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Trip Reviews, Ratings and Comments - Trip Review - Trip Report to Akumal
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We were in Akumal from Sept 29-Oct3-- here's a day by day trip report with (i hope) some usefull info-sorry no pics yet, but will try to get them downloaded soon
Day 1- September 29- uneventfull flight-thru Vacation Express out of Atlanta- landed in Cancun and it immediately started pouring rain- from the looks of things in the airport area there had already been a lot of rain as well- We were warned about the Land Shark Time Share reps in the airport on our charter and will repeat the warning here- just remember, HAVE A PLAN FOR EXITING THE AIRPORT, AND STICK TO IT-don't let anybody get you to change your arrangements no matter what they say- believe me, it's for THIER BENEFIT, NOT YOURS. We had a car reserved with Avis and were continuously approached by reps from other companies who wanted us to either A) switch to their car company or B) ditch the car and let them transport us. All the car rental places are clustered between terminals 1 and 2- if you come it at terminal 2 you can see them and walk to them- from terminal 1, you take the free airport shuttle to terminal 2 and then walk to your car rental agency, (or you pay a few pesos and ask to get dropped off at the agency of your choice)
Once at Avis, things were handled very professionally- we declined the CDW insurance, having checked with American Express that we were covered as long as we rented with them ( another tip- you MIGHT want to call your credit card companies prior to leaving the US and let them know you plan to be using the card in Mexico- some compnies see a foreign charge come thru and put an automatic hold on your card, and then you have to call them to get it taken of- Citibank Visa did this to me on this trip)
We took the shuttle and walked- it was a 5 minute wait and a 2 minute walk. Various people tried to get us to pay anywhere from $5 to $10 US to have them take us there
We made the mistake of asking the rental car pick up guy outside for a map and he immediately tried to get us to visit the time share he was working for by promising us $100 US in cash off our rental - then he wanted a $10 deposit in "good faith" to make our appointment- we, of course, declined and FINALLY got in our car and left.
Once out of the airport, we had no trouble finding 307 south to Akumal- the rain was intermittant but not really bad- it's a little unnerving at first the way people get over on the shoulder for passing - you frequently see 3 cars abreast on a 2 lane road, but it works-
Stoped in Playa Del Carmen and ate lunch at a beachfront restaurant on Calle 5-
had 2 beers, the garlic fish with beans and rice and chips and salsa fresca and FINALLY felt like we were on vacation when the Mariachi guy came by and sang for us- tipped him a dollar and really enjoyed it- total for lunch including tip, beer and mariachi guy was about $16 US
Then on to the grocery store for supplies before hitting Akumal- there are 2 big grocery stores in Playa- the San Francisco and the Chedrai- we chose the San Francisco - it's not as crazy as the Chedrai- (think Mexican Super Walmart with very loud music)
Bought enough groceries for 4 days- plus Reposado tequila, a 12 pack of beer and a liter of wine for about $60 US and continued on to Akumal-
Got to Akumal about 5:00pm or so- it's a precious little village with only one resort, a few shops and beautiful private villas and condos- one main street with lots of Topes (speedbumps) We stayed at La Sirena Y Iguana in a groundfloor 2 bedroom/2 bath ( big showers, no tub in our unit) oceanfront unit. Lorenzo the caretaker let us in and it was just great- clean, very spacious, well decorated, whole front wall of sliding glass doors and windows- step right out onto the grass and then your own private sandy area with palapa and chaise lounges. An added benefit was the little plunge pool directly outside our door. One warning- these condos are multi level- you have two steps down from the bedrooms to the dining and kitchen area and then another 2 to the living area- that first night it can get you-
First night was very windy- we had air conditioning in our bedroom only and were not going to use it at all, but the wind was so high that when you opened the louvered windows it was like being inside a whistle, so we reluctantly shut some and used the air- that was the only night we needed it.
Tuesday September 30- wind had died down, but it was overcast and sort of rainy so we decided to go to Coba instead of try to dive- Coba is a good trip- take 307 south to Tulum and turn right just past the airport on the road marked "Coba"- Don't BUY GAS RIGHT THERE- the guy quickly shut off the pump before we could see the amount and ended up ripping us off for about $5 US- it would have been more except my husband, who knew something was wrong, demanded some more money back-- good tip on gas- if you can, have one person watch the pump and write down the amount and ALWAYS demonstrate that you understand the money by counting out some pesos to them when you pay- use the closest thing you have to exact change too- The road to Coba goes past a lot of cenotes and thru some little villages- next trip we need to expore them --Anyway, once in Coda you pay a little to park- 15 pesos or so, and then there is an entry fee to get in- about $3.60 or so US per person.- the ruins are very spread out- take a lunch and plan to spend the day- we walked them and it's a several kilometer walk but an easy flat one- you can also rent bikes or even be ridden around in a rickshaw looking thing pulled by a guide on a bike- guides are available- they ask you but don't really hassle you- or you can use your guidebook or rent the audio tape- be sure to see the grand pyramid- we climbed all 112 feet of it and the view was awesome. There is a rope to help you get up and down and it's not scarey at all- just go slow and hold on.
