Tulum Travel Tips
As our first international travel after the pandemic, prior to departure we were both super excited and also a bit nervous about our Tulum trip. We definitely did plenty of research and read about many experiences shared by other travelers, and now it’s our chance to share some of our Tulum travel tips based on our recent trip.
Mexico Tourist Card - Entry Immigration Form (FMM)
As a mandatory customs form for all travelers entering into Mexico, flight attendants handed out the cards before landing and it only took a few minutes to complete. It is critical to carry this card with your passport at all times while you’re in Mexico. We happened to see several random security checkpoints during our time here and were actually stopped by heavily armed police once while we were driving ourselves, but after handing the officer our passports and our Tourist Cards, we were quickly cleared to continue our drive after he verified our information.
Transportation From/To Cancun International Airport (CUN)
Though there are many different ways to transfer between Tulum and CUN, we opted to hire a private shuttle for both directions. We used a company called eTransfers, we booked and paid for our shuttle online in advance and we were happy with the services we received both times. Cost was 2000 pesos each way for 2 people when we booked, you will receive a confirmation email with directions once the transaction is completed, and our drivers were very much on time and friendly.
Transportation in Tulum
Getting around Tulum also has many options, and we were able to experience a few of them:
Walking: a completely free option. However there is no sidewalk in the Tulum Beach area, so all pedestrians will be sharing the roads with bikes, scooters, and other vehicles, so it’s definitely not a stress-free type of path for many. Tulum Town is a lot more friendly for pedestrians, but for potential safety concerns, try to stick to the main roads in town and walk in a group during daytime hours only.
Renting bicycles: we were able to rent bikes from our hotel for 100 pesos per day (no helmets will be provided), and it got us to slightly farther places a lot quicker than on foot. There were plenty of bike racks along the roads where you could easily park your bikes, just make sure you lock the bikes whenever you’re not riding them.
Renting a scooter: though we didn’t rent one ourselves, we did inquire about this option and was told that cost was about 1200 pesos per day (helmets will be provided).
Taking a taxi: we took taxis more than a handful times in Tulum. To get a taxi, you simply have to stand on the side of the road and taxi drivers will honk when they pass by to signal you that they are available, all you have to do is to wave your hand to signal them if you’re interested. Taxi fares vary largely and negotiation is very much needed here, however based on our experiences, we think it’s good to use a general guideline of 20 pesos per 1 minute drive based on Google Maps (e.g. 100 pesos for a 5 minute ride).
Renting a car: we also rented a car for 3 days while we were here, this allowed us to visit some remote destinations outside of Tulum area (e.g. Chichen Itza). While car rental cost started at around 1400 pesos for a compact car with basic insurance, we ended up choosing to rent a small SUV with premium coverage for 2200 pesos from America Car Rental in Tulum Town. We’ve definitely heard there were a lot of scams associated with car rentals, but the overall transaction was smooth and easy for us, just make sure you do a careful inspection and take a 4K video with your phone to record the car’s condition inside out during pick-up.
Staying in Tulum Beach vs. Tulum Town
It is obvious that the biggest difference of staying at these 2 places is cost, hotels in Tulum Beach is roughly 3 times more expensive than Tulum Town in our opinions. The higher price will of course give you direct access to the beach and perhaps closer proximity to some other places you’re interested in seeing. But the Tulum Beach area (or often referred as Tulum Hotel Zone) is ironically not so “hotely” to us, and the main reason we’re saying this is because of the poor infrastructures. On the other hand, Tulum Town is more of a traditional experience for us with less surprises. Here are a few more things we learned only after we stayed at both places:
Electricity: many places in the beach area has no electricity, and the hotels are powered by their own generators. From time to time, we had to black out for a few minutes in order for the hotel staff to switch generators. Though our hotel didn’t impose this on us, but we did hear many other hotels will restrict A/C usage to certain hours of the day. Tulum Town does not have this issue and yes you will likely find brighter rooms with more power outlets here.
Water: tap water is NOT drinkable in the entire area of Tulum and we knew that before we departed, however what we didn’t know is that tap water is actually salty in Tulum Beach because it’s mixed with water from the ocean. Though it’s generally unnoticeable, you will 100% be reminded of this when you’re brushing your teeth. Tulum Town again does not have this issue as far as our experience goes.
Road conditions: there is only one narrow 2-way street in Tulum Beach, and the road is shared by pedestrians, bikes, scooters, cars, trucks, etc., making it difficult for everyone no matter how you’re commuting. On top of that, there are countless large potholes throughout the entire road, some so large and deep that everyone will have to go/ride/drive around it, making the already narrow road even more congested. Tulum Town will definitely be less chaotic in this sense with wide sidewalks and even designated bike lanes.
Even with all the culture shocks from staying in Tulum Beach, we still truly loved the experience. After all, we’ve stayed at many “ocean view” rooms before, but this was our first time staying at an “oceanfront” cabin directly on the beach.
