Mayan road trip & Bird watching 11 days







A journey that brings you closer to nature:
* Being wild and in their natural habitats, seeing every animal is not guaranteed.
Itinerary |
Budget |
Responsible traveller |
Mexikoo's tips |
Arrival to Mexico
Day 1: Transfer Cancún - Ek Balam
Your guide Luis will pick you up at the Cancún airport where you will start your trek to the Mayan village of Ek Balam, near Valladolid.
Locals will introduce you to a welcome ceremony inspired by ancestral traditions and you will spend the night in this Mayan community.
You will spend the night at Ek Balam.
Day 2: Ek Balam & Valladolid
You will start the day with a visit of the archaeological site of Ek Balam and swim in the Xcanche cenote.
In the afternoon, you will leave for Valladolid and have your lunch in an old hacienda. You will then join Luis for a walk in the colorful streets of the city.
Night in the same hotel as the previous day.
Day 3: Río Lagartos & Chichén Itzá
Early in the morning, you will visit the bird reserve of Río Lagartos on a boat where you will be able to observe many bird species of the 300 the reserve contains, like the famous pink flamingo.
After a fresh shrimp meal, you will head to Chichén Itzá where you will arrive in late afternoon for a unique sound and light show, retracing the Mayan history. You will spend the night at your hotel on the Chichén Itzá site.
Night at Chichén Itzá.
Day 4: Chichén Itzá & Mérida
Early in the morning, you will visit the Chichén Itzá site, the popular Wonder of the World, away from the crowd and the Yokdzonot cenote where you will have a lunch with a local Mayan community.
After lunch, you will move to Mérida where you will arrive in late afternoon. You will spend the night there.
Night in Mérida.
Day 5: Uxmal & Ruta Puuc
This day starts with the visit of one of the most beautiful sites of the peninsula, the Mayan site of Uxmal. Being from this region, Luis could show you other sites along the Ruta Puuc if you are interested ! He will also take you to the chocolate museum as well as in a Mayan handcrafting shop.
You will have your lunch in a local restaurant in Uxmal and go back to Mérida where you will finish the day with the visit of the Casa de Montejo.
Night in the same hotel as the previous day.
Day 6: Celestún
Have another birdwatching adventure in the Celestún biosphere with another expert of biodiversity. You will roam the reserve by canoe,between mangrove tunnels, petrified forests, freshwater ponds and areas populated by pink flamingos.
After enjoying a local seafood dish, you will head back to Mérida, where you will relax at the hotel.
Night at the same hotel as the previous day.
Day 7: Campeche
Go to the beautiful fortified city of Campeche and have a city tour with Luis. Visit the Historic Center of Campeche, Fort San Miguel, the arches, the malecón and the markets. You will have a lunch in one of the best restaurant of Campeche, in a pedestrian street before to go back to Mérida where you will spend the night.
Night in the same hotel as the previous day.
Day 8: Mérida & Izamal
Keep on your discovery of the Mayan culture with the visit the great Mérida market with Luis. This is the perfect opportunity to discover the best local products, in terms of food and local crafts.
You will then drive to Izamal, the yellow city, where you will have your lunch and a tour of the city before to head to Tulum.
Night in Tulum.
Day 9: Coba & Punta Laguna
Meet the Coba pyramid, the biggest one in Yucatán, hidden in the heart of a luxuriant forest. Climb to its top for a breathtaking view on the surrounding nature and lakes. You will then cool off in a beautiful cenote.
Have a lunch with a Mayan family from Coba and go to explore the Punta Laguna reserve, the sanctuary of the spider monkey.
Night in the same hotel as the previous day.
Day 10: Sian Ka’an Reserve
Visit the popular Sian Ka'an natural reserve in a totally personalized way thanks to Luis, at your own pace. You will discover lost ruins, and navigate your way through the lagoons and the sea to watch many species of birds and aquatic animals (dolphins, stingrays, sea turtles, tropical fish, crocodiles, etc).
You will snorkel in the coral reef, relax in a natural swimming pool, and finally, go to a homestay in Punta Allen to share a traditional meal!
Night in the same hotel as the previous day.
