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Last Updated on December 30, 2023 by Natalie

For Spring Break, we decided to fly to Cancun, Mexico. My husband originally wanted to  go to an all-inclusive resort. I checked the prices and they seemed really high (spoiler alert: many all-inclusive resorts in Cancun end up being reasonably priced due to the high cost of food in the Cancun touristy area).  I started trying to figure out an option that was better for the budget AND included seeing Chichen Itza without spending hours upon hours in a bus. We decided to take a road trip Yucatan, which included spending a lot of time in Tulum.

Let’s check out some great Yucatan road trip itineraries!

That all being said, tour trip was NOT a budget trip. Though in the end, it was pretty close to equal the cost of staying in an all-inclusive resort with one or two excursions for four. I am, however, extremely satisfied with the flexibility our choices offered us during the trip.

Well, I was satisfied once I got over feeling guilty about blowing our travel budget, of course.

Road Trip Yucatan Itinerary

This Yucatan itinerary has a heavy focus on Tulum, because Tulum is a great place to be based. It’s still slightly cheaper than Cancun, with just as many options of great things to do. Let’s check out this Yucatan road trip itinerary!

Though our trip was 8 days, this can be an 8 day or 7 days in Yucatan trip.

Even with food prices and car rental being considerably higher than we expected, we loved the freedom that having a car gave to us for this trip. It is also a good idea to have a car in Tulum if you will not be staying right on the beach. We actually wouldn’t have needed one if we stayed in Cancun all week, even without being at an all-inclusive resort.

If all inclusive is more your style, here’s my review of the best all inclusive resorts in Mexico for families!

Disclaimer

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Check out these avoidable Mexico travel mistakes and travel like a pro!

8 (or 7) days in Yucatan Itinerary

To make our 8 day itinerary into 7, remove one rest day!

Day 1: Fly into Cancun, Rent a Car, and Drive to Piste, Mexico

We opted to drive the most miles on day 1 by driving from Cancun to Piste. Piste is in the state of Yucatan and also the home of Chichen Itza. This guide to seeing Chichen Itza on your own has all the information from our trip along with my suggestions of the easiest way to see this amazing place with a private tour or on your own. Since we have young children (ages 4 and 5 at the time of our visit), this is the only way that our family could handle it. A long day tour from Cancun would likely have been a miserable and expensive experience for us. We stayed at the Mayaland Hotel & Bungalows, which has a private entrance to Chichen Itza.

Depending on your arrival time, you can catch the Chichen Itza light show on this night. We didn’t and I wish we had!

➜ Check prices at the Mayaland Hotel & Bungalows

Day 2: See Chichen Itza, then head to Tulum

We spent the morning at Chichen Itza. Our hotel, the Mayaland Hotel & Bungalows, had a private entrance to the site, which saved so much time and was so incredibly easy. We had a leisurely breakfast at our hotel and then met our tour guide in the lobby.

Our original plan was to head to Ek Balam, spend the night, and the see the Ek Balam ruins the next day. We did drive there from Chichen Itza and it took roughly an hour. Due to a weird and rare incident in Vallodolid, we changed our plans and headed straight to Tulum.

In retrospect, since we only spent the morning at Chichen Itza, we could’ve driven to Ek Balam ruins and visited them in the afternoon. They aren’t as popular as Chichen Itza and by all reports, the site isn’t very busy. There would be plenty of time to visit and then drive to Tulum. I absolutely recommend doing this if you love Mayan ruins. Plus, there are climbable options here.

Day 3: The Mayan Ruins of Tulum

Since we woke up in Tulum, we decided to head to the Mayan Ruins on the sea. Go early in the morning and bring your mosquito repellent. In the dry season, the mosquitoes aren’t terrible, but in the wet season, tourists get eaten up.

The private tour here is only about 45 minutes. You do get to skip the line if you decide to purchase it. We did, because due to poor planning, we arrived at midday. It was fairly busy and the line was a little long for our little niños.

After visiting the ruins, you can stay on the property and head down to the beach and swim (we did not do this) or you can head out and go to the shops nearby.

Day 4: Coba Ruins

The ruins at Coba are outside of town by about 45 minutes. The drive is straightforward and easy enough that we didn’t have any problems with finding it.

I could’ve spent all day at Coba. Again, we arrived pretty close to opening time. We used the restrooms outside the entrance (I didn’t see any inside), then bought our tickets, and went right on inside. We were asked if we wanted to purchase a private tour, but I knew about the pedicabs and bicycles for rent inside and that’s what we wanted. I don’t know if we could combine the the two (having a tour guide along with a pedicab). The pedicab drivers aren’t tour guides.