Pumping Gas at Gas Stations
We’ve also heard scary things about getting gas in Tulum, but luckily everything was again smooth and easy for us. But this is definitely a scenario that we will quote that old saying of “better safe than sorry”, so it’s always good to keep a few points in mind at gas stations here:
Ask the gas station staff to clear out the previous transaction record (reset balance to 0) before fueling your car. This is to prevent them from keep adding on from the previous transaction so they could eventually charge you way more than what you actually get.
Always estimate how much gas you need and ask the gas station staff to fill a specific amount. During our visit gas price was about 20 pesos for 1 liter, and for our small SUV, 400 pesos (20 liters) will fill about half a tank. Chances are it’s easier to pull a scam if you simply ask them to “fill the tank”, so give specific instructions on how much you need and check your fuel level right after to confirm.
Pay cash and always count the bills right in front of them, give specific dollar amount if possible. This is to prevent them from taking 500 pesos from you but then turn around and say they only receive 200 pesos instead.
Step out of the car and be alerted of the whole process. Even though you don’t need to physically pump gas yourself, we recommend to still step out and watch the entire process to make sure nothing alarming is going on.
Using Credit Card vs. Cash
We exchanged 10,000 pesos from our bank at discount relationship rate prior to departure, and this ended up to be the most cost efficient exchange we saw and pretty much covered our cash purchase for the entire trip. If you do need to exchange pesos upon arrival, you can do so by exchanging it with USD at currency exchange centers (at a costly rate) or by withdrawing from ATMs (foreign transaction fees will apply), both are not the most economical methods.
Overall we felt pretty safe using our credit cards as many vendors will bring the credit card machine over and complete the transaction right in front of you. Here is an overall comparison of when/where we used credit cards vs. cash:
We used credit card for:
Hotel check outs
Booking transportations and car rental
Paying for meals at high end restaurants
Chain convenience store purchases
We used cash for:
All entrance and admission tickets
Street vendors and small shops
Getting gas
Lower cost restaurants
Aggressive Upselling and Negotiation
Aggressive upselling is part of the culture here and we started to experience it right after we stepped out of the airport. Most of the time if you’re not interested, you can just ignore and walk right past these sellers. But one type of upselling vendor that scared us a bit is those private parking lot vendors at popular sightseeing places - they literally will walk right in front of your car to stop you and get you to park at their parking lots. Just do your research and know your way, be careful as you enter those touristy places and slowly drive away to park at the official parking lot whenever possible.
As for negotiation, it is also largely expected here. Most of the vendors will negotiate with you and depending on how comfortable you are, you can start negotiation with 25% of their originally asked prices. Here are a couple examples of our purchases, we purchased a Mayan mask for 100 pesos when originally told for 400 pesos, and bought a magnet for 10 pesos when asked for 50 pesos.
Souvenir Purchase
Throughout our trip, we spotted 3 main places for souvenir purchases:
Tulum Ruins: there are some large souvenir shops right outside of Tulum Ruins, and many of them are very upscale with premium looking products. Negotiation is not possible at these kind of stores and prices are definitely higher, but if you are looking for a nice gift with beautiful packaging, this may be the right place for you. There are also some smaller vendors here who will negotiate with you, but overall price is still at a higher side.
Tulum Town: you will find so many shops here with all different types of souvenirs, pretty much all vendors will negotiate with you here and you will find items at much more reasonable prices. Even if you’re not looking to bring home any items, it’s still quite fun to check out some of these shops.
Chichen Itza: though this is outside of Tulum and perhaps not a destination for everyone, we do think this is the best place to purchase souvenirs if this is part of your travel plan. There are thousands of individual vendors who carry their products here in the morning and start to display them on folding tables inside Chichen Itza. Because there is no retail shop to maintain, we found their prices to be the lowest compared to the other 2 places and of course, only cash payment is accepted here.
To read more on our perfect week spent in Tulum, click HERE.
To read more on our Tulum Food Tour, click HERE.
Hotel of Our Stay (Tulum Beach): Coco Tulum Zen Zone Hotel
Secluded cabin sits right on the beach, a private pathway leads to our own patio with a hammock and beach chairs, literally a few steps away from the ocean - this is definitely not the most luxurious kind of hotel experience (facility wise), but a stay with immersive connections to nature and bold Tulum vibes.
Central location, easy parking, friendly staff, tasty breakfasts. Room is on the smaller side and lights aren’t very bright (especially at night), but very steady Wi-Fi and efficient A/C - overall a satisfied stay.
Hotel of Our Stay (Tulum Town): Zenses Wellness and Yoga Resort
With only 11 cabins onsite, the hotel is totally Zen in many aspects: modern and spacious room, super private and lush patio, unique looking hammocks, gorgeous breakfast and pool area, free morning Yoga classes, etc.
This hotel is about 6-minute walk to main street, convenient location, stunning interior and more than enough space, functional Wi-Fi and very easy parking. If you’re looking to spend some peaceful times, there’s really not much we could complain about this place.