Yummy Road Trip to one of the Top Ten Beaches in the World!



1955 Oldsmobile - Dad, Judy, and I (The short one!)



When my sisters and I were kids, Dad’s favourite trick was to announce early in the morning that we were going on a “Mystery Trip” and to be in the car in an hour or we would get left behind. 

Road trips – love ‘em!



Beaches of Tulum Mexico


This time Lawrie and I were headed out on an overnight trip to visit the sugar white beaches of Tulum, dotted with little eco-chic hotels and gourmet restaurants.  

The beaches of Tulum were just recently rated in the Top Ten Beaches of the World by Trip Advisor fans. 

As we drove south towards the City of Tulum our first stop was Pelicanos Restaurant in Puerto Morelos for breakfast.  Situated on the beach at Puerto Morelos it was the perfect place to enjoy the view of the ocean and watch the local kids having a great time in the surf. 

We drove a few more miles south to the beach area at Tulum and ate a late supper at a fabulous beachside Italian Restaurant in the Posada Margherita. 

The owner/waiter came to our table and described our four dinner choices for the evening; grilled fish, fish sautéed in sea water, pasta with lobster, and pasta with veggies. 

We made our choices, ordered a yummy bottle of red wine. Five minutes later he returned with a wonderful selection of complimentary appetizers.   The food and wine were perfect.   



Copy of temple friezes for our pool on Isla Mujeres



After breakfast in the morning we headed up the road towards Coba – we were on the search for the creator of wall plaques that are copies of the temple friezes at various Mayan ruins.  The first location we stopped at had a few, but roadside vendor directed us farther on up the road past a couple of the small villages to where his dad and brothers made the pieces.

We eventually settled on a triptych of three plaques for the wall near our pool. 

A little dickering over the price, lots of admiring of Don Alfredo’s other works and his autographed book by a famous photographer from New York, and his sons wrapped our purchase in cardboard for the trip home. 

La Zebra beach cottages & gourmet restaurant

Next stop was back to the beaches of South Tulum to spend the afternoon at La Zebra Restaurant and Beach Club.  It is in the same area as Posada Margherita, but further along the winding beach road. 

Great spot to fritter away a few hours in complete relaxation – white sand beaches, very few people, nice restaurant within a few steps of the beach, and a shower to rinse away the sand before changing back into traveling clothes. 

Eventually we started our circuitous route home stopping for cappuccino at the Turtle Bay Bakery and Café in Akumal.

Turtle Bay Bakery & Cafe

Great road trip.

It was very different than any road trip that my sisters and I went on as kids; six people jammed in the 1955 Oldsmobile, with an aging cocker spaniel that had a serious gas problem. 

And no gourmet meals on those trips!



Are we there yet? Are we there yet?



The Lock Men - on the car ferry to Cancun



Holy cow we're tired!  Ethan aged 10, and Evan aged 8 arrived with their dad, John, on Wednesday December 7th and we have been going non-stop since.  Where do they get the energy? 

On Tuesday morning we headed off for a two-day road trip, aiming for the first car ferry which I was absolutely positive left at six-thirty in the morning.  We arrived at the ferry dock in time to watch the boat leave at six o'clock.  Darn!  We turned around and headed back home to try and nap for a couple of hours since none of us slept much the night before, waiting in anticipation for the five o'clock alarm. Three hours later we were on the car ferry headed off for our adventure.  The first stop was the X-Plor Adventure Park near Playa del Carmen.  Wow!  What a great place to go. 



Good thing the 'crocodille' was asleep and didn't see me

We and the guys rode zip-lines, swam in the river, splashed down into the water off of the hammock zip-lines, bashed around on a jeep tour through the jungle, and finally Lawrie and I did the river rafting using small hand paddles.  Okay, I could give that a pass next time.  Our shoulder muscles were screaming in agony by the time we finished the activity!

By six o'clock in the evening we were done.  The guys loaded up one more time at the buffet and we headed off to our eco-chic hotel Retiro Maya on the beaches of Tulum. 

"Eco-chic?"  A bit of an oxymoron.  It was fun, but definitely not chic.  We had Mayan-type grass shacks on the sugar white beaches, with mosquito netting over the beds, and an outdoor shower/washroom.  Despite a slight mix-up at the front desk with the reservation we all eventually crashed into bed around nine at night. Exhausted!

Lawrie on the high zip-line

Up again early in the morning for a quick breakfast and then off the Tulum to see the Mayan ruins.  Ethan is quite interested in the Mayan culture, however, the prospect of another day at another adventure park took a bit of the edge off of his interest. 



Holding on to Tarzan the Iguana at the Tulum Ruins



And Evan, the younger brother, all he could think of was which park we were headed to next, Xel-Há? X-Caret? Xel-Há? X-Caret?  The rich history of the Mayas and the beautiful ruins of Tulum were pretty darn boring to him.





The Boyz at the Tulum Ruins



Around noon we arrived at X-Caret Eco-Adventure Park, which is right next to the X-Plor park near Playa del Carmen.  We could have stayed overnight at the hotel on the X-Caret site, but we really wanted the "Boyz" to experience a beach hotel instead, hence the drive to Tulum and back again.

So onto more fun and adventure - oh boy!  Or is that, sigh, oh, boy.  First stop was the Mexicana buffet to load the guys up with fuel for the afternoon.  It was pretty interesting watching them try out "poppers," the deep fried jalapeño peppers, chicken molé, and other traditional Mexican foods.  Somehow I think the dessert bar was the biggest hit for the day.  I discovered the great taste of Mexican Café Olla, make the traditional way with ground spiced cane sugar, cloves, orange rind, and cinnamon.  I'm hooked.  



Evan, John and Ethan on the Rio Paraiso River Boats

At X-Caret, after hiking some distance along the jungle pathway past macaws, flamingos, deer, vicunas, and the mushroom farm we boarded the big multi-person raft for the easy twenty minute Paradise River cruise.  It was fun, but pretty tame after some of the activities we had been doing. 

Our next adventure was the Subterranean River.  It's a swimming and snorkeling activity that takes about an hour from start to finish.  The best part of this event it was the first time that Ethan, Evan or John had been snorkeling - and they are now enthusiastic converts to the sport. 


Rio Paraiso boats at X-Caret Eco Park

 About four in the afternoon, Lawrie and I begged off any more activities and hiked back to the main plaza to sit down with a rejuvenating cup of coffee.  John and the Boyz carried on with visits to the manta rays, sharks, aquarium before meeting up with us as the water activities were closing for the day.  We could have stayed to watch the fabulous evening shows of horseback riding or traditional folk dancing but we were just too pooped out.  Time to head back to Isla Mujeres and our own comfy beds. 

I think we all agreed that X-Plor was the more interesting park for what we wanted to do.  They also have a very inventive system for capturing photos of the park users.  Everyone is issued a safety helmet to wear on the park property.  It serves two purposes; one is to keep your head from bumping into the stalactites hanging down from the natural limestone cavern that is the centre or 'heart' of the park. 

The other reason is the helmets have an embedded data chip.  The date chip triggers the various cameras around the park whenever the wearer is within photo range.  At the end of the day the photos for everyone in your group are downloaded onto a memory stick that you take with you - after you pay for it of course.  It's a great system. 

At the older park, X-Caret you have to wait around for the printed photos, or you can purchase them on-line the following day.  However, I have checked several times today and the photos from X-Caret have not as yet been uploaded to their website.

My sweetie and I - at the heart of the park

Today is a recuperation day - a day to relax and let sore muscles mend. 

Tomorrow - well, that's another adventure!