We opted for the shorter tour. When you do that, you only see a really small amount of the grounds. You do get to see the big and climbable pyramid that Coba offers. Since we visited ruins three days in a row, this is how it worked for us. My kids were pretty much over being on tours at ruins, though they loved climbing around them at Coba.

Days 5 – 6: Hanging Out in Tulum

There are more activities I wanted to do while in Tulum, like visit some cenotes, see the Si’an Kaan Bioreserve, and go to the beach. We visited the public beach twice during our trip (be aware, there are no changing facilities or bathrooms that I could find). We also spent a lot of time in the pool at our condo. If you’re the adventurous type, you can easily fill these two days with additional activities. My friend, Mexico Cassie, wrote about the best cenotes with kids. It’s a comprehensive guide to make sure you’re a safe as possible with your kids.

We filled our days swimming in the pool below. Since my kids are still learning to swim, they always wear floaties in the pool. If you need one, check out these awesome floaties for toddlers.

Check prices for the Airbnb we visited while in Tulum!

Day 6: Drive from Tulum to Cancun

It’s barely two hours to get from Tulum to Cancun and you’ll see a myriad of resorts along the way. We had no trouble finding our condo building in Cancun. In fact, this is one of the few trips where we didn’t get lost at all.

We stayed in another Airbnb offering, again with a pool on premises. This one also had direct access to the beach. However, in the area where our condo was located, the beach wasn’t as fun and the majority of it was covered in red flags. There was one area with yellow and that’s where we could get into the water.

My kids, husband, and I unanimously agree that the seaweed covered beach in Tulum was a lot better for families. However, we still enjoyed our time in Cancun!

Day 7: Go to La Isla Mall, snorkel the Great Mayan Reef, or visit Isla Mujeres

We chose to go to La Isla Mall. There is only one street in the hotel zone and there are a few malls to see (and more hotels). It is now even easier to find because there is a giant Ferris wheel in front of it.

We ate a restaurant that overlooked the dolphin pool. I didn’t realize this when we sat down. We watched the dolphins swim and then we watched them swim with humans. I don’t recommend spending your tourist dollars doing this activity, as the dolphins in these places aren’t treated well. Read more about ethical animal tourism and why I don’t support swimming with dolphins. It was also a very expensive lunch option.

Cancun is a great place to go snorkeling or scuba diving, too. The Great Mayan Reef stretches from the the tip of the Yucatan Peninsula all the way down to the Bay Islands, Honduras (source). Another great day trip option is to visit Isla Mujeres or you can combine it with snorkeling.

Here’s an all inclusive tour to Isla Mujeres to try! It’s 8 hours long, includes snorkeling and a trip to Isla Mujeres. It might be better for families with older children. Check out other kid friendly tour options.

Day 8: Pack Up and Head Home

We picked a mid-day flight home, so we could spend as much time in Cancun as possible. We had enough time for only a few minutes in the pool before we needed to get ourselves packed up and return the rental car to the airport.

Options for longer trips

10 days in Yucatan

In a 10 day Yucatan Itinerary, I would take this route:

Day 1: Fly into Cancun, rent a car and drive to Merida, Mexico.

Alternatively, you could fly into Merida and rent a car. For many international travelers, it’s often less expensive and a bit easier to fly right into Cancun. It’s also typically cheaper to return the rental car to the airport from where you rented it. With young kids and car seats, renting a car for the entire trip will be easier than lugging car seats on long bus rides.

The distance between Cancun and Merida is just 200 miles (306 km).

Day 2: Visit Uxmal Mayan Ruins

Uxmal is a fairly easy day trip from Merida. It’s around 52 miles (84 km) and will likely take over an hour (the mapping apps say 1 hour and 7 minutes). Check out this post for more great information on making a day trip to Uxmal.

Days 3: Explore Merida

Merida has a lot to do. Since there are no shortage of things to do, it’s worth a few days at the minimum.

Day 4: Explore Merida and then drive to Piste, Yucatan

I’d certainly spent a good portion of the early day continuing to explore Merida. However, in order to get to Chichen Itza at opening the following day, leave Merida and drive to Piste in the afternoon or early evening. If you leave early enough, you can catch the Chichen Itza light show in the evening. I didn’t know about it in advance and I think it would’ve been cool to see it.

Day 5: Chichen Itza

Spending the early morning at Chichen Itza means less heat and less people. Chichen Itza has little shade and gets hot fast. Our tour lasted 2 or so hours and it was perfect timing for us to leave before lunchtime. If you do this, you can drive to Valladolid and see the Ek Balam ruins before heading to Tulum.

