Holidays in Mexico

Y

Yorrick

Guest
Hi All

Has anyone any recommendations as regards holidaying in Mexico.
Two girls, mid twenties are intending going.
Anyone any experiences good or bad or any information at all
 
I went to Cancun 18 years ago...so probably not qualified to comment!
But I loved it in a resorty sort of way. I would love to go back and a Mexican man I met recommeded the west coast area....the name escapes me right now.

I guess it depends why you want to go and what you like to do.
The forums on www.lonelyplanet.com have great info on this type of thing.
 
Hi,

Was reading a couple of weeks ago in the Saturday Independant that Mexico is very volatile at the moment with the spirally gang wars on the drug trade - up to 1000 lives claimed in recent times. They even went as far as recommending travellers should inform the Dept of Foreign Affairs before travelling. I am travelling later this year Cancun and Mexico City and havn't really considered this a concern as I don't intend to go to far off the beaten tourist track.

If you are looking for info and deals start with the obvious places like Trailfinders or Expedia for flights and deals. Also before we booked I saw some good direct flight package deals from the UK also with Thompson travel.
 
I was in Cancun about 10 years ago. Big resort with loads of bars, restaurants, shops etc. Plenty to keep you busy. There's some great trips to do. I went to Chichen Itza and Xcaret and did a lagoon safari on little speed boats. Great craic! As far as I remember I went in early May. Weather was fab. Had one bad day with a small tropical storm but it was gone the following day. Enjoy!!
 
Big country so many things to see and do .. if you can give us an idea what you're interested in and when you're thinking of going it would help.

There's lots of beach resorts in Mexico (on both coasts) as mentioned .. but there's a lot more to see and do too - it's a vast country with great cities and fabulous countryside too .. lots more than just beaches - but there's loads of that too .. depends on what you're into (and when you're thinking of going vis a vis the weather)
 
I went to Cancun about 4 years ago and loved it. Stayed at the Fiesta Americana Condessa hotel (4-5 star , I think) and it was fab. The food in the restaurants was lovely and they did great frozen cocktails that they brought over to you on your sunlounger :eek:)

some good shopping in Cancun although alot of the malls were still only half built (I'd say that are really fab now). Do the day trip to Cozumel - well worth it.
 
I've been to Baja twice via San Diego. Only down as far as Ensenada but for a few days each time. Its lovely down there. I've never been aware or alerted to any "problems" whilst there but Tijuana was a little bit spooky to be honest. Once through Tijuana you hit the coast road south following the Pacific - its truly beautiful. Loads of little bars and that sort of thing. The people are exceptionly friendly once out of the city. We did horse riding and quad bikes and stuff like that on the beach and up the river inland to little bars in the middle of nowhere and its just great. I love it down there.
This area is probably not what you're looking for but nobody else had mentioned it yet so theres my two pence.
 
Went to a place called hotel called Zamas just south of Cancun. Friends wedding was there. loved the place right on the beach in little huts, electricity is off solar panels, water is also heated by solar. the beach was fantastic. google it and find it. not cheap but well worth it. there are a good few other hotels along that strip. some of the resorts around cancun people dont leave them for the 2 weeks that they are there. waste of time in doing that i think.
 
mexico is beautiful but as an earlier poster said its gone terribly dangerous. its out of control at the moment. i have seen stories of drug gangs rolling heads across dance floors in clubs!!
 
I was all over Mexico in October 2007. We (guy n girl) went landed in Cancun but didnt stay there, instead We travelled down the east coast to Playa del Carmen and stayed there for 2 days. We then went to Tulum, which is literally a village on the side of the road with fabulous beaches and archaeological sites. After that we went to Chetumal on our way into Belize (Caye Caulker is excellent but Belize city itself is a dump) and then onto Guatemala.

Belize is the coolest country I have ever visited. Its english-speaking (used to be called British-Honduras) and its literally like being in a "Lilt" advert!!

We returned to Mexico and made our way back to Cancun via Palenque (where I would recommend visiting the Agua Azul waterfalls), Campeche and Merida (excellent markets/shopping). In Cancun we visited Cozumel which was lovely. Chechen Itza is the archaeological site main attraction in Mexico, but I strongly recommend going to Guatemala to see Tikal which is a million times better. Chechen Itza is completely spoiled with bus tours and is wedged all day every day. Tikal is in the middle of an unspoilt forest with screehing monkeys and monuments you can actually climb, some of which are nearly 100M high!

Finally I would not recomment Cancun. If you jsut go there you may as well have gone to the Canaries or similar, its a complete plastic resort. There are so many Americans its like being in the States and the dollar is rampant. We just went there to pan out for 2 days before our return flight but I would not recommend it for a full holiday.

HTH
 
I went to Cancun around 10 years ago and it was a vibrant place to say the least. Plenty of shopping malls too. We stayed at The Moon Palace which was a proper 5 star hotel, thoroughly recommend it.
 
an official Mexican holiday that kicks off a five-day celebration of the libido before the Catholic lent. Beginning the weekend before Lent, Carnaval is celebrated exhubrantly with parades, floats and dancing in the streets. Port towns such as Ensenada, La Paz, Mazatlán and Veracruz are excellent places to watch Carnaval festivities. Dates change slightly as follows: 2008: Jan 31 - Feb 5; 2009: Feb 19-24; 2010: Feb 11-16.



