playacar?mazatlan?acapulco?
 

hi! i am trying to plan a vacation to mexico. i was a spanish major and have spent time as an exchange student in several latin american countries. i have vacationed to zihuatanejo and really enjoyed it. now i am trying to plan a vacation for 3 of my friends and myself. my friend's mom is letting us use her time share condo--so we are limited in choices--i have just begun our research...i am thinking of mazatlan? playa del carmen? or maybe acapulco? pto vallarta? <BR>These are our priorities: my boyfriend and i would like to try for somewhere that is not as touristy and has a local mexican culture and local restaurants and bars etc...my 2 friends have never been outside the u.s. and their only request is for blue clear water and nice beaches...the rest is up to me! we plan on spending most days on the beach eating seafood and drinking beers...we would like to do some snorkelling...and at night we plan on going out for dinners and beers --but hopefully among mexicans (no sr frogs please)...and if there happens to be some ruins nearby, that doesn't hurt, but it's not a priority. <BR> <BR>please please! any suggestions? i really need some help!!! <BR> <BR>(p.s. i have been to cozumel already and i don't want to return--so please don't suggest it.) <BR> <BR>

<BR>The beautiful, clear, clean, white sand beaches are on the Carribean side of Mexico! Don't go to the Pacific side if you are looking for these types of beaches. You will probably love the Mayan Sun Coast (PDC all the way down to south of Akumal). Great snorkeling, beaches, cold cervesas and hammocks! Hope you have a wonderful time! <BR>I'll be in Akumal first of December!! <BR> <BR>Mark <BR>

mark, i am really excited about your message! have you been to akumal before? please tell me lots of information! i looked it up in my books etc and it looks pretty cool--the only problem is there are no time shares available there-it looks like the closest would be at puerto aventuras or playa del carmen...how far is it to akumal from there? could we make some day trips? and if we stay in puerto aventuras or playa del carmen--do you or does anyone else know which is preferred for someone like me? write back please! thanks.

p.s. does anyone know anything about manzanillo--i heard from a friend that it's pretty cool--but i read that it's a big industrial city and that doesn't sound so cool--anyone? anyone? bueller? bueller?

Amanda, go to the www.locogringo.com website. It will give you lots of Akumal information. We're planning a trip there in March. We've been to many parts of Mexico before so have some experience. I would skip Mazatlan, Manzanillo, PV, Acapulco, and Cancun. I would instead stay in Playa del Carmen or Aventuras which are much smaller and lovely. From there you can go south to Akumal, Tankah, Tulum, easily within a 1/2 drive for great isolated beaches and archeological sites. You can also get to Coba in about 2 hours, and Chichen Itza in about 4 hours. Have fun.

My husband and I just returned from PDC and it was a paradise. Akumal and Tulum ruins are a short drive south on a good highway. The town was charming and better yet, felt safe. I highly reccomend it!

everyone! thanks for your valuable advice! i think this web sit is leading me to a wonderful vacation. now i have more questions...these areas are smaller and prettier from what i have heard and read...now, is there an actual "town" atmosphere? i have been to places so isolated that there is nothing...are there restaurants? bars? can we get a beer on the beach? this is important to some of my party. <BR> also, are there busses that run? or do we need to rent a car? and if we rent a car--is it scary driving? <BR> <BR> thank you all so much for your advice!

My wife and I have spent many vacations <BR>along the Mayan coast. The places with a village or town feel to them would be PDC and Tulum. Playa has much more going on then Tulum. Akumal has many hotels and quite afew bars but not much of a town feel to it. TanKah is fairly isolated mostly private homes(some can be rented, my favorite place to stay) and a couple restaurants (Casa Cenote is a great place for a beer and something to eat). Tulum has more of a mexican feel to it than any place along the coast, very few good hotels, but some good restaurants. E-mail me if you need any other info. <BR> <BR>Jerry