Isla Mujeres in a day

 For those of you that are thinking of visiting this area, this section will give you our opinion on vacationing here along with tips for traveling on a budget and doing it safely.

Safety – Always check The U.S. State Department for their current travel advisory. At this time, there is a “Level 2” travel advisory warning on a scale of 1 to 4, which means “exercise increased caution.” We felt very safe, but had done our research and knew what to expect. We avoided drinking the water and made sure we were back at our resort by dinner or shortly thereafter. We don’t party late at night or drink alcohol, so those concerns were not an issue for us. “Mexico’s most popular tourist destinations like Cancun, Riviera Maya, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico City and Cabo San Lucas remain safe,” says Brussow. “Perception doesn’t always match reality as often violent crimes that are reported on in the U.S. take place outside of main tourism zones. However, by tourists using common sense and taking reasonable safety precautions, they should have no hesitancy in visiting Mexico.” USA Today

Of course, you should always use caution when traveling outside of your own country. Know what your health insurance covers and notify them of your travel plans, in case you have an injury.

Renting a vehicle – We wouldn’t do it any other way because it gives you the freedom to go when and where you want to, but if this isn’t your comfort level, there are other ways to travel. If you decide to rent a vehicle, you will be driving on roads that are in good condition & signs are easy to follow. You can get GPS anywhere in this area even if you don’t have Internet connection. I had both almost everywhere. You must get full coverage on the rental car, never go over the speed limit, and don’t talk on the phone while driving. If a Mexican police officer pulls you over, he may offer or hint to let you pay him on the spot, otherwise, you’ll have to show up and pay it in court. There are random checkpoints, be prepared that you may get stopped. We never did.

 Flights – We flew out of Atl bc our kids were at camp in that area while we were away. The flight was cheap and only 2 hrs nonstop. That was awesome!

 Resorts – In our opinion, the best way to stay in Mexico is to use points to stay at a timeshare resort. Ask around to see if you have any friends that have excess points that you can buy for a one time use. It’s not unreasonable to think that you could get an entire week at a gorgeous resort for $500-$600 this way. Do not stay at a mandatory all-inclusive resort as their all-inclusive fees are extremely high. Look for a resort that has the gold crown rating. Also, some are optional all-inclusive which is fine, just do not buy the package before you get there. Most will offer for you to listen to and sales presentation and offer you major discounts on excursions in the area or their all-inclusive eating package for free. This is worth it, as long as you say “no” at the end of the presentation. Tip: it’s not worth your time to go to the meeting just for a free dinner, but sometime can work out to your benefit. We did this in Cabo San Lucas – our meeting lasted 90 minutes, we declined the offer, but ended up getting all our food free the whole week plus two excursions half-off, which saved us tons of money. 

Beaches– Do your research before you go, so you know what to expect. The beach at our resort in Playa del Carmen was not swimmable with brown mud washing up because of the recent storms… it was disappointing. Tulum beaches were also covered with mounds of seaweed. The beaches in Cancun were very nice but much too rough to swim in. Playa beaches were okay. If you want to vacation where you can swim in the ocean right outside your resort, then I suggest the island of Cozumel or Isla Mujeres. Or stay somewhere with beautiful pools and take day trips to the islands to snorkel or scuba dive.

Cost of Trip – Our trips look expensive, but really they are not. We save airline points and typically fly for free. Subscribe for more tips on how to take an amazing vacation anywhere for cheap. Over the years, we’ve saved thousands and have wonderful memories to cherish.