lined up next to each other. They all have their own beach with nice and soft sand and the water is warm and clean. Even if it can be quite nice, there are much better beaches in Mexico.
2. Spend more than a week in Tulum. It is extremely beautiful, undeveloped, for now (it has actually hugely developed in the last few years – sadly), and the beach is super close to the jungle, which makes it really beautiful when you sleep in a cabana on the beach and you have all kinds of birds waking you up in the morning.
3. I say spend more days in Tulum because when you are there, you should really take some days to visit Mayan ruins or see the nature around. Any trip you make usually lasts between 6 to 8 hours, so by the time you are back, if you go like us in winter, the sun is about to set.
4. Visit the Coba and Chichen Itza ruins. These are very beautiful and really different. Take a local guide who can really explain everything to you. I have read several books about the Mayans after our trip and I must tell you I have actually acquired the exact same information from the two guides we had in Coba and Chichen Itza. Chichen Itza is a UNESCO heritage and one of the New 7 World Wonders and it would be a pity to miss, especially, if, like Dan and I, you plan on visiting them all.
5. Visit Si’an Khan, a natural reservation that has remained virgin and very much untouched by people. Villagers from the area do not want tourists or any hotels and they insist on keeping the place as it is. And it is extremely beautiful. We saw dolphins while there, snorkeled in a beautiful reef and swam in the most amazing water.
6. Do not leave Tulum without taking a bath in a cenote. Cenotes are natural caves with water formed because the limelight has been corroded and they are AMAZING. It is really a unique experience and some of them are breathtaking.
7. Always have some money ready for tips. People in Mexico don’t get a high salary and tips are quite mandatory. Mexicans need to leave tips, and foreigners are highly recommended to do so. People manage to survive and eat from the land they work on, but it is very difficult for them to make money. Tourism has helped many families and many live off the tips they get. Plus, they are really eager to please and really deserve these tips.
8. Eat as much ceviche as you can as it is the best! Mexican food in general is awesome and you don’t get tired of it easily. You should go into fish markets, choose your fish and ask them to cook it for you. They make the best fish and it is very cheap in comparison to any other places.
9. We did all the tours with a guide who picked us up and drove us around. They have not really been too great, and to be honest they functioned more as drivers rather than guides as when we were visiting sites, we had local guides who explained everything. Even though the roads are really good in Mexico, I am not sure if I would rent a car as some sites are not very well signalized.
10. The best reef is near Cozumel. If you are into diving you should really go there and dive away.

Hope this helps and you will enjoy your next trip in Mexico. It’s safe, people are very nice and helpful and the weather is crazy awesome.

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Photos by moi with my phone

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