Hello from Athens-Greece!
We are getting married in June and we have chosen Cancun as our honeymoon destination.

As i am taking care of the schedule and details i would appreciate your help.

I am thinking to rent a car as we are both lovers of adventure and romance. For sure you cannot find romance in a bus with 50 pax. Do you believe car rental is safe in Cancun area? We wish to visit the following archaeological sites: Chichen Itza, Tulum & Xel-Ha, Coba village, Valladolid, El Ray, Yaml Lu Um, Isla Mujeres, Xcaret, etc. and do some horse riding, snorkeling, jeep jungle tour etc.

I know that maybe ask too much! We will be staying in Cancun from June 30th till July 11th so any help from your side to build our itinerary and your recommendations would be much appreciated!

Thank you everybody for your help!

Sincere regards,
Apostolos

Yes I believe car rental is safe in the Cancun area. You can use a car except for Isla Mujeres, being an isalnd you go over by ferry. Honestly I've yet to get to that coast of Mexico myself, so hopefully some other experts on the area will chime in and help you with the details.

Congratulations! Check out the Yucatán and Riviera Maya collections below for ideas - the blog and travelogues links are on the main page of each collection. It will be HOT so opt for air conditioning. You might also want to consider snorkeling with whale sharks off Isla Mujeres - the season starts in mid June. Happy trails!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/staceyholeman/collections

Hi Apostolos,

First off the ruins...
Chichen Itza is a long drive from Cancun. We did this trip a few years ago and I really would recommend you stay overnight in the area especially as you are traveling in the summer as it's so HOT.

We set off early and took the toll road there, returning via Tulum. We arrived before noon and it was blazing hot but that didn't deter us from climbing to the top (I think it's not allowed here anymore though).

It was a very long day and we didn't quite make it to Tulum before sunset as planned. If you overnight somewhere it will allow you to spend some time swimming in a cenote and to see the ruins in the cooler morning.

Tulum has a beautiful setting and it's worth spending some time on the beautiful beach below the site. Take a picnic!

It is almost a 2hour drive from Cancun but can be combined with a morning dip at a cenote on the way or snorkeling at Yal-ku lagoon.

El Rey is within the hotel zone so it's easy to fit this in (guides are available but we found it was enough to read the information provided at the site).

I've still not made it to Coba...

Xel-Ha is a full day trip. Again go early and try to arrive before the tour groups (it opens at 8.30am).
Book in advance online to save 10%.
We enjoyed watching the manatees being fed on our last visit a couple of weeks ago.
They've also introduced some ziplines over the water which are fun.

It's all inclusive and the fruit served at breakfast was amazing (I tried mamey for the first time and ate a few wonderful mangoes plus something purple that I couldn't identify!).

Valladolid can be visited en route to Chichen Itza and there are cenotes near by.

Honestly, with your busy schedule I'd skip Isla Mujeres as I think the beaches are better in Cancun and it's a sleepy little place with too many souvenir stalls for my liking.

Where are you staying in Cancun?
Best wishes for your wedding!

Oh, I forgot car hire advice.

We've had a few interesting experiences when hiring cars in Mexico.
We've been handed beers to go..., the price is often negotiable and might be different to what you booked online so print out all information regarding any bookings.

Read up on 'car scams in Mexico'.

Here are a few hints!

Stick to the speed limits and pull to the right to let cars pass you.
'Topes' are speed bumps so go very slowly over these!
We were surprised that a few garages didn't accept credit cards for gas/petrol on our last trip so fill up before you hit empty.

mayan-traveler.com

best ruins info.

U can hire a driver/guide for less

than car rental per day if careful.

Car rental has risk crime and police shake downs

for mordida(bribes) so usually do driver/guides.

betterbidding.com great deals on Cancun hotels

Congrats!

You were all very helpful and i appreciate the time you spent to reply!

Sassy_cat, I will take your advise and will not visit Isla Mujeres. As i understood there is nothing important to miss.

Can i please ask you if Ek Balam can be combined in one day with Valladolid and Chichen Itza? (probably after visit to Chichen Itza).

I will be staying in Gran Melia Hotel. What's your opinion?

I would be grateful if you could check the below itinerary/activities i am interested to do:
Day 1: Full day to Tulum & Xel-Ha
Day 2: Full day to Chichen Itza - Valladolid - Ek Balam
Day 3: Full Day to El Ray, Yaml Lu Um, Cancun for shopping etc.
Day 4: Full Day to Coba Village
Day 5: Full Day to Xcaret Park
Day 6: Full Day Jeep jungle tour
Can you please help me and let me know if any of the above can be combined in one day?

In case i have missed anything important (especially archaeological site) please advise.

Thank you for the tips on car rental!

Again thank you very much everyone!!!

Day 1 and Day 2 are both very full days.

On day 1 leave your hotel at around 7am to get to Xel-Ha before 9am; it opens at 8.30am. This will give you time to find a locker for your things and orientate yourself before having breakfast.

If you leave Xel-Ha around 3pm then you will have time to wander around Tulum for an hour or so and check out the beach.

Leave for Cancun about 4.30pm and you should be back at your hotel around 6.30/7pm.

Day 2... I think this will be an even longer day! Chichen Itza site is open from 9am -5pm... light show is at 8pm in summer (I've only been there at midday which was too hot).
Try to get there as early as you can.

Don't try to take these day trips one after the other... spend a day at the beach between them at least!

Try reading some trip reports on Fodors to see what others have done as it might give you a better feel for distances/drive time etc.

Here's a link that might help!
http://www.fodors.com/community/mexi...ichen-itza.cfm

Check opening times before you go.. they do vary according to time of year.