On the way back we stopped at the San Francisco Grocery in Tulum for some fresh Pan Dulce ( Literally sweet bread)for in the morning and watched all the backpackers hanging out for a little while- If you've never eaten the baked goods in Mexico, a trip to the Panderia ( Bakery) or grocery store is a must- you can't get sick off of bread and the selection of buns, cakes, rolls, muffins and other delightful things is out of this worlk- dirt cheap too! Also, even if you eat out, I highly recomend breakfast in because frsh coffee and canned Media Crema are SOOO good- add a croissant or muffin and some Nutella ( a hazelnut/chocolate concoction that comes in a jar like peanut butter) and you have a breafast for under a dollar than is fit for a king.
October 1- day three- we are desperate to dive, and the sun is out, so we head for the dive shop- we used the Orignal Akumal Dive shop and were happy with them-Once at the dive shop they say the water is still to rough but we can either do a cenote or a shore dive- we opt for a shore dive -but it turned out to be a bad choice- for more on that, see the dive report on the Diving here page- Then we ate lunch on the beach at the Lol Ha snack bar- food is a litle more expensive here than in Playa- the same lunch that was $16 in Playa was $22 here- but it was good and the atmosphere was great-
Then on to Yalku Lagoon for snorkleing- Yalku is located at the North end of Akumal and made famous by Jaques Cousteau- it is a marine preserve- use a t- shirt as no sunscreen is allowed- the cost is $6us per person and it is absolutely worth it- go early, take a lunch and make a day of it- or eat at the Que Onda restaurant right around the corner and go back- your wrist bracelet is good for the day and you can come and leave- We saw tons of fish- parrots, angels, snappers, grunts, you name it, it was there- all in calm clear water no more than 10 ft deep- it was great!
That night we checked out the big pool at La Sirena- it was warm and very clean- in a beautiful garden setting- had a margarita and watched the stars over Half Moon Bay from our private palapa- what a great day!
Day 4- Cctober 2--DIVING DAY FINALLY!!- see the diving page for a full report- we ate lunch today at the Eco Cafe and it was very good- it's true mexican food- we had pork meat balls, rice, beans, tortillas and Jamaica ( hibiscus flower tea) for 5 US.
Then snorkled Half Moon Bay in front of our condo in the late afternoon- this is a great place to see turtles- and tons of fish, along with awesome hard and soft coral gardens and its FREE. The water was clear and warm and there were two parrot fish at least 2 feet long in the shallows-- Our condo was clean, fresh and spotless, (she even left flowers on our dining room table) thanks to our wonderful maid, and we had a new 5 gallon purified water bottle- life is good.
October 3- we have to leave today at 3:30- so we did a lst snorkel in Half Moon Bay, gave away our tequila and headed out-- stopped at the super Chedrai in Playa for last minute souveniers- the grocery store is a great place for T- shirts, hot sauce, tequila, baskets, even silver jewellry- all at a fraction of what you pay at roadside stands or in the airport- I bought 8 bottle of hot sauce, 2 pieces2 of pottery, candy for the kids, 2 t shirts and 2 silver bracelets and a bottle of pure vanilla for about $25 US. The only thing I didn't come out with that I wanted was Christmas ornaments-
The return trip from Akumal to Cancun, drop off of rental car and entry into the airport took about 1 hour and 45 minutes not counting the souvenier stop-
here's some final tips-
if you are going to call home, wait until you get to your destination to buy a phone card-there are lots of different phone systems in Mexico and the standard telmex card doesn't work everywhere anymore- ALWAYS pack a lunch and bottled water- food , even if it's OK, can make you sick if it's served on unsantitized plates or if you eat with unsanitized silverware- ( we used the bottled water in our condo, rinsed plates with it, and air dried them, packed lunches when we went into the country and NEVER got sick)If you are going to be staying in a little town like Akumal, Tulum etc, consider packing a collapsable cooler or a thermal sack and buying grocieries on the way- food is MUCH more expensive in the small out of the way places. An example- a six pack of Sol beer in the San Francisco in Playa was 349 pesos- a bout $3.50- in the Super Chomak in Akumal it was $6 US. Watch your money and count your change- demonstrating competence with the money keeps people honest-- TIP your maid- for $1-2 US daily you will have a clean condo or room, all the towells you want and any other service she can do for you will be done- it's worth it- --and FINALLY learn to lie to the time share guys- they are lying to you, so they deserve it
We are putting together a dive group for the summer to go back to Akumal- if you are interested in a laid back eco dive trip with people who have been to Mexico a BUNCH of times before, you can email me directly at equinn@knology.net for the particulars.
Happy travelling!
Beth Quinn
Submitted by: Elizabeth Quinn -- equinn@knology.net
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