Mayan ruins
 

We will be at Playa Del Carmen on the Yucatan peninsula for 6 nights. We are interested in exploring some of the Mayan sites. Most of the tours we've looked at are 8 to ten hours long, leaving early in the morning which would be too much for us. We can easily get to Tulum, and it seems like Muyil and the Si'an Kaan reserve are possibilities. Any other suggestions of Mayan sites that wold be "doable" in a half day tour, or other historical and/or eco reserves that you would recommend. Thanks all.

A quick google search turned up a number of 6+ hour tours to Tulum and Coba. I haven't been to the latter, but have heard it is worth the trip.

Thanks Fra-Diavolo. Has anyone taken a tour of Muyil and Sian ka'an? I'm wondering about bathroom facilities at the ruins/cenotes as well.

You will probably get a lot more responses if you go to the Playa del Carmen forum on Trip Advisor. I am not permitted to post the link here.

thanks so much Schmerl - good advice

We toured Muyil and Sian ka'an in 2013 so my info is dated. We had a car heading south and were able to stop where we wanted, but I know the collectivos stopped at Muyil.

We thought Muyil was way worth it and returned for another visit on the way back north. The crowd scene at Tulum, which we had visited many years ago, was oppressive on that trip. We were basically alone at Muyil. The ruins are not as dramatic as Coba however. But our Coba visit was also decades ago. My (possibly faulty) memory of Muyil is that is does have bathroom facilities. Thumbs up on Muyil.

Si'an Kaan is beautiful but, sadly, some of the beaches were heavily littered with plastic flotsam, another major change from the early '90's when we though they were the most beautiful beaches we had ever seen.

Hopefully you got some current info on TA.

I only check this forum every month or 2 but am waiting in an airport with time on my hands. Great timing! On Monday my husband and I did an awesome tour that included visiting the Muyil Maya site, boating through several of the Sian Ka’an lagoons, and then floating down a Maya-made canal for half an hour with life jackets - gorgeous! Here’s a link:
https://www.i-akumal.com/sian-kaan-muyil

Happy trails!

Thank you Nelson and Hopefulist - I am going to try to book the Muyil-Sian Ka'an tour - it sounds perfect for us

tour booked
 

Thank you all, we booked a tour to Muyil and SianKa'an. I think we plan on staying by the beach and pool for most of the rest of the trip. I would love to swim in a cenote, but we tend to overschedule ourselves, so maybe play it by ear. Thanks for your good advice.

Swimming in a cenote
 

Just think, that swimming pool will be nice and warm, then jump into a cenote-----brrrrrrr, COLD. No sandy beach, only cold water. Keep in mind, cenotes are underground bodies of water, reflecting the temperature far below ground, unaffected by the ambient temps above ground. Enjoy your trip, and let this be your first of many more trips to Mexico, perhaps even venturing to the beautiful ruins of Palenque.

Ahhh Pelon2 - you just made me feel so much better about probably not making it to Cenotes - and yes, we are already dreaming of our next trip (perhaps Mexico City). Thank you