Riviera Maya is one of the world's leading tourist destinations. The great tourist infrastructure that supports it makes it an easy, comfortable and safe place. You can travel the destination for free, how to do it?
Riviera Maya is the coastal strip of more than 130 kilometers that runs from the south from Cancun to Tulum, a maritime paradise dotted with hotels, many all inclusive. The great tourist infrastructure of the place facilitates knowing the area by the hand of some agency in tours.
For you to choose your population and ideal hotel in Riviera Maya sure this article is great for you, where we help you with information about places. You will see that there are different environments, plan well and you will enjoy more.
If you prefer visit destinations on your own, in Riviera Maya you find several options. It is a safe area to travel on your own, despite the fear policy with which some act.
How to get around in transport in Riviera Maya for free?
CAR RENTAL: rent a car in Riviera Maya It is one of the best options you have. Agency prices are competitive, good service, safety and good roads. The car gives you access to more remote places such as cenotes or beaches, where urban transport does not reach. Some may be good for you driving tips for the Yucatan Peninsula.
COLLECTIVE TRANSPORT: The highway that runs parallel to the coast of the Riviera Maya is federal 307. The hotels are located along this highway. From your hotel you just have to go out to the road and wait about 10 minutes for the collective, that easy. Wait in the direction of the road you are heading, the vans carry signs of Cancun-Playa del Carmen o Playa del Carmen-Tulum. You can stop where you want on the journey. The drivers help you with your stop. I leave you one guide on collective service.
BUS (TRUCK): The main company that operates the area is ADO. It has terminals in the main destinations such as Cancun, Puerto Morelos, Playa del Carmen and Tulum. Has stop at archaeological sites destinations like Chichén Itzá, Cobá and Tulum, that allow you to return in the same day from your Riviera Maya hotel. Look at the schedules, prices and possibilities with the ADO from Riviera Maya here
CAB: There are tourists who choose the option of going by taxi to visit some nearby beaches or cenotes. You get your idea of an excursion, talk to the taxi driver and agree on a price. You can share it 4 people to share expenses. Many taxi drivers in Riviera Maya are used to providing this type of service. If you want me to recommend someone, write to me and I will put you in touch.
Places in Riviera Maya to visit for free:
If your option is rental car or taxi, you can get to virtually all places.
If you are going to move in collective transport there are some very popular destinations which are easily accessible as ruins of Tulum, Akumal Bay, where you can swim in a natural space with turtles, Secret River or the little known ones ruins of Xel-há. Beaches like Paamul, Xpuhá o Xcalcel They are close to the road, being easy to reach by free. There is cenotes such as Crystal Cenote, Gran Cenote, Chikin-ha, Crystalline or the blue cenote that you have close to the road. Others, like the popular Cenote Dos Ojos, you must walk about 4 kilometers from the road to get there.
As you see there are options to combine a little of everything. You can get to many places by public transport. I have moved a lot on public transport through the Yucatan Peninsula and I usually move around the Riviera Maya as well.
I leave you two links that can help you organize your trip: the best excursions from Riviera Maya and another with excursion ideas from a day by car. I hope it will be useful for your trip to these wonderful lands.
I link you Cancun airport transfers. Comfortable 8 passenger vehicles, you can look at the prices in the following link:
Good way,
- Offers on flights international and national ..
- Find the accommodation with the best offers from Booking.com.
- Stay with airbnb and get 25 € discount.
- Contract activities, tours and excursions organized.
- Rent a car with the indispensable and necessary best discounts.
- Secure your transfers of arrival or departure to the airport.
- Travel safely with IATI and take advantage of 5% off.
If you prefer, you tell us your idea of the trip and together we organize it.
I'm finding the blog very useful! Congratulations
I appreciate your comment Natalia, you got me a smile.
Greetings travelers,
Thanks for your contribution to the people that we like to travel for free. Congratulations for your Blog
Luis, a pleasure to help, I appreciate the comment, of those who feel good 🙂
Thank you, enjoy the place!
Very good blog, it's very useful, tomorrow I'm going to Rivera Maya!
To enjoy Ronald, thanks for the comment 🙂
Good evening, My husband, my son of 2, a year and a half and I travel in August, I want to know akumak, xpu ha, and blue cenote in a day that I think is a cenote that I can enter with my son, I would like to know if move from one place to another should I go back to the road and take transportation or if they are nearby and if you think that cenote and the grand cenote are suitable to enter with my son?
thanks!
Hello Diana, among those places that you mention, you must get off the bus (combi) at each visit and then take another one on the road. Cenote Azul is perfect to go with your child, also the Cristalino cenote, in fact they are very close to each other. Grand cenote is also perfect to go with children, but it is further away from the rest of the points you want to visit. If you want you can also ask a taxi driver that you price to visit these places, as an option.
Have an excellent vacation!
I loved your blog! it is very useful! Right now I am in Cancun but I want to travel part of Yucatan and the Riviera for free. Thank you very much for the tips 🙂 Good routes
How nice to hear that Ixchel, I appreciate the comment.
You have a very good way, anything you write to me 🙂
How are you! Your comments are very much appreciated and I hope you could help me with a data that is decisive for me. I want to travel for the first time to Cancun, by car, passing through points you mention. I would leave Mexico City but I have not decided the date yet because I do not know the weather between the months of August, September, October. When would it be advisable, when not? Hopefully if you can, you can help me! Thank you
Hello Cesar, with the weather these times it is difficult to decide between August, September or October. We are in the rainy season and it is very difficult to predict the best days regarding the rains. The three similar months, but to choose would choose October where the occupancy of visitors goes down a lot and you can visit this area more calm.
I hope it helps you choose a little.
