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Recently we had the opportunity to travel with our family through Yucatán, Mexico. Our first distant journey after global pandemic. Mexico is a huge country and has a lot to offer, but we have decided to stay on the Yucatan peninsula. With our rental car we crossed 3 countries: Campeche, Quintana Roo and Yucatan. And to make a long story short: yes, it was completely safe (we traveled alone in our rental car), yes, there was a lot to see (they could easily spend a whole month there), and yes, we had a fantastic time!
We circled the peninsula and remained one after the other in Playa del Carmen, Rio Lagartos, Valladolid, Merida, Campeche, Xpujil, Bacalar and Isla Mujeres. Hundreds of pictures were taken from our family, but in this article I show what Yucatan has in modest 15 photos …
First stop: Rio Lagartos and Los Colorados
In Rio Lagartos we spent a few hours through the lagoon, enjoyed his natural beauty and observed large groups of Flamingos. Rio Lagartos also houses the famous (Las Colorados) Rosa Salzseen, an almost surreal sight. The lakes are part of a sea salt harvest plant. The water attracts so salty that salt -tolerant algae, the carotenoid (organic pigments) produce. These organisms become more concentrated in sunlight and create the famous pink water. The brightness varies depending on the weather. Try to visit about in the middle of the day and avoid it on cloudy days. In fact, some people have returned somewhat disappointed, so they are prepared (also to pay an entry fee, because otherwise they will not get in). There are a few places on Earth where you can experience pink lakes. Here is an overview.
Valladolid and Chichén Itzá
From there we went to Valladolid, a charming colonial city full of history and culture. We visited the Maya city of Chichén Itzá, where we were amazed at the old ruins (together with hundreds of tourists from all over the world when Chichén Itzá is one of the 7 new miracles of the world). As with these places, they come as early as possible to avoid the dozens of buses that bring tourists from Cancun and Playa del Carmen. As soon as these groups take over the place, you should be ready to continue! Chichén Itzá is world famous, but there are so many other old Maya locations in Yucatan, such as EK ‘Balam, Bécan (see later) or Calakmul.
Yellow city of Izamal
Next on our road trip: the city of Izamal. Known for its colorful buildings, all yellow! Izamal is the “magical cities” or “Pueblos Mágicos”. Why are so many buildings yellow? Some say that this was done in honor of the visit of Pope John Paul II in 1993, but to be honest, nobody really seems to know.
Campech
About Merida we fascinated again from another beautiful place: Campeche. Campeche itself offers colorful houses and a lively street full of bars and restaurants. Enjoy the delicious Yucatecan kitchen, including local beers, music and a recording of tequila. When in Mexico …, right?
Cenotes
And if you can go to Yucatner, you cannot go without having visited one of the hundreds (perhaps thousands) cenotes! Cenotes are large caves filled with cool, clear water. Some are real caves, others are closed with an opening in the sky. Tree roots stay down on the limestone walls and, by the way, grab the water (which is full of fish). The deepest cenote is about 282 m deep…. In addition, they say that all of these cenotes are connected by underground rivers. Scientists confirm that these cenotes were formed after this large meteorite 66 million years ago (which, incidentally, marks the extinction of the dinosaurs). If you are interested in scientific history (about the ring of the cenotes), read this article.
Several day tours through Campeche and Merida are possible.
Maya ruins from Becán
After Campeche we continued south to the ruins of Bécan near the city of Xpujil. Beautiful Maya ruins hidden in the lush jungle. Because of its location from the leaked tourist path, we almost had the entire area for ourselves! In contrast to Chichén Itzá, visitors are allowed to climb these structures and offer them a majestic view of the surrounding jungle.
Bacalar -See
Bacalar, known as the lake of seven colors, was a great stopover on our road trip. When we arrived we ate for the first time in the food truck called Mr. Burrito for lunch, highly recommended! The Bacalar lake offered us time to relax, swim, (sunrise) kayaking and delicious food. Enough for our family to fully enjoy this place and slowly approaches the end of our 14-day trip.
Isla women
Our trip ended with a visit to the beautiful Isla Mujeres, where we laze out on sandy beaches and explore the charming streets of the island.
Travel in Yucatan
Yucatan is so much more than just the beach cities and cities like Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum. Go out and explore, you will be pleasantly surprised by the beauty of everything.
I hope you enjoyed the selection of photos!
Is Yucatán worth a visit?
Absolutely yes. It was an unforgettable experience full of adventure, history and natural beauty. There are many possible travel routes on the Internet if you should consider a trip to Yucatán yourself. My goal is to give you an idea of what all these astonishing places on the peninsula look like.
Note:
We were pretty excited to check the box on our 6th of the “New 7 Wonder of the World” by visiting the Maya City of Chichén Itzá. One more, the big wall of China …
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Just send me a message on Twitter or Instagram.
