shoonye

We are planning a trip to the Mayan riviera from May 8 to 17 with our baby to celebrate her first birthday. I would appreciate if you could critique the following itinerary. In general, we are adventurous and dont mind driving around to see some of the nicer ruins but also like to spend part of the vacation lazing around.

May 8: Fly into Cancun mid-morning. Rent a car and drive to Chichen Itza. Overnight at Chichen
May 9: After an early morning visit to the ruins, drive to Merida. Overnight at Merida.
May 10: Drive to Uxmal and visit ruins Overnight at Uxmal
May 11: Drive to Tulum. Visit Coba enroute. Return car at Tulum
May 12-17: At Tulum resort
May 17: Airport transfer to Cancun

Is it reasonable to visit Uxmal and Coba with a one year child? Would any of the sites be difficult to move around.with a baby. Can we bring along a stroller. Are any of the drives overly difficult or complicated. Is it normally very hot during this period or comfortably warm?

MonicaRichards

Coba would be fine with an all-terrain stroller (if you can manage to fly with it and store it in your rental car). I did find Tulum very couples-oriented and not that family friendly. Our kids (ages 6 & 8) were at loose ends. Maybe it's easier with a baby that doesn't get bored?

MonicaRichards

Oh, and I think you are moving around too much at the beginning of your trip. That's a lot of time in the car. Maybe your daughter does well and sleeps in the car? Personally I like two nights minimum in any one place.

kja

> also like to spend part of the vacation lazing around

I'm not seeing much down time in your plans

> Is it normally very hot during this period or comfortably warm?

I was there in late April/early May, and found it very hot.

Sorry I can't answer your questions about traveling with a baby.

Enjoy!

cocontom

Chichen Itza ruined Coba and Tulum for us- if you could reverse your itinerary, you'll probably enjoy the all of the ruins a lot more. Chichen Itza is so much larger and more impressive than Tulum, and much better restored than Coba. This is colored by having CI almost to ourselves, and Coba being wall to wall people, but it was just a smaller, not as nice version of what we'd already seen, with a lot more people crammed in. Being able to climb the main pyramid was neat, but there's absolutely no way I would do it with a baby attached to me.

If you keep your itinerary the same, you might want to consider stopping at Ek Balam on the way to Chichen Itza. You should have plenty of time. When you get to the Valladolid area, you'll go to the right of the highway, and the city of Valladolid is to the left. We didn't make it there (we went left), but I've heard lots of good things about it.

MFNYC

Whatever you do, make sure you bring plenty of bottled water to the ruins. It gets very hot walking around there. I remember Tulum being brutally hot, and we were there in March (a few years back). We also did Coba once in December, I don't remember it being as uncomfortable as Tulum. It's more shaded because it's in a jungle environment. I never been to Chichen Itza.

Make sure you have a sturdy stroller. The terrain in these places could be a bit bumpy, and it would be too much walking for a 1 year old.

pepper131

Honestly, this is too much. Especially May 11th - drive from Uxmal to tour Coba then drive to Tulum. It will take you about 4 hours to get to Coba where you'll spend about 2-3 hours and then drive another 45-60 minutes to Tulum.

I have visited Chichen Itza and Ek Balam when my son was one. We could only see half of Chichen Itza before he was completely worn out. We returned the following year the see the rest. 4-5 hours is needed at Chichen. And we did it all in a Deuter backpack carrier. Strollers are not convenient to use at the ruins.

We travel to Tulum all the time with our family. Don't worry, you will not be out of place. We always see lots of kids from all over the world in Tulum - babies-teenagers.

jette

Please be careful visiting these sites, especially Chichen Itza with a child this young. It can be very,
VERY hot there in May. Personally, I'd spend more time on the beach with a child that young where they will be more comfortable. I realize you want to see ruins and they are worth seeing but consider how uncomfortable this is going to be for baby. Just my 2 cents.

shoonye

Thank you everyone for your responses. We are considering removing one of Coba or Uxmal from the itinerary. We have also narrowed down the resorts we would like to stay at. Does anyone have experience with the Gran Bahia in Akumal? Any recommendations of other resorts would be great. Thanks.

pepper131

Coba isn't going to make as much of a difference as Uxmal will. From GBP (the large AI you are considering), you can easily see Coba and Tulum; plus you could put Muyil into the mix.

shoonye

Thanks Pepper. I had one last question. Would it worthwhile to spend a day at Xcaret with a one year old or would that be difficult for us to enjoy.

pepper131

Xcarat would be easier than Xel Ha since it has more attractions that don't have to do with being in water. They have a zoo, etc.
Be sure to bring a lifejacket for your daughter. Small sizes are rare in the area and you will want to go into the water at Xcaret and other places too. I always bring a lifejacket for my son, in fact, I need to get a new one for our next trip.