We are trying to plan our summer vacation. (2 adults, 2 kids 9 & 12) and the only time we can go is mid-august. We are trying to do either out-island bahamas or mexico (we live in TX, so Mexico is easier to get to). If Mexico, I am thinking Tulum based on posts here. Are we crazy? I know it will be hot, but we plan to be in the water and as I mentioned, we live in TX so are used to heat. I would love advice of people who have been to Mexico at that time of year. (I know it's also the beginning of hurricane season). Also - always interested in lodging ideas as well!!

We were in Tulum in March when the daytime temperature was in the mid eighties and stayed at the Los Lirios. Unlike many Tulum hotels, the rooms there have A/C and ours worked very well. It was a delightful place with a perfect beach. The price, through Price-Travel, was right too.

Thanks! Los Lirios does look great and I think we would definitely need AC! I was hoping for a condo so the kids could have their own rooms and we could take some meals "in", but there don't seem to be many condos/villas in Tulum?

You might want to do more research on Tulum. You may find that it isn't for you. It's off-the-grid completely; most places run on solar/wind power thus no a/c in most places - if they have a/c, it's run on a generator.

There are no condos in Tulum, but will find them in most other areas like Akumal.
But there are some homes to rent. Off-the-grid homes; none that I know of have a/c.

We always go to Tulum in August. It is HOT, but we are from Dallas and the weather seems less severe hot-wise than here. You will need a minimum of a ceiling fan and beachfront room for the double breeze.
We love Tulum for it's lack of amenities...it brings our kids back to earth.

Thanks for the insight - we are choosing Tulum for the same reason - lack of amenities. I have no problem with no a/c if it's bearable - like you I'm used to the heat. I think Sian Kaan looks interesting as well.

lt20- you might want to check out my Tulum trip report. Click my name and it is numbers 59, 56 and 54.

The AC was nice to have. If staying at Los Lirios I would suggest an upper floor room, either Ocean View or for a bit more, Ocean Front. The upper floor rooms have very high ceilings and better views. Skip the Garden View rooms - you might pick up some odor from the water treatment plant if the breeze changes direction. I have some pictures on Kodak Gallery and have to figure how to link them to here. Any suggestions for the technically challanged?

Sian Kaan is even more remote w/o a lot of lodging options. There are a couple of houses to rent - you can find them on locogringo.com.

Farther down is Xamach Dos - past the Boca Paila bridge. My only beef with them is that the bathrooms, although pvt and not shared, are in a seperate bldg from each cabana.

Even farther is Sol Caribe which is almost to Punta Allen. You can find them on locogringo.com too. It's a long bumpy ride to get there - especially in the rainy season when the rain makes the potholes in the dirt road worse than ever.

thanks, I've spent alot of time on locogringo.com - both the Sol Caribe and Casa Houston look great. Good to know about the long bumpy road, though...

whoa - i just read on another post somewhere that it is 3 hours from Tulum to Sol Caribe. yikes, I don't think I want to be quite that far away from everything all week....

it20; You need to expect daytime highs of 90-95+ and 82-85 at 9-10 PM. If you get up at 7 AM it may be 78-80 but not for long. The humidity could be 60-70%+ and many parts of TX are hot but humidity of 40% except places like Houston. In fact that is a good comparison. Think of Houston in August and add a few degrees in day and evening. The hurricanes are the least of your worries though they are always a remote possibility that a tropical depression will occur just when you are there.
The comment's about modest A/C is exactly "on the money" based on our visit in Fall 2004 and friends visit last June (it was as high as 96)with A/C that worked more like a modestly cool fan but no more. Think about it will you be in the water more than 4-5 hours a day, I would think unlikely. Sorry.

There are a couple of places with a split level room. La Conchita has one and Posada del Sol has the other.

We stayed in LaC's a couple of years ago (August) and loved it, but the downstairs room didn't quite get the breeze we had hoped for - it did have a ceiling fan while the upstairs was all breeze-based and sometimes there was no breeze. You really do need the combo for a comfortable night's sleep.

Ana y Jose has some rooms with a/c.

You might want to consider between Akumal and Tulum (Solimon, Akumal Aventuras, Tank-ha) as well - provided you have a rental car. There are plenty of condo's and houses with nice beaches (though Tulum's will be nicer). Again see www.locogringo.com

I assume you are going to get trip insurance that has a hurricane provision with it?? (read the fine print many policies don't have decent hurricane coverage) www.insuremytrip.com is one of the best places on the web to do that research.

HOT,HOT, HOT AND OCCASIONALLY, MORE HOT!!

Bring only breathable fabrics, drink gallons of PURIFIED water and make sure that you have very high sunblock that is kid AND reef friendly.

Aside from that, be prepared for some of the most unbelievable scenrary in Tulum. You'll know ti when you arrive at cliff side while touring the ruins there.

Your kids may not be too keen on touring which is why I highly recommend either Xpu Ha or Xcaret. While both are very large eco parks, the latter has gobs and gobs of things to do from snorkeling to ruins to shows and then some. You can easily make an entire day there. If dolphins are your thing, go to Dolphin Discovery and swim with them. Not cheap but worth every peso but mUST be reserved in adavance.

Enjoy your stay!

Poster above is probably referring to Xel-Ha; not Xpu-Ha...don't want you to get confused.