"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

Travel Guide to Cancun, Mexico

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

And we’re back with Part 2 of the Baecation Recap! 😉

If you missed part 1: A Night Out in Charlotte + a big travel tip, you can catch up here!


To preface you all again…

Hola, mis amores! 

Last week, Dj and I traveled down to Cancun, Mexico to meet up with my best friend, Sara (remember her from our adventures exploring North Florida?), and her fiance, Waugh. None of had ever been to Cancun before, but Sara + Waugh bought this ridiculous vacation package while in Cozumel a few years ago. Wanting to take advantage of another trip before the package ended, we talked about doing a couples trip… aka Baecation (don’t hate me, hehe.)

So, on a whim, we looked online, found a 5 day block that worked for the 4 of our work schedules and booked the trip all within 48 hours. I’m a huge advocator for traveling as much as possible (I lived in London for a bit, travel out to California pretty frequently, and on months that my schedule is tight, explore nearby cities for weekend getaways, and even scope out local areas for quick day trips!)

Luckily for me, Sara shares my gypsy soul so she is the perfect travel partner. Waugh is also one of my favorite humans on this earth, and him and Dj made their own “brocation” so it was an all around awesome time.

We packed a lot into the short 5 day trip and really made the most of it. To break it down, I’ll do a 3 part series that covers everything from travel tips to extend your stay, our trip to Cancun in general (aka this post), as well as our day trip exploring the Mayan ruins, but other than that, this 3 part travel series is set out to be one of my longer recap posts. :)


Friday:

After we woke up bright and early in Charlotte, we headed down to the lobby to catch our complimentary hotel to airport shuttle. Then, after quick wait in security, we were boarding our flight to Cancun!

Travel tip: If you travel enough throughout the year, choose your favorite airline and invest in a traveling points credit card. When I was in college, I traveled all the time to visit my family (since we all lived worlds apart). Throughout that time, I racked up a lot of points through US Airways. Fast forward a few years, US Airways merged with American Airlines & I was still trying to explore as much as possible. Airlines have started partnering with credit cards to offer bonus miles every time you fly, use the card, and even open the card. For example, when I opened my AA card, I received 40k bonus miles + I always receive priority boarding and 1 free checked bag. That all adds up!

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

Once we landed in Cancun, we met up with Sara + Waugh and set up a round trip cab ride to the airport.

Travel tip: If you’re ever traveling abroad, many car companies do this. You can schedule your pick up to the airport ahead of time, and they will cut you a deal since you book it all together. This also eliminates trying to catch a cab the morning of your trip back home- which can end up being pricey or a headache if things don’t workout smoothly. (One time, when I was visiting my mom in London, the trains were delayed and I was stuck at the airport for 3 hours- not fun. Since then, I’ve learned to plan my travel to and from the airport ahead of time around cabs + cars; trust me, it will make your life a lot easier.)

Once we arrived at the resort, we checked in with complimentary cocktails, and headed to the beach. We arrived about 3 hours before check-in, and if you do this, hotels will allow you to keep your bags with them and hang around the resort until your room is ready.

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

The beach was absolute perfection. White sandy beaches and crystal clear water. It was breathtakingly beautiful!

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

The sand was incredibly soft and wasn’t hot at all. I’m not sure if it was due to it only being May (even though it was still in the 90’s) or because it was so white and didn’t absorb as much sunlight as darker sand, but shoes were not needed!

We stayed at Park Royal Cancun. The resort was awesome- it was the only resort in Cancun with a Mayan ruin on the premises, as well! They had two pools, a swim up bar, snack bars, the friendliest staff, and was directly on the beach. They provided beach + pool chairs, towel service, and since we went with their all inclusive package (seriously, the only way to go), unlimited food and drinks.

They had two restaurants: an all you can eat buffet that changed meals according to time, as well as a fancy Italian restaurant that was opened for dinner. If you wanted to eat there, you simply made reservations in the morning. The restaurant was all glass and overlooked the water. All in all, I had no complaints about the amenities, and with everything included, you couldn’t beat their rate.

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

Cabanas + beach chairs the resort provided.

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

Even though it was in the middle of peak travel season, the beach felt SO private. There were always available chairs, people were not on top of each other- which is always a plus in my book.

The majority of our Friday was spent exploring the resort and hanging out on the beach.


Saturday:

When we woke up on Saturday, we decided to get an early start. We were dressed, ate breakfast, and ready to go all before 9 am. We wanted to go explore their downtown area and see the shops!

We were planning on taking a cab, but the front desk workers let us know that in Cancun, you can walk to the main road, and buses just randomly stop for you. We wanted to test it out, so we walked the 15 feet to the road, and sure enough, a bus stopped for us within 2 minutes. We told the driver we wanted to go downtown, and he told us to hop on. The entire fare for the 4 of us was under $4.00, and for a 20 minute ride, it was definitely well worth it.

