Tulum, Mexico

Tulum was a hidden gem until recently.  My friend, an ICU nurse and I decided that once the Covid rates dropped, we were going on vacation. We worked hard and deserved it.  Mexico was reopening with no travel restrictions so Tulum seemed like the perfect choice. This was my 2nd trip to Tulum. My one rule for going to a destination again is to not do the same things I did the first time. My goal for this trip was to find all the insta-worthy backgrounds I could find and I think I did a good job. 

Ok so here's the Tea.  Tulum is about 2 hours from Cancun.  Catch a cheap flight into Cancun and pre-arrange for airport transportation to Tulum.  It should cost you less than $100 roundtrip.  

The condo zone is called Aldea Zama.  If you are renting an Airb&b, I would recommend staying here. It's a short cab ride to the hotel zone and downtown.  If you are staying in a hotel, you are in the midst of restaurants, shops and beach clubs, you don't really need to venture far unless you want to experience downtown.  Both times I traveled to Tulum, I stayed in an Airb&b so I can't really recommend a hotel.

Restaurants

• Kitchen Table - dope vibe, delicious food.
• Rosa Negra - upscale, dope vibe, craft cocktails, amazing food, $$$
• Casa Malca (Pablo Escobar's Mansion) - artsy, super dope, decent food and drinks
• Burrito Amor - good for quick food and drinks
• Kin Toh - the nest restaurant in Azulik, amazing views and atmosphere, $$$
• Delcielo - breakfast, super fresh and organic
• Raw Love - smoothie spot where the giant tree man statue is (Ahua Resort)

Beach Clubs

• Coco Beach Club or Coco Limited - one of my faves, cute, great service, chill
  
• Ziggy's -make sure you get the Sangria, super chill, lots of families
• Nomade - bougie but has lots of photo ops, food was decent
• Selina - stopped here for photos and drinks, excess seaweed on the beach

You can also grab food from the beach clubs which was convenient because that's where we spent most of our time during the day.

Excursions

• Go zip-lining and ATVing in the jungle.  
• Visit the ruins.
• Swim in a Cenote.  Cenote de Ojos or Casa de Tortugas are pretty close to downtown.  Some of them are pretty far out and can turn into an all day trip.

I usually book excursions through Trip Advisor.  I don't know, I just feel like my payment is more secure and people are usually brutally honest about their experience in the reviews.

Also, I've been asked about our Airb&b. It was cute condo over looking the jungle of Tulum, within walking distance of downtown. You can book directly www.nocturnatulum.com or follow them on IG @nocturnatulum. Our host was great! She arranged for airport transportation, bike rentals, taxi services and a private chef @richy.zapata.