Day 11: Tulum & Cenote
You will visit the Tulum ruins at sunrise, to admire a magnificent panorama against the backdrop of the Caribbean Sea. After this, Luis will take you to one of the area's most impressive sites: the Santa Cruz cenote, a network of underground caves where you will be able to swim.
Then it's off to Akumal, where you will share a delicious meal overlooking the sea before you go swimming and snorkeling in the bay. You will be able to observe sea turtles and other marine species.
Night in the same hotel as the previousday.
Day 12: Transfer Tulum - Cancún Airport
Even the best things have an end. In the morning, Luis will take you back to the Cancún airport for your flight.
Return Flight
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Leave peacefully with Mexikoo, and do not worry about your celphone's data. Contact us on a Mexican number, and use Google Maps as much as you want thanks to the phone we will lend you for the whole duration of your trip.
16 hotel nights with american breakfasts included everyday.
All the entrance fees in national parks, biospheres or archaeological sites are included in our price.
You will be joined by local, passionate, and certified guides, mainly English-speaking.
Before you leave, we will share you a travel diary with advices on optional visits and best local restaurants, not always known by travelers.
You will have an access to a fully functional celphone to freely contact us during the whole duration of your trip, 7d/7 and 24h/24.
Our team speaks English. You will be able to freely chat with us in English, before, during and after your trip.
The price includes the rent of a modern car with an insurance pack for the whole duration of your trip. The base price is calculated with an automatic Volkswagen Jetta Style. This car range can be modified on demand.
The insurance price is not included. You can still enjoy preferred prices with our partner, Chapka Insurances.
Our itineraries include every breakfast, and sometimes meals when mentioned in the program (durinng full day excursions). They do not include other meals and dinners, excepted on special request.
Tips are very well anchored into the Mexican culture. They are tipically given to waiters in restaurants, maids in hotels, guides, etc. These tips are not included in our prices.
International flights are not included.
Mass tourism often includes bad treatmente of animals. With Mexikoo, we do only propose excursions respecting animals. We do not bother them in their natural habitat, respect security and well-being distances during observations, and prohibit tours with captive animals.
Because today, eco-friendly does not necessarily go in pair with rustic. We have selected eco-friendly / eco-chic hotels which try to reduce their energy consumption and reduce their impact on nature. That way, you will travel comfortably while respecting the environment.
We gift our travelers with an eco-traveler kit (biodegradable sunscreen and repellent, iron straws, etc) at the beginning of the trip in order to limit their impact on the environment, and reduce their plastic consumption the most. We are also using, when posible, alternative, eco-friendly ways of transportation.
The profit from the tourism industry should be distributed with more equity. That’s why we include and promote local communities’ projects in our itineraries. This way, we enable some families and take them out of poverty thanks to tourism.
We all know travelling has an impact on the environment. The idea isn’t to stop travelling of course, but rather to balance our ecological impact by travelling more responsibly.
Mexikoo donates a part of its benefits to a Mexican NGO called “Sea Shepherd Mexico” and participates in actions to preserve endangered animals such as humpback whales, to conserve ecosystems, or collect waste.
When to travel? Yucatán is almost always sunny and hot. If you are flexible with your travelling dates, the must is to leave during the dry season and to avoid holidays (the region is very touristic). The ideal is to go during the month of november, april or may. The rainy season happens from june to september, but it does not mean it is a period to avoid!
Travel in yucatán in summer It could happen that it does not rain until mid-july. Then, it usually rain every day, few hours a day. Generally, rain arrives in late afternoon. We therefore recommend you to plan your activities in the morning to be back at your hotel soon enough. Yucatán is very visited during july and august, which represent the highest season. Know that some landscapes are more beautiful during the rainy season, especially the Calakmul reserve, where we love to be in summer time, when everything is greener. Storms can happen in september, but it is not always the case. In 2017, storms happened more in august. But this is very random. There are risks for some activities to be canceled in case of bad weather, but this can happen in early-june just as late-september. Let’s say it’s luck-dependent!
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Mexikoo Travel Agency
Insurgentes Sur 1079, Col. Del Valle
03100 México, CDMX