Mexico with kids

I've always wanted to travel outside the U.S. Before this trip, the only times I was outside the U.S. was a brief stop in the Bahamas on our Disney cruise and when I got lost and ended up in Canada while I was still in high school. When we booked our flight to Mexico, I was pumped. This was it. Our first international trip. Planning a trip is nearly as fun as the trip itself, and this was no exception. We spent hours looking at activities, places to stay, where to eat... and we knew we wouldn't be able to do it all.

Day 2: Isla Mujeres

We decided to try out AirBnb for this trip for a few reasons: it would be far cheaper, we would have a personal contact in Mexico that could give us pointers on local food and activities, plus we would have a lot more space. I don't regret this choice in the least! We always felt safe, we had enough space to give us all some privacy, and it was SO cheap! We paid $60 a night for the first property. I've posted the link in case you'd like to stay here on your own trip to Cancun.

The first place we stayed was in downtown Cancun. It was a two bedroom lower level of a house. The owner, Lara, lives upstairs. She is amazing! Her home was exactly what we needed. I wish I had taken more pictures of it, but we were a little overwhelmed the first couple of days we were in Mexico, so it didn't occur to me! We had a full kitchen, a pool, two bathrooms, two bedrooms (4 beds!), and a large living room all to ourselves. Lara helped us call a taxi, gave us tips on places to eat, and explained the public transportation system to us. She was a great hostess!

Day 1: Arriving

Getting from our house to Cancun was not an easy task. We live in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, which means we have to drive between 4 and 6 hours to get to an airport big enough to afford to fly from. For us, that meant driving to Chicago, staying in a hotel, then flying out the next day. When we arrived in Mexico, we were all a little tired. It was an easy taxi ride from the airport to our AirBnb, and Lara met us at the gate with a smile and some water. We swam in the pool, then walked to the mall to walk around and have dinner.

Day 2: Isla Mujeres

This island is simply beautiful. We had so many cool experiences. My number one suggestion is to rent a golf cart. You will get to see so much more of the island this way. We started out by taking a cruise on our cart. Keep in mind there are essentially no traffic laws here. For Americans, this is a huge difference from what we are used to! At one point, we were passed by a moped carrying a family of 5. The mom was facing us off of the back, and she was nursing. I wouldn't be able to make this up if I tried!

Some of the highlights were going around the island, stopping for fresh orange juice, going to the turtle sanctuary, and eating coconut ice cream. The views from every corner were snap-worthy, and the food was excellent. You can't miss this island if you go to Cancun!

Day 3: Cancun

The second day we were in Mexico, we decided to check out the hotel district of Cancun. I didn't expect it to be so huge! We took the R2 bus from downtown to the middle of the hotel district to book a couple excursions. The bus is the way to go! It was about 75 cents per person! Amazing!

For the first excursion, we did a boat tour. We had a guide and got into our own little speed boat and headed out into the ocean to snorkel. This would have been great, but the waves were HUGE. My husband really struggled and had to get back into the boat, and I was trying to keep track of both kids, plus see the underwater sites. It was a little stressful, but the kids loved checking out the undersea creatures. I would recommend this on a calm day, but if it's windy, maybe do something else. Our second excursion was supposed to be parasailing, but again, the wind complicated things and it got canceled. We made up for it by seeing a dolphin show and getting our feet cleaned by tiny fish. That is a blog post all in itself! My son loved it, but since I have a slight phobia of fish, it took me a while to get comfortable with it. I will say, my feet have never been softer though!

Day 4: Travel to Tulum

We took the ADO bus from Cancun to Tulum. It took some luck getting a bus that was leaving within a half an hour, but we did it. The kids slept for most of the ride, and it was nice to relax for a bit. When we arrived, we walked to our next AirBnb. When we got inside the gate, I was amazed. It was so gorgeous! We paid under $100 a night for this two bedroom, one bathroom property. The AC worked great, as did the hot water. There were two beautiful balconies off of the living room and the master bedroom.

We walked through a jungle path, past the pool with a little fountain, and arrived in a simple, but very comfortable apartment. There are 6 units in the two buildings, and it is a very peaceful location. It is walkable to the downtown area of Tulum, but I honestly recommend getting a taxi. It's about $2 to get to town. With kids in tow, that is totally worth it.