Have an excellent trip,
hello, we are going the first week of December to Riviera, with two kids of 10 and 14 years, and we are doubting if to make the excursion to Chichen Itza by free renting a car stopping to take a dip in a cenote (with calm) and get there on the 3 / 4 in the afternoon, and make the visit in the afternoon. Or rent a tour of small groups, hit the big early morning and follow the itinerary k mark the tour ...? On the other hand, if we go free. Can we buy tickets directly there? and in what cenote you would stop along the way.
Thanks in advance
Hi Lidia,
Yes you can buy the ticket there, they are about 240 pesos now. I leave an entry for you if you can help: https://www.elcaminomascorto.es/chichen-itza-en-coche-de-alquiler/ Take into account that the area is closed to the 4: 45, if you arrive at the 4 it is very short time in Chichén Itzá. Cenotes there are several on the way, according to the itinerary and the hours: it could be the Oxman in Valladolid, the Ikkil very close to Chichén, the Dzitnup ones also close to Valladolid or some of the Tulum-Valladolid highway, such as Grand Cenote (all you find in the blog, to get an idea). There are other beautiful but you must deviate a bit from the route.
Anything we see, sure the chosen will be a good plan 🙂
Warm regards,
Hi, we traveled with my husband and daughter 4 for ten days at the end of January. I wonder if the weather allows us to enjoy the beaches and cenotes? We booked 5 nights at the hotelito del mar in PDC, we will rent a car to move, we have 5 days left and I can not decide If we go to tulum, to holbox, to isla mujeres..descartamos go to an allinclusive for now (although the accommodation in tulum but the food I think that could leave us the same!) recommendations? Our return is from CUN to the 16hs. Thank you so much!
Hello Maria, yes, of course the weather is favorable for beach and cenotes in January. Bring something warm because the nights can be the temperature less than 20 degrees, as much cold we reached 12, as very low. During the day to 26 degrees, more or less.
As you say accommodation in Tulum and food, you can get same price as an all-inclusive. Personally I lean more for Holbox, the destinations you mention. From there you have the area of Rio Lagartos, Coloradas and you can even go to Valladolid and get to know the interior. But also Tulum is an excellent destination with much to see, better than Isla Mujeres.
It is difficult to advise sometimes without knowing the people and their way of moving, I hope it serves you.
Have a great time, a hug.
Hello Maria, yes, of course the weather is favorable for beach and cenotes in January. Bring something warm because the nights can be the temperature less than 20 degrees, as much cold we reached 12, as very low. During the day to 26 degrees, more or less.
As you say accommodation in Tulum and food, you can get same price as an all-inclusive. Personally I lean more for Holbox, the destinations you mention. From there you have the area of Rio Lagartos, Coloradas and you can even go to Valladolid and get to know the interior. But also Tulum is an excellent destination with much to see, better than Isla Mujeres.
It is difficult to advise sometimes without knowing the people and their way of moving, I hope it serves you.
Have a great time, a hug.
excellent your blog I am new in this I hope not to lose it I do not know how to save it good my question is. DO YOU KNOW THE WAY OF ARRIVING FROM TULUM TO THE GREAT CENOTE BEING PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION OR TAXI AND COSTS SINCE I DO NOT CARRY A CAR AND I'M ON A NATIONAL PLAN AND WITHOUT A BIG BUDGET?
THANK YOU
Hello Alan,
From Tulum to Grand Cenote there are only 4 kilometers. Collective depart from the town of Tulum, but a taxi charges about 80 pesos, and you can share it with 4 people. I leave the entrance to Grand Cenote: https://www.elcaminomascorto.es/grand-cenote-hermoso-y-popular/
Another article that can go well for your trip: https://www.elcaminomascorto.es/rutas-en-bici-desde-tulum/
Anything you want to search the blog, you'll see a magnifying glass on the top right: you write what you're looking for, it's an easy way to find the information.
Greetings, welcome and have a great time here Alan 🙂
Hello Sandra! This time I come with this question ... can I go to Cirque du Soleil from Cancun by public transport? (Always pointing to the cheapest, we are 4) How far is the Vidanta theater?
Hi Faby,
Yes you can, it would be going by bus that leaves from the terminal of the ADO of Cancun, I would leave for about 30 pesos each. The theater is at the foot of the road, the driver can warn you about the stop. The only complicated thing is the return, being an intermediate stop it is difficult to find 4 seats in a collective because they leave full from Playa del Carmen to Cancun. With patience and luck is achieved, but you can take a while. The prices of a round trip taxi from Cancun would be about 1500 pesos, back they must charge over the 750 pesos. I hope I helped you clear doubts. I leave you information of the groups: https://www.elcaminomascorto.es/como-ir-de-cancun-a-playa-del-carmen-y-tulum/
Warm regards,
I am preparing a trip to the Yucatan Peninsula and one of the areas that I was very interested in visiting were the beaches of the Riviera Maya. After reading quite a few posts from your blog the truth is that I am a little disappointed. I just want to ask you a question, is there a beach in this area that you can access, swim and snorkel without paying? It gives me the impression that in Spain we are badly used when we can access the vast majority of the beaches and lay down our towels without any problem.
This is Rafael, luckily in Spain the beaches are freely accessible. In fact I only remember Menorca that you still pay access to the roads to the sea. I recommend Holbox and El Cuyo (they have a spectacular virgin beach) outside the Riviera Maya area. Snorkeling without paying is complicated: you can go to Soliman to snorkel and have a drink in the Chamorros so you don't pay. Another possibility is in Paamul. In Puerto Morelos the beach is freely accessible and you have the coral reef one kilometer away. In fact, the fishermen make tours to the barrier by boat, because if you go swimming on your own they force you to carry a buoy to see the boats well. So is the move here. At least on the beaches that I tell you you will not feel like a tour tourist, something is something.
Any questions you tell me,