Tulum, Chichen Itza or Coba Ruins, which do I choose?

kahliasmom · February 15, 2012

Thanks for the letting me know some things about the Coba excursion, javacruiser.

maxxedout2 · February 15, 2012

Hi,

If you like to climb...COBA...is the one.

Tallest pyramid in Yucatan....gotta go to Guatemala

for one a few feet taller.

Interestingly, at the top of Coba's 138' Nohoch Mul pyramid are two

'diving gods' similar to the ones at Tulum 40 miles away.

Tulum is picture perfect but you can't climb anything there. Nice

small beach area.

C.I. is not available through Royal cruises from Coz...way too far by bus.

:cool:

Edited February 15, 2012 by maxxedout2

maxxedout2 · February 15, 2012

It's not cheap, but there's an non-RCL excursion to Chichen Itza by plane that's really nice. We left Cozumel around 9:00-9:30 and were back before 3:00PM. You fly to/from Chichen Itza International in a small plane, they have transportation to/from the ruins, and a private tour guide at the ruins. I wouldn't recommend it any other way.

Nice...way to go. Price I got was close to $900 for 2 of us.

But if you must see C.I. from Coz...it's the only way to fly.

:cool:

rubrrick · February 15, 2012

Chicken Pizza was always our favourite.

ChipLondon.....this is probably the first time that I have some opposing feelings about your post.

Not 2 years ago, or before, I would go to Chichen itza, but not now, as it was declared one of the New 7 Wonders of the World........and so, for now, they have closed every old statue that one could climb.

Not worth the effort till the year 2014. then it will be spectacular. I'm glad that I have climbed over everything that has been exposed since 1983.......and more was exposed every year.

Go to Coba! You can climb it, experience it, and feel like you have been somewhere that the ancients lived.

DO NOT GO TO CHICHEN ITZA! That is my statement as of today. When they once again open it.....with many more old parts of the very old city will be reveled.........then it's time to see it again.

Rick

Edited February 15, 2012 by rubrrick

joandian · February 16, 2012

I went on a tour to Chechen Itza in January but I was