mexico

Chichen Itza

Mexico

Overview

Maps

Overview:
I traveled to Yucatan, Mexico during the thanksgiving of 1997 with five friends. We were really in the peninsula for 3 days, but we packed in Merida and Cancun! Thanksgiving is a great time to visit Mexico because few people actually go there during that time. You have to gamble a bit: the weather is less predictable during winter. But we were blessed with three days of sunshine and gentle breeze. It rained a bit in the afternoon while we were in Chicheng Itza, but we didn't mind the sprinkle at all. Actually it made our trip in the rain forest much more authentic!

Mexico is amazing: its people warm and passionate, its landscape breathtakingly beautiful, and you cannot beat the price! One of the guys traveled with us has been to Hawaii couple of times. His comments: 'Cancun is as beautiful, if not more, as Hawaii, but it is so much cheaper!'

My recollections of the places we traveled are fairly accurate. I remember the details vividly because this was the first major trip I took outside the United States. However, I don't really remember the hotels and tour operators we used because it was so long ago and the names are in Spanish! I searched on the internet and tried my best to rediscover the hotels we stayed.

Last, but not least of all, I wish to thank my five travel mates, whose humor, bright smiles, and enthusiasm for travelling made this trip so memorable. We were the loudest group in any places we visited because we were laughing and joking all the time and having a blast. Thanks to all of you: Lily K, Lily Z, Chindy, Henry, and Qing! That was the best trip I've ever had!
back to top

Tour itinerary:
First day: arrive at Merida
Second day: tour Chicheng Itza. Go to Cancun on bus
Third day: Isla Mujeres (the island of women), night clubbing
Fourth day: Tulum, Xcaret, return to Merida on bus
Fifth day: fly back.
back to top

Transportation:
Despite our brief stay, we've tried all modes of transportation in Mexico that are available to tourist: taxi, tour van, local bus, rental car, and 'Mexican greyhound.'

Taxi is cheap and plentiful in Mexico. It is an efficient way to get around inside the cities we stayed. Local buses are cheaper, but it is hard to get a seat on the crowded bus. In Cancun, we took bus from our hotel to the beach section of the town simply because they were so close to each other.

We booked a tour to Chichen Itza from Merida. The tour van was a brand new mini-van (8 seater) with AC. We also used the same driver to pick us up from the airport since we got there around night time and the more conservative members of our group prefer a pick-up instead of hailing a cab. It turned out that getting a taxi in the middle of the night was never a problem in Merida, let alone Cancun!

We rented a van in Cancun for one day to explore the Southern coast. It cost us 150 dollars to rent the van, and we almost didn't get it. The folks who should've returned the van we reserved never showed up. The operator had to get a van from another rental place for us. Driving in Mexico was easier and safer than we thought.

Mexico has an amazing inter-city bus system ! We took the bus from Chichen Itza to Cancun, then from Cancun back to Merida. It is cheap (about 10 dollars per person for the trip from Cancun back to Merida) and comfortable. The first class bus we took was equipped with a bathroom and a TV (they played a movie for us!), had few stops along the way, and had an AC that was way too efficient.
back to top

Hotels:
In Merida we stayed in Del Gobernador. It got good reviews from AAA, even though it is a 2 star hotel. Since it was very centrally located, we walked to many landmarks in Merida the next morning before the driver picked us up for Chichen Itza. We spent 32 dollars per room (triple occupancy). The AC was noisy, and you couldn't sleep without it because it was hot and humid at night, even in November. The street outside the hotel happened to be a major thoroughfare in Merida, and we were woken up to sounds of heavy trucks rolling over our heads at 5am in the morning! The last night we stayed there was a Saturday; and luckily, all traffic disappeared on Sunday. We slept like babies!

In Cancun we stayed in Antillano. It was slightly more expensive than Gobernador. It was very clean, and quiet at night.
back to top

Places we visited:
In Merida we went to Chichen Itza with a tour operator. For 36 dollars per person, the tour includes round trip transportation, entrance fee, and a very nice buffet lunch in a hotel. Out tour guide also stopped at factories and Mayan villages to let us experience modern Merida life. The Mayan ruins in Chichen Itza are truly magnificent! This is a site with pictures of Chichen Itza .

In Cancun we spent a day on Isla Mujeres. It is a little island off the north coast of Cancun. If you grow tired of the busy tourist life in Cancun, Isla Mujeres is the perfect place to go and decompress. We took a taxi to a harbor with boat operators who took us on a full day tour of the island. We spent 20 dollars per person for the tour including lunch and snorkeling. They landed us in the shopping strip of the island first. But since we were there so early, nothing was open except restaurants. We then spent couple hours playing on sand beach. According to the guys, 50% women on the beach were topless. We snorkeled in two spots while the boat operators tossed bread crumbs into the water to attract fish! It was the best snorkeling I've ever done in my life: the marine life was lively and beautiful. We had a lovely lunch on the beach: a HUGE freshly grilled king mackerel, with salad, chips and salsa. The six of us only finished one side of the fish! We also swam with a sleepy shark! That night we went to a night club frequent by locals recommended by our hotel. Everybody danced salsa there. The music was good, the dancers...they were so hot! After I returned to the Bay Area, I promptly took a ballroom dancing class to learn Salsa!

The next day in Cancun we drive to Tulum in our rented van. It was a long drive (over two hours). The ruins were less impressive than Chichen Itza, but still very pretty. There was a beach area not far from the ruins but we didn't have time to explore. On our way back, we visited Xcaret, an amazingly beautiful seaside amusement park with crystal clear lagoons, a underground river, and white sand beach with palm trees. You have to see the night performance in the amphitheatre. It will be a performance that will mesmerize you and enchant you. I will remember it for the rest of my life.
back to top

Food:
Food is great and inexpensive in Mexico. We spent 10 dollars for all of us (6 people!) for a breakfast consisted of pastries and juices brought from a local super market in Cancun. Most dinners cost 7-8 dollars per person. I don't remember a single meal that I didn't enjoy.
back to top

back to travel index