A taste of Yucatan

Want to get away for a week? Then this Yucatan adventure tour may be just the ticket...

Great weather, a laid-back latino atmosphere and authentic Mexican food - this one week Mexico trip has it all. Get a taste of ancient Mayan culture in Chichen Itza, see flamingos and take a mud bath on the Gulf of Mexico. Stroll through colonial plazas in Valladolid and explore the yellow town of Izamal. Then, relax in your hammock on the deserted Caribbean beaches of Tulum.

You'll be travelling on your Yucatan adventure tour by rental car, armed with a map and directions from our local English-speaking agent. We've kept the driving distances relatively short to keep your holiday relaxed. If you think a week is too short to unwind, why not add a couple of days and stay a little longer?

Duration	7 days / 6 nights Departs daily	Accommodation	6 nights in double room with ensuite facilities. Comfort level (see accommodation).
Price	£433 per person - based on 2 people sharing	Includes	6 days (or 6 x 24 hour periods) car rental cat. A, accommodation (incl. breakfast in Valladolid), excursions as described
Transport	Rental car	Excludes	International flights + (airport) taxes, car rental surcharges (i.e. compulsory CDW insurance), admission fees, other meals.

Day 1: Arrival in Cancun

It's roughly a 10-hour flight from the UK to the tropical beaches of Cancun on the Gulf of Mexico (add a few hours for stopover in the US). On arrival at the airport, you can pick up some Mexican pesos from the cash machine before you're transferred to your hotel in the centre of town. Directly outside the hotel, you'll find yourself on a bustling square with restaurants and souvenir shops open until late at night.

Your hotel for the Yucatan adventure tour is full of Mexican atmosphere. The walls are adorned with Mayan paintings and traditional masks and the reception has a palapa (leaf) roof. Recover from your flight at the pool or in the spa before heading out in the evening to one of the many nearby bars to celebrate the start of your holiday with a real Mexican cocktail.

Day 2: Cancun - Rio Lagartos - San Felipe

This morning, you'll pick up your rental car at the city office and head inland. Your destination on the second day of the Yucatan adventure tour is the Rio Lagartos nature reserve. On the boat trip along the Rio Lagartos, you'll see bright pink flamingoes as well as ibises and caimans. You'll make a stop at a large salt water lake, where you can float around in the water (the high salt content keeps you afloat) and smother yourself in the mineral-rich mud. A free spa treatment from Mother Nature as it were. After the boat trip, it's a short 15 minute drive to San Felipe, a small fishing village on the Gulf of Mexico with pretty brightly coloured wooden houses. You'll be spending the night here, far away from the hustle and bustle.

Distance: approx 4 hours including rest stops.

Day 3: San Felipe - Izamal - Chichen Itza

This morning, you'll set off on the relaxed drive to the traditional town of Izamal, once an important Mayan settlement until the Spanish invasion. When the Spaniards arrived, they destroyed many of the traditional houses and temples and built a Franciscan monastery in the square. The monastery can still be visited today.

Izamal is known as the yellow town, as you'll soon realise why when you see that all of the houses are painted bright yellow. You can choose to take a tour around the town 'local style' by horse and cart or buy some lunch on the mercado in the town square. Then it's time to drive on to your accommodation for the night - a traditional hacienda close to the entrance of the Mayan city Chichen Itza...

Distance on Day 3 of the Yucatan adventure tour: San Felipe - Izamal: 3 hours - Izamal - Chichen: approx 1 hour.

Yucatan adventure tour - A taste of Mayan culture

Day 4: Chichen Itza - Valladolid

Wear light clothing and bring plenty of water today as it's going to be hot, hot, hot. As your hotel is close to the entrance of the ruins, you can set out early in the morning to explore Chichen Itza and enjoy the quiet, serene atmosphere of the ruins before the coach-loads of tourists from Cancun arrive. You can walk to El Castillo (the castle), a temple dedicated to the god Kulkulkan. It's a perfectly symmetrical pyramid, but because it's so steep, climbing the temple is no longer allowed. Nevertheless, it's still one of the most prominent structures in the complex.

After exploring the ruins, you can freshen up back at the hacienda before setting off on a short (one hour) drive to the colonial town of Valladolid where you'll be staying on the Playa Mayor. In the evening, you can take a stroll through the San Bernadino quarter, and the streets are beautifully lit at night.

Distance: Chichen - Valladolid: 1 hour including a stop at cenote Dzitnup

Days 5 and 6: Tulum

Now, it's time to enjoy some sun, sea and sand. You'll drive along the coast to reach the tropical paradise of Tulum for a couple of lazy beach days, looking out across the turquoise Caribbean sea. .

For these final few days of the Yucatan adventure tour you'll be staying in a cabaña on the beach, further up there's a sandy road with some shops. Tulum is 7km down road, the famous cliff-top Mayan ruins 15 mins drive away. Don't expect any wild discos here, as Tulum is very low-key (which is part of its appeal). Your bungalow has no TV and no phone, so all you'll hear is the soothing rush of the waves in the background. There's a hammock on your veranda and a great little bar close by.

Yucatan adventure tour - Doing absolutely nothing

Yucatan adventure tour - Music and culture

Day 7: Tulum - Cancun - End of Yucatan adventure tour itinerary

After 2 nights in Tulum, you're itinerary comes to an end. If you're up early this morning, take a last stroll along the beach and watch the sun rise over the smooth Caribbean sea. Then, it's a two hour drive back to the airport in Cancun where you will return your hire car, say 'adios' to Mexico and board your plane back to the UK.

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