Yucatan Peninsula is one of the most visited destinations in Mexico. People visit this tropical paradise to explore party scenes in Cancun or experience the boho chic yet luxurious vibe of Tulum. While you should definitely visit these two very popular places atleast once, we are here to help you plan a trip that also covers some of the most beautiful islands, hidden gems and towns that this part of Mexico has to offer.
How to get to Yucatan Peninsula?
We were looking at two options from Austin, Texas when we were planning our trip to Yucatan. You can choose any of these options based on which destinations you plan to cover.
Flying to Cancun: If you are planning to visit Isla Mujeres, Playa Del Carmen or Isla Holbox then Cancun airport is the best option. All these places are 2-3 hours drive from Cancun. We travelled via American Airlines in May and our total flight duration was ~2.5 to 3 hours. Taking a morning flight will leave you with plenty of time to explore Cancun or travel to your intended destination. We booked our flights in advance and were able to get a good deal with tickets costing $300 per per person round trip.
Flying to Tulum: Tulum airport is the best option if you are planning to visit Akumal or Bacalar. These places are closer to Tulum and you can also plan a day trip to beautiful Cenotes, Chitchen Itza and Valladolid from Tulum. While we did visit some of these attractions on our trip, we did not fly to/from Tulum. We drove down with our rental car. The flight tickets were slightly more expensive for us than Cancun.
Day 1 and 2 – Isla Holbox, Mexico
This island is 2 hours from Cancun and still a less popular destination than other big cities of Yucatan Peninsula. If you are looking for a relaxed vibe, clear blue waters that are perfect for a swim and boho vibes without paying a hefty price for it, Holbox is perfect for you. You can only get to this island by ferries that operate from Chiquila. Many people consider Holbox to be the next Tulum of Mexico. Our suggestion is to explore this hidden gem of an island before it starts attracting large crowds. The most unique thing about this island is that there are no automobiles allowed here. That brings us to our next question!
You can read our complete guide to Holbox below:
Holbox Mexico: Guide to Activities, Stays and Food
How do you explore Holbox, Yucatan Peninsula?
You can either rent a bicycle from one of the many rental shops around town or you can rent a golf cart to drive you around town. With the golf carts, you can either choose to drive your own golf cart (an expensive alternative) or you can get a golf cart taxi. We mostly walked around the island and took a couple of rides in golf cart taxi to/from our hotel.
Must-Experience Activities in Holbox
- Relax at Playa Holbox
- Sunrise at Punta Mosquito
- Enjoy exploring the secluded Punta Coco beach and relax at the beach club (You may have to walk through some seaweed to get here depending on the season)
- Witness Bioluminescence on a dark night
- Watch the Flamingoes in Punta Mosquito
- Explore beautiful murals around the island
- Breakfast at one of the many trendy, acai bowl places
- Fresh mexican tacos for lunch at a beach side restaurant
- Enjoy mango slices coated with chilli sold by the vendor on beach
- Three Islands Tour from Holbox – Isla de los Pajaros, Isla de la Pasion and Yalahau Lagoon (This is a day trip and may require an additional day apart from the 2 days in the intinerary)
- Experience the nightlife in the island
- Swim with whale sharks from June-September
Day 3 – Akumal
After spending a relaxing couple of days in the offbeat island of Yucatan Peninsula, it’s time to visit the beautiful neighbor city of Tulum. We are talking about Akumal, a beautiful beach town in Riviera Maya that is also known for being less commercial and more pristine compared to Tulum or Cancun. The name Akumal literally translates to “Place of the Turtles” in Mayan language. Yes, you guessed it right! This place is famous for it’s sea turtles.
Where did we stay in Akumal?
In all our travels, we think Akumal is one of the most beautiful stays we have booked through an Airbnb. We had our own private access to a beautiful cenote. The airbnb was in the Yal-Ku lagoon area, so be sure to add it in your airbnb search criteria. Trust me, you will never forget the stay!
We preferred staying for 2 days in Akumal instead of Tulum. Tulum can get very expensive, especially if you wish to stay close to the beach clubs. Staying in Akumal cost us much less money and we had our own private Cenote. Who needs a swimming pool when you can explore the rich marine life in a Cenote?? It takes 45 mins to reach Tulum from Akumal via car. If you are comfortable driving this distance for a day trip to Tulum, you can book a stay in Akumal.
