Following on from Las Vegas, our next destination was Cancun. Both Amy and I’s first time in Mexico.
It’s a location I’ve been eager to visit for years to see Chichen Itza, whilst Amy more interested in the relaxation/all inclusive aspect of the trip.
Our hotel was the Dreams Sands hotel in the heart of the Hotel Zone, and not too far of a walk from the nightlife centre with Señor Frogs, Hooters and other party locations.
We arrived quite late again, and just had dinner and a few drinks in our hotel before calling it a night. The first thing we saw upon exploring the hotel was a crab just wandering along the walkway.
The hotel offered an array of different all inclusive restaurants; there was an Italian, Japanese, a steakhouse and a generic buffet – any all inclusive I’d previously been on, just had the buffet. And all drinks were included, so I ensured to always have a rum in my hand (the beer in the hotel was “Dos Equis”, a Mexican beer I really did not like.)
There’s not too many ways to make “lounging by the pool” sound exciting, so I’ll keep this post about the food, our excursion to Chichen Itza, and the nights we nosied around the Hotel Zone night life.
We had a quick nosy around Señor Frogs on our second night, and one thing led to another, next thing the place erupted into party mode. It was expensive, but fun.
So we made the most of our one night there, and agreed to spend most of our remaining evenings in the hotel, where there drinks were already paid for.
On our walk back to the hotel, we noticed some shops were still open, I made an amazing purchase (see below) which definitely was not influenced by alcohol…
The next morning, we took a little dip in the Caribbean to shake off any hungover that may have began to creep up on us. Look how beautifully clean the water is.
After coming around a little, we decided to head back into the hotel zone to see if it was as crazy during the day as it is at night time (spoiler, it’s not). Señor Frogs was essentially a restaurant, so we ordered tacos (not as good as other locations, which is probably to be expected). The cocktails were significantly better though.
Tacos though. Tacos are to die for. And where better to have Tacos, than their ancestral home? And although Señor Frogs wasn’t the best Taco we had in Mexico, it was a lot better than most I’ve had outside of Mexico.
On our walk back to our hotel, we noticed this adorable “Casa Tequila”. It wasn’t open, but you need to admire how cute it is.
Fast forward the relaxation period, and we had booked an excursion to Chichen Itza for the crack of dawn. We found it cheaper to book through ViaTor, rather than with the guides in our hotel, and the tour operated by SAT Mexico Tours offered the best value for money, with a guide on site, and stops to a Cenote (like a huge hole in the ground filled with water) and a brief stop in Valladolid too.
It was the most action packed day of our trip to Mexico. And my favourite. I found Chichen Itza so fascinating. Built between 700-1100, this was the epicentre of the ancient Maya civilisation. Mayans still inhabit the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico, and their food is delicious. The acoustics in Chichen Itza are mesmerising to behold.
The complex homes and old sporting arena, where the emperor would sit on one end, and have his rivals sat approximately 80m away, but would be able to hear them word for word if they decided to plot against him.
Seeing the hoops where the Mayans would score through reminded me of The Road to El Dorado movie where a scene depicted them playing a similar game.
Similarly with the Temple of Kukulcan, there are acoustics in place that if you clap at the bottom, you can hear a bird’s chirp come from the top. It’s crazy how the knowledge existed over a thousand years ago to create such intricate sound effects, whilst engineers today cannot replicate these sound effects.
After wandering around the main Pyramid/Temple mesmerised, we returned to the tour for the next stop, the Cenote.
At the Cenote, we were also able to try a local Mayan delicacy, Cochinita Pibil, a spiced slow roasted pork dish. And it was divine.
The Cenote itself was amazing, and a nice reprieve from the scorching heat when we took a dip in.
The steps up to the jumping podium also had an iguana just chilling. I was really obsessed by it, as I tend to be with all animals I don’t see regularly in Ireland.
Upon leaving the Cenote, we got to briefly explore the city of Valladolid, it was cool seeing a more authentic Mexico beyond our hotel, as we were frequently warned about leaving the Hotel Zone in Cancun.
The main square featured a Mexican Statue in the heart of the fountain, whilst The Templo de San Servacio overlooked it.
We only really had time to have a Quick Look around and grab an ice cream to cool down prior to reembarking on the bus to return to Cancun.
All in all, I prefer trips where there’s more activities and exploring to do, but Cancun was very fun. The beaches were beautiful, the food was delicious and the excursion to Chichen Itza was one of my favourite locations I’ve ever visited on my travels.
A must if you’re ever in Cancun, and a “Wonder of the World” ticked off for me.