Asking locals that work at resorts the best and safest ways to travel is always a great thing to do!

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

On the bus!

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

Every shop was filled of your typical tourist gifts, but they were also packed with custom, unique finds. These bookmarks were custom made and they would burn whatever you wanted right into the fabric!

We also found hand painted sugar skulls, homemade tequila, and a ton of jewelry.

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

It’s crazy how cheap everything is over there. Seriously, check out these beer prices!

After shopping around, we found a local hole in the wall for lunch. Sara, Dj, and Waugh were all craving street tacos! Being a vegetarian, I decided to play it safe with all I ate and drank in Mexico, so I stuck to bean and rice burritos + beer. 😉

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

After we hung around for a few hours, 12 tacos, 8 beers, 2 quesadillas, sides of rice & beans later, our total came out to a whopping $32.60. Finding little hole in the walls is definitely the way to go!

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"


After we got back, we spent some more time at the beach and then got ready for dinner at the Italian restaurant.

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

The view from the top pool.

It was on a hill, next to the Mayan ruin, that overlooked the water. The pool itself resembled an infinity pool where you could look off into the water.

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

After a quick photo sesh, we headed to dinner!

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

Bon appetite!


Sunday:

We headed off for an all day trip to the Mayan ruins! Check back for part 3 of that recap in a few days. 🙂


Monday:

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

After our all day adventures trekking three different ruins cites, we were all wanting a long day at the beach soaking up the sun.

One aspect of our resort that I really loved was that they provided different activities throughout the day. They had water aerobics in the pool in the mornings, soccer on the beach throughout the day, different trivia games, beach volleyball, and night dance parties. It was so welcoming, we met a ton of people, and we always had something everyone wanted to do.

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

One day, they even had tropical birds to take pictures with!

That afternoon, we went parasailing! It was so pretty; Dj & I even saw dolphins swimming through the sea. It was magical.

Unfortunately, the one aspect of the trip that I regretted most is forgetting my GoPro. If I had that, there would be plenty more water pictures!

After parasailing, we ended the day with some beach volleyball, dinner, and a beach party!

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"

"What-To-Do-In-Cancun-Mexico"


Tuesday:

The saddest day. 😉 We woke up early, packed up, got breakfast, and headed to the airport to catch our flight.

Overall, Mexico was amazingly beautiful and I could not have wished or planned a better trip!


Questions for you:

  1. Have you ever been to Mexico before? Which part?
  2. What’s your favorite authentic Mexican food?
  3. Are you a beach person?

6 Comments

  • Reply Monica June 3, 2016 at 7:53 am

    I went to Cancun for spring break my senior year of high school (so like 7 years ago now…eek) and got my fill of the social aspect, but now I want to go back for the beach and culture! The water is BEAUTIFUL and these photos are awesome. Glad you had a great time!

    • Reply Melissa June 3, 2016 at 8:43 am

      Thanks, Monica! 🙂
      The water was unbelievable! It was as if I was looking at a painting! Xo

  • Reply Jennifer June 3, 2016 at 2:46 pm

    I’ve never been to Mexico, but I heard it’s beautiful! I’m totally a beach person… living in MN it’s always so special to get to go somewhere that has an ocean!

    I remember you mentioning that you bought this as a package… did you buy this trip on Groupon by chance?!

    • Reply Melissa June 3, 2016 at 3:53 pm

      I’d never been either, but cannot wait to go back! We’re thinking of doing another trip in January (hopefully) to Rivera Maya.
      I completely agree with you about the ocean- life is so much better by the sea. 🙂

      So, the package was actually something that Sara bought. It’s sort of like a travelers version of a timeshare. They have a certain amount of points to cover travel for 3 years and can pick and choose different locations they offer that fits in their point value. They paid around $2,500 upfront, but that covers you for MANY vacations you can choose to take in 3 years. When the time comes and you have something selected, you only have to pay the taxes + airfare on the vacation. (You can also bring along friends and just split the total tax cost- which is how Dj and I chipped in!) A ton of different companies do them, but if you’re interested, I can ask her what the company she chose is called. 🙂

  • Reply katie June 14, 2016 at 9:27 pm

    Mexico looks like SO. MUCH. FUN! I can’t believe your meal was less than $40!

    And I have been so curious about the “travel hack” game and think it’s so cool you were able to take advantage of American Airlines offerings. I need to research that and look into it more!

    ​xx katie // a touch of teal

    • Reply Melissa June 15, 2016 at 9:18 am

      It’s definitely worth checking out which airline works best for you! I really love AA but watch out for those interest rates. 🙂
      Xo

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