Day 5: Tulum

Xel-Ha is an ecopark north of Tulum. It is the perfect place for family fun. Your admission includes your meals and drinks for the entire day, and while it isn't on the top of my list of favorite meals from the trip, it was still pretty good. We got to do so many awesome things at Xel-Ha. We ziplined into the water, jumped from cliffs into the river, and just had fun. My favorite was finding a hidden grotto and snorkeling through it. I spent the extra $30 and bought a phone case for the water. Worth every penny for the photos and videos of our day!

Day 6 Tulum Cenote (Dos Ojos)

Going to a Cenote was at the top of our bucket lists for this trip. For my son, swimming in the sinkholes that came from the asteroid that destroyed the dinosaurs was a thrill. My husband was grateful for freshwater (we live on Lake Superior, so swimming in the ocean just feels icky!), and Annika just loves to swim. Everyone was happy. To be honest, I don't recommend Dos Ojos though. Here's why- It was nearly $100 for us to go there for the day. We paid so much to get in, then had to pay another $5 each way for a guy to drive us to the actual cenote. Then, we had to rent our gear. Had I known it would cost that much, we would have gone to a cheaper one. I should have researched it a little better. On the plus side, these were cave cenotes, so we got to spend most of the day in the shade. After Xel-Ha, we needed the shade!

This picture was worth every penny! The guy was hilarious!

Cenotes are some of the clearest water I've ever swam in. Like crystal clear. The water is refreshing, but warm (again, coming from Lake Superior, it felt warm. Others may disagree).

On our way back to Tulum, we took the local van system called a collectivo. This is the way to travel on the main stretch of highway going north and south between Tulum and Playa del Carmen. It is pretty cheap, but it was crowded! We had 19 people in that 14 passenger van. We paid about $4 per person for the trip. When we got back to town, we fed the kids (and ourselves), and went back to the apartment. I guess we didn't feed them enough though because a couple hours later, they were starving.

Here's the thing. In Mexico, you can't call out for a pizza delivery. You can't run to McDonald's or get something quick from the deli (at least not close to where we stayed). It was 9:00 at night, and the kids were hungry. I remembered seeing a small restaurant a few blocks from our apartment, and it was the closest place that I knew of. Since my husband knows even less Spanish that I do, we decided I would run out and get food. Prior to this, I hadn't considered safety being in Mexico since leaving the U.S.. I thought a lot about it as we planned our trip, but once we got there, I felt far more comfortable that I expected to. As I left our apartment, I realized I was about to go out, at night, in an unfamiliar country. I felt a surge of exhilaration and confidence. Maybe I should not have gone, but I did. The place was packed with locals, and it was one of the most 'authentic' places I had been thus far. They spoke no English, and there weren't even real walls. But the food was amazing!

This place had amazing food, and they squeezed me a jug of orange juice while I waited!

Day 7: Tulum Ruins and Snorkeling

By day 7, we were all exhausted. Mathew and Annika really wanted to just hang by the pool, but I hadn't seen the ruins yet. We convinced them that we would be back early that night to get a good night's sleep before traveling home the next day. The ruins were super cool, and the view was breathtaking. I didn't think they were going to be as vast or as huge as they were. It's amazing how advanced the Mayans were to build these places.

When we got to the ruins, I thought we had been swindled. A lady stopped us outside the gates and sold us an excursion to go snorkeling after seeing the ruins. It was $25 per person, and Annika was free. It was windy again that day, and we almost gave up trying to find it. We walked for at least a mile and half before finding a place to eat. The kids were hot and hungry. They were tired. That walk was crazy miserable. We finally found a hotel that had a restaurant, so we stopped. This place was gorgeous. I hope one day I can go back and stay somewhere like this!

We finally found the snorkel place. I was still a little leary, given the journey it took to get there. I am so glad we did it. We saw fish, coral, sting rays, and huge turtles. Honestly, this was the highlight of the trip for me. Seeing these creatures in their own habitat got me right geeked out.

After this, we decided to do one more festive activity- a taco walk. We decided to go from place to place eating a different kind of taco at each one. If ever there was a foodie's dream, this was it!

When we got back to our apartment, we were so stinking tired. The kids chilled in the pool while Jason and I took turns packing. By the time twilight came around, we were all ready for bed.

We were in Mexico for a total of 8 days. We spent the first four in Cancun and the last 4 in Tulum. While Cancun was impressive for the tourism and the amount of choices for activities, Tulum's small town vibe was a welcome respite after being in the city. Mexico was a good choice for our first international trip, but I don't know that we would go back. We loved it, don't get me wrong, but I don't know that we would be able to top this trip. We got to see and do so much, and that's what I like. Seeing the world means not going back to places you've been, but constantly expanding your horizons.