Day 6 – 7: The Mayan Ruins of Tulum and Coba Ruins

I absolutely recommend seeing Coba Ruins because they were my favorite. Plus, the site has much more shade. Again, I recommend visiting both sites in the morning, which is why I don’t recommend seeing them both in one day. Spend the afternoons at the beach or in the pool!

Day 8: Tulum

Use this as a beach day, rest day, or whatever you need here. We spent a lot of time in the pool and the beach while in Tulum and it was heavenly. If you are planning to do a day trip in Cancun, use the afternoon or early evening to drive to Cancun.

Day 9: Cancun

In Cancun, you can opt to hang out on the beach, go snorkeling or scuba diving, or take a day trip to Isla Mujeres. In fact, you could bypass Cancun entirely and spend the rest of your trip chilling in Isla Mujeres (accessible by ferry), Cozumel (accessibly by ferry from Playa del Carmen), or any number of things. Just be sure to give yourself plenty of time to get to the airport from the above mentioned islands.

Day 10: Cancun

Spend the last bit of your vacation with an early morning swim, if you can. Then, it’s time to head out!

 

2 Week Yucatan itinerary

For a 2 week Yucatan road trip, I would follow the itinerary above until day 8, except spend one additional day in Merida. Since the itinerary has shifted by one additional day, we start below on day 10.

Day 10: Head to Playa del Carmen and catch the ferry to Cozumel.

If you decide to stay the rest of your trip in Cozumel, it will likely be less expensive to return your car rather than take the car ferry or park your car in Playa del Carmen. During our time in Cozumel, we took taxis where we wanted to go and it was easy.  If you are taking just a day trip or a one night trip, it would be sensible to leave your car on the mainland. Personally, I’d stay here until day 13 and then spend the night in Cancun to make getting to the airport easier. While in Cozumel, be sure to check out the San Gervasio Mayan ruins.

Alternatively, you could spend the next four days in Isla Mujeres, which is also a ferry ride away. However, the port is in Cancun. It would be easier to return the car to the airport at that point and save the money.

Why we rented a car for this trip

While not a budget trip, the convenience of being able to do things at our best times (mornings) and at our leisure was great. If I’d stayed at an all-inclusive resort, I wouldn’t have been able to see all of the things I wanted to see. The other reason that we rented a car was for the safety of our children. Car seat safety is so important to me. By renting a car, I can ensure that they will be properly buckled in their car seats during every minute they are in a car.

Additionally, with a car, you can pack in as many or as few activities that work for you and your family! If your kids are a little older and still need booster seats, traveling with a travel booster seat is a viable option. In that case, you may not feel the need for a car. This trip can be done using the bus system and/or private transport. Costs will vary.

We blew our travel budget – here’s why

I failed on the budget part due two reasons.  Renting a car cost us a lot more than I expected. I recommend full coverage insurance in Mexico due to the fact that I often encounter crazy drivers and pot-hole-filled roads. Buying full coverage more than doubled the cost of the car rental. In the USA, some insurance plans will have options to add a rental car for a week for no (or low) additional cost. Since we don’t have any cars or car insurance in the US, we didn’t have this option. Obviously, that would save a considerable sum of money.

Second, the cost of food in all of the spots we visited was far higher than we expected. It wasn’t just US-prices, it was a pretty fancy meal in Columbus, Ohio prices. Or maybe closer to that of a popular US tourist destination. Dinner in Tulum was around $60 USD for four (with drinks and dessert). Lunch at La Isla Mall in Cancun was around $96 USD for four (with dessert). We did offset this some by purchasing food and preparing it ourselves while in Tulum. Even so, Tulum grocery store prices there were also high. I did not check grocery prices in Cancun.

What I wish I’d done differently

I wish I’d planned to do Chichen Itza and Ek Balam in one day. I thought we’d be exhausted after Chichen Itza, but they are pretty close together. It would’ve been easy to stop at Ek Balam and then head to Tulum. I’d also have liked to explore things to do in Tulum a bit more. Additionally, I’d only spend the last day in Cancun, to make catching our flight that much easier.

What I did right for our Cancun Trip

We tried to pack in as many Mayan ruins as we felt our young kids could manage; my husband and I believe it’s the only time we’ll visit them (though, I’ll try to convince him to go back to Coba!) Our next trip to the Yucatan peninsula we might only see the beach. Since I’ve gotten to do several thing in the area, I’ll be just fine relaxing next time!

You know, other than seeing a few things I missed this time around!

Have you visited the Yucatan peninsula? What site or activity was on your wish list? Did it live up to your expectations? The best feedback comes from readers. Please leave a comment!

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