Recently, I traveled to Cancun for a 1 week all-inclusive vacation. My boyfriend and I found a great deal on GroupOn and gave it a go. We had never done getaways from GroupOn and overall it was a great experience. The only part that was frustrating was not being able to choose our airline. We got stuck with Spirit. I say "stuck" because Spirit now charges for many items that are included on other airlines: carry-on, checked luggage (even for international flights), any beverage service on the plane, and the opportunity to choose seats prior to the 24 hour check-in time. This obviously did not make our GroupOn deal as big of a deal as we had anticipated, but it did all work out in the end.
Having been to Mexico once before - I was at an all-inclusive resort in Playa del Carmen - I fortunately had some experience with what activities and sites were available in the area. My boyfriend and I stayed at an adults only all-inclusive in Cancun and we obviously wanted a few days of lounging and soaking in the sun. We also made sure to book some excursions - Chichen Itza and Ek Balam were the two Mayan ruins we visited. In addition, we swam in a cenote (Ik Kil) and did a catamaran snorkeling trip to Isla Mujeres. During my last visit to Mexico, I experienced Tulum and would highly recommend that to anyone!
On our way to the resort, our shuttle bus driver was kind enough to stop at the "Cancun" sign. There's a beautiful beach view and of course a great photo opportunity for your group! This is what it looks like, courtesy of a quick Google image search:
For those not on the up and up of the "new" seven wonders of the world, Chichen Itza is one of them, as well as being a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It's no wonder - the Mayan ruin is one of the largest and the Castillo Temple (below) is amazing to behold both architecturally and in sheer size.
The cenote, Ik Kil, was a great find. Neither of us had seen anything like it and it was quite refreshing after being in the heat from the ruins! They ask you to wear biodegradable sun screen, but you aren't really in the sun and it's not worth getting if this is your only water excursion. The picture does not do it justice!
We opted to do a private tour with USA Tours (tour guide was knowledgeable, polite, and his English was superb - highly recommend!), which enabled us to see both of these ruins and the cenote in one day. Our tour guide also took us to a tequila distillery - an added bonus! Going for a private tour allowed us to come and go when we were ready and we never stopped at the tourist traps the group tours go to. It also condensed our travel time to one day vs. two. Of course, it was more expensive than a group tour.
Our second excursion was not as enthralling - the water was rough for snorkeling and we had already done a bit of shopping in downtown Cancun, which made Isla Mujeres a bit redundant for us.
One other tip: when in Cancun don't be afraid to take the bus! It cost less than $1 to ride the bus (if you paid in pesos, otherwise the bus drivers just took your $1 American bill) to get to various destinations. Cabs are much more costly.
Overall a great trip! We really lucked out with weather since we went in the peak of hurricane season.
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