Cancún – A Unique Guide Not Only For Lowcost Travelers

Cancún, one of the most touristic places in Latin America. I’m sure you know those instagram photos from Cancún of the beautiful beaches. It may seem like an expensive affair, but the opposite is true. You can visit Cancún even lowcost and we’ll tell you how to do it below.

CANCÚN

First of all, let’s talk about Cancún. The city of Cancún is divided into two main areas, the more touristy one being the so-called Zona Hotelera. Here you’ll find large hotels, boutiques of famous luxury brands, beautiful beaches and a standard for tourists from the USA. I’m sure you’ve seen pictures of this somewhere, it’s such a beautiful Caribbean strip of land in the sea. Isn’t it beautiful?

The other part is downtown. There’s not much to see but there are some very nice restaurants. In the evening, it’s really lively around the main street and most importantly for the lowcost traveler… You can buy everything cheaper here than in the Zona Hotelera. Not only souvenirs, but you will also find much cheaper accommodation than in the hotel zone.

You might be thinking, how far apart is Zona Hotelera from downtown? And don’t hotels own those beautiful beaches for their customers? Yes, you’re right. Most of the beautiful beaches are owned by hotels. The centre itself is quite far away. BUT don’t worry, we will tell you below how to get to such a beach from the centre.

The nearest public beach is over 20 km from the city. Luckily there is local transportation running every moment, which is really cheap and very frequent. Ready to go?

HOW TO GET FROM AIRPORT TO CANCÚN

Before we even look at the hotel area from the city, we need to figure out how to get from the airport. The airport is about 18 km away from the city. Of course you can take a taxi. Prices for a taxi range from 500 MXN upwards. Doesn’t that seem like a lot? To us YES, it is very expensive! Let’s take a look at a cheaper option:

The most convenient affordable option is by bus. And honestly, it’s not complicated to find a bus stop a buy a ticket. We’ll tell you exactly how to do it!

So let’s do it. There are bus stops in front of every terminal. In the airport lobby or directly at these stops, you will purchase tickets for traveling on this bus. You can also purchase tickets in advance directly from the ADO website. This company is available throughout Mexico and you will see it frequently in our articles.

A bus ticket cost 120 MXN for one trip to the city center. The bus will take you to the ADO Bus terminal in Cancún. The great thing is that the bus only stops at the airport near the terminal and then in Cancún. So you don’t have to worry about getting off the wrong bus.

And then you’re in Cancún!

ACCOMMODATION AND TRANSPORTATION

If you’re staying in downtown (which we highly recommend), we’ll give you a tip on accommodation below. However, if you stay in the hotel zone, you’ll need to change buses in downtown or take a taxi.

The cheapest transport to the hotel zone are the local minibuses called Colectivo. The R1 line runs to the hotel zone and one trip costs MXN 12.

If you are a lowcost traveler like us, be sure to choose accommodation in the city center. For us, we definitely recommend the Pa’Xa Mama Hotel Boutique. It’s only 600 metres from the bus station and is in the centre of all the action in town. And the best is that one night will costs 600 MXN for 2 people. The contact number for the hotel is +529 982 177 741. You can also find accommodation at Booking.com.

There are plenty of restaurants, a large supermarket and markets with everything in the area. In case this hotel is not available, try Hotel Soberanis, which is a great alternative.

As you can see, you can choose. Either take a taxi, for which you will pay a minimum of 500 MXN, or take a bus for which you will pay a maximum of 132 MXN (if you travel to the hotel zone).

BEACH IN ZONA HOTELERA

Finally, let’s go to the beach! There’s one thing we didn’t tell you before. There is a public beach in the hotel area, where there is no entrance fee and it is really beautiful. Isn’t that great? Let’s go.

From the Pa’Xa Mama Hotel Boutique

If you stay at our recommended hotel the journey is really easy. Just outside the hotel (well a bit to the right), there is a local transport stop. Stand there and when the R1 line comes, WAVE (you’ll see the R1 sign on the front window). Isn’t that easy?

When you get on, give the driver 12 MXN per person and say Playa Delfines. The driver will tell you when you get there. The trip takes about 30 minutes. Minibuses run every now and then.

Playa Delfines

Playa Delfines is probably the nicest, and most importantly, a public beach in the hotel zone with free access. There are no big buildings around, you can use the umbrellas for free and if you are lucky, you will be kept company by big lizards.

Doesn’t that look great for a public beach? When you drive back, just pull up to the road above the beach, wave to the R1 line again and get off right by your hotel.

Other places to visit in Cancún

The beautiful beaches are not certainly the only thing to see in Cancun! If you have more than one day here, it’s definitely worth taking a walk. Not sure which way? Below we’ll tell you where to find the local market and show you on a map too!

To get to know at least a little bit of local life too, you need to go into town. The hotel part will definitely not give you a closer look at the life of the locals. And that is the reason why you should visit some local markets and walk around the downtown. You can visit Mercado 23, where you can buy fresh fruit and vegetables, or Mercado 28, where you can buy all sorts of souvenirs. Here you can even taste Tequila and Mezcal absolutely free.

Finally, a short walk from Mercado 28 is the excellent vegan restaurant BaoVegan. Their burgers are really good. A meal here will cost you around 130 MXN. In the evening, you can sample local street food at one of the stalls in Parque de las Palapas.

Not enough of a walk for you? You can also take a few paid tours. For example, to the easternmost point of Mexico – Isla Mujeres or to the Mayan pyramids. The streets will be full of guides with offers. Our advice is – DON’T BUY them! Thank them politely, and say no.

“Why? I’d like to go there.” … It’s unnecessarily expensive. In our articles we will tell you exactly how to travel safely and lowcost not only around Yucatan.

OUR TIPS

Of course at the end we will not forget to summarise a few our tips for this destination:

• • use local Colectivo minibuses in Mexico. It’ll save a lot of money and have a lot of fun too. It’s easy, just wave and get in and when you get out just tell the driver and he will stop where you want.

• • If you’re going to be spending an extended period of time in Cancun, have a lot of money and prefer to stay at a resort, be sure to check out the hotel zone. You’ll be staying right on the beach and all services will be close at hand.

• • But if you’re traveling more lowcost we recommend downtown accommodation. The hotel zone is easily accessible by local transport and the best -> downtown is much cheaper.

WATCH OUT

• • You can’t do much with English here. You might be wondering how is that possible? Unfortunately, the locals don’t even try to learn english. Anyway, they are very helpful and always try to help. It’s good if you know at least the numbers and basic phrases like “I want to go there and there and how much it will cost” in Spanish. It will make a lot of situations easier and also save you a lot of time and money.

And don’t forget to say “Hola!” instead of “Hello” or “Good morning”. Buenos días!” -> you’ll see how the locals will look at you differently right away.

• • Tipping is literally required at every turn here. Restaurants will ask for it even if you pay with a credit card. It’s always up to you whether you tip or not. If you don’t want to tip, click on the “Sin propina” button when paying by card. Tipping is a courtesy here, but on the other hand, if you tip everywhere, you’ll be out of money in no time.

Be careful in the better restaurants, though. Sometimes the tip is already included in the total bill, usually at 15 % of the bill. In this case, you don’t need to tip again.

And we are finally at the end of our journey through Cancún. If you are planning a trip to the Yucatán, you can read our other articles. We are working on them!

If you can have any more tips or tricks or experiences traveling around Cancún, we cannot wait to here them! Comment us bellow!

Thank you for reading!