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Baja by far!

Stay away from Cabo down south, too busy but there are beautiful towns like La Paz and Loreto which will give you a real flavour of real Mexican life.

On the Pacific Coast you have resort towns but they are less developed than their East Coast counterparts.
 
Mexico holidays are not just about Cancun. A little further south Cozumel is a Mexican island situated in the Caribbean Sea just a short hop from the east coast of Mexico. Holidays in Cozumel have just as much to offer above the surface of the crystal clear waters as below it, among the spectacular coral reefs. Caribbean charm and a subtle Mexican holiday spirit are beautifully combined in the culture and cuisine of this amazing island.
White Sand Beaches - Experience The Pacific Coast Of MexicoIn Puerto Vallarta, a pacific coastal city, enjoy a great taste of Mexico holidays in this picturesque coastal town with white sand beaches, historic old town features and plenty of authentic Mexican culture. Puerto Vallarta has cobblestone streets and impressive colonial architecture, but the city is right up to date as a Mexico holiday destination, offering some excellent opportunities for all kinds of water sports, shopping and dining out, not to mention an electrifying nightlife.

[URL=http://www.apostilleinusa.com]apostille[/URL]
 
apostille said:
Mexico holidays are not just about Cancun.
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I think the reason most people have commented on Cancun is beacuse at one stage (not sure about now) it was the easiest place to get to in Mexico fom Ireland. I know when I went it was on a package deal. I have friends that have done the same. Cheap and cheerful (or it was at the time). In fairness you can't get a package fom Dublin to Puerto Vallarta, Baja or Belize (which isn't even in Mexico :confused:).
 
Hi Yorrick,

I was travelling around Central America last year, spent some time in Mexico and visited Playa del Carmen, Cozumel & Cancun. For 2 girls in their 20's, I would really recommend Playa del Carmen... For me it was head & shoulders above the other 2. It is a beautiful resort with a great buzz, everything feels very modern and new, and has everything in walking distance. Beautiful beach, great pedestrian street with tons of great bars, restaurants & night clubs. Cozumel is an island about 30 minutes away by ferry and is now looking very tired & dated by comparison. Cancun is very spread out. The hotel area is a 10 mile long strip of top hotels and you will have to bus or taxi your way around to bars & restaurants, unless you are happy to stay within the confines of an all-inclusive hotel. Downtown Cancun is not pretty, is a 15 minute taxi drive from the hotels and costs about 12 dollars each way. This can add up over a 2 week holiday. Even if you fly into Cancun, it's only a 45 minute bus ride down to Playa del Carmen.

If you want to see the Mayan ruins at Tulum, they are close to Playa. Also, do you scuba dive. This is a fantastic place for it. I dived with this shop
http://www.diveshopmexico.com/

Hope this helps. Enjoy Mexico.

JT.
 
Yoltan said:
In fairness you can't get a package fom Dublin to Puerto Vallarta, Baja or Belize (which isn't even in Mexico :confused:).
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Yes but if you are making the effort to go the entire width of the world, you may as well make it worth your while and visit interesting places, rather than places that are just easy to get to.....if that was the case no Irish people would get to Vegas!
Many people (including myself) think Cancun, is plastic, sprawling and not representative of a good value on a trip to Mexico. Most people who go there stay in their all-inclusive resort and may as well have gone to Portugal.
I was offering my experience on South America as a whole, as many other countries are easily accessible while you are there, including Belize, which I thought was excellent. While I realise its not in Mexico, I was pointed in its direction by a friend while I was planning a Mexican trip and was delighted with the result, so I thought it was worth mentioning to the OP
 
Yoltan said:
In fairness you can't get a package fom Dublin to Puerto Vallarta, Baja or Belize
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Is this not the very reason you'd want to visit these places.

Anyway the likes of Sunway will happily book you a package to Vallarta.
 
Im just back from Mexico , and loved it .
Mexico definitely has a drug war going on at its northern border ( Mexicans appreciated Hillary Clinton's admission that the war is driven by US consumption of drugs and shot out with guns bought in the USA), as a tourist you will only notice a high police presence. The war is 1850km from Mex city.
You can get Air France flights to Mex City for €550- now and Delta has flights from €450- to some cities. I traveled from Puerto Vallarta via Guadalajara , Mex City, Puebla , Oaxacha and San Cristobal to Cancun . Cancun and PV have hotel zones that are just like the USA , you might as well go to Florida , but PV has a nice old town .
I loved the high middle of Mexico , the air is dry 26-27c and the evenings are cool 16c , perfect for the Irish , the arcitecture is more impressive than the old cities of Spain , costs are very low ( Mexico devalued the peso), and intercity busses are of a very high standard. People are friendly and do not hassle tourists .
pjq
 
FLANDERS` said:
Many people (including myself) think Cancun, is plastic, sprawling
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I couldn't agree more. Like I said "Big resort with loads of bars, restaurants, shops etc." I went to Cancun on a cheap and cheerful holiday and had some fun but I wouldn't go back. There are some lovely spots around the Yucatan peninsula though. I was only pointing out why I thought most people were mentioning Cancun. The op asked for comments on Mexico but didn't mention any particular area.
 
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