Must-Experience Activities in Akumal
- Swim or Snorkel with Sea Turtles in Akumal Bay. You can either book a guide or do this on your own by renting snorkeling gear
- Explore the Yal-Ku Lagoon. You might even get to see schools of sardines swimming in the cenote or manta ray depending on the season (You can also experience a sardine run in Philippines)
- Visit Popular Cenotes like Dos Ojos
- Visit Akumal Beach
Day 4 – Chichen Itza and Valladolid
A trip to Yucatan Peninsula is incomplete without visiting one of the 7th wonder of the world. It’s a 2 to 2.5 hours from Tulum/Akumal and can be planned as a day trip. The major highlight of this monument is the El Castillo which is a huge step pyramid. If you stand at a specific spot in front of El Castillo and clap your hands, you can hear an echo in the form of a chirp. It is believed that the chirp sounds like the call of a quetzal, an important bird in the Mayan History. You can spend half a day exploring the ruins of this ancient Mayan city. You will get a glimpse of how the people lived here and experienced their daily lives.
It’s a fascinating thing to discover pieces of history and realize how advance some civilizations were. Apart from El Castillo, you can also visit the ruins of an observatory, a wall of skulls and temple of warriors among other sites of archaeological importance. Make sure you carry plenty of fluids and a cap as the day can get very hot when you travel in summer. You can book the tickets here.
That brings us to our next highlight! After hours of exploring the historical site in the summer heat, you can cool off by jumping into the cold waters of Ik-Kil Cenote. You step down into a cave and enter this beautiful cenote. You can see the sky and green vines wrapping around the opening of the cenote when you look up.
Must-Experience Activities in Chichen Itza and Valladolid
- Visit one of the 7 wonders of the world, Chichen Itza and explore the Mayan Ruins
- Have a Photoshoot in Cenote Suyutun (We had to skip this because we didn’t have enough time and the last entry is at 4:30 PM)
- Dip in the cool waters of Cenote Ik-Kil
- Explore the charming Valladolid and have a late lunch at the beautiful El Mason del Marques
- Sit at the Valladolid town square and watch the beautiful Jarana dance
Day 5 – Tulum, Yucatan Peninsula
After exploring the hidden gems of Quintana Roo, it is time to spend some time in the hotspot. Tulum is known for it’s luxurious beach clubs and nightlife. With it’s boho chic beach vibes, Tulum attracts millions of tourists every year. It is also home to many of the cenotes in Yucatan Peninsula. There are three areas in Tulum where you can stay based on your preference: Downtown has all the good restaurants and nightclubs, Beach area with it’s luxurious and secluded beach clubs and Aldea Zama, an ecological gated community known for its tranquility.
Must Experience Activities in Tulum
- Visit Ven A La Luz and get those instarammable photos
- Explore Tulum Ruins and enjoy watching the ocean from the top of the cliffs
- Click a photo next to the popular sign “Follow That Dream”
- Enjoy the nightlife at one of the popular beach clubs like Taboo, Tantra (We did find these places to be expensive and they had a cover charge too)
- Spend some time at the Playa Paraiso (There is a lot of sea weed here so we did not step into the water)
- Rent a bike and explore the many secret cenotes here. You can also visit some popular cenotes like Cenote Azul and Gran Cenote
Day 6 and 7: Cancun
Cancun is the most famous destination in Yucatan Peninsula, known for it’s parties and all-inclusive resorts. The city has two areas – downtown and the Hotel Zone. If you want to be next to all the action, we suggest staying in the Hotel Zone. This city can get pretty crowded in spring and summer months with people looking to party and spend time by the beaches.
How to get around Cancun?
On our trip, we preferred staying in an airbnb on the other side of the Hotel Zone, next to the lagoon. The best part about the Hotel Zone is that you have buses going up and down from the strip to the other areas. We took a bus to and from the hotel Zone and it hardly took us 10-15 mins to reach all the popular attractions. The bus trips cost you around 10-12 pesos one-way which is a very cheap alternative in case you do not intend to splurge on an all-inclusive resort.
Must Experience Activities in Cancun
- Enjoy a night at Coco Bongo and witness amazing performances
- Spend a day chilling at a beach club like Mandala Beach Club
- Walk around the Hotel Zone and explore all the shops and restaurants
- Isla Mujeres Day Trip (If you have some time in your itinerary)
We hope you enjoyed reading about our trip to Yucatan Peninsula. If you have more days, you can also add Bacalar or Playa Del Carmen to your itinerary. Here are a few more day trips that we were interested in, but could not fit into our schedule:
Let us know if you found any of our tips helpful in planning your trip. It will help us provide you a better experience. Also, subscribe to our mailing list, if you wish to receive regular updates from us.
