Tulum, 28th Dec. '24.

This town/city has only one contemporary reason to exist: it's a tourist destination and totally geared up to extract cash (preferably US dollars) from callow visitors.
Unfortunately, the main road through the city merely leads in and out. The beach and the main Mayan site (Las Ruinas) is the thick end of an hour's walk from the main road and my digs.
Luckily, a 'collectivo' (shared public bus) goes pretty close to Las Ruinas, so I found one going that way.
Okay, here it starts:
Although I thought I'd left good and early, the queues were still horrendous snakes of bodies in the morning heat. What I thought was the entrance charge to the whole site; Mayan ruins, park, beach (c. £14 ), only got me into the main archaeological park. There was another charge for actually getting close to the Mayan ruins.
This kind of thing has happened over and over again on this trip - especially it seems in Mexico. The shops rarely put prices on anything, the actual price is withheld until the sales person has begun the depressing conversation - "Where are you from? What's your hat, shoe, collar size?"
Once inside the park, it's actually very good, if far too 'plastic' and dressed up when what can be seen is obviously just a few years old.
The beach is gorgeous and I have to visit again.
The first shot posted below is where I'm staying. The pool is a bit small but the 'Mexican Day of The Dead' vibe is here in the bar below, and all over town.
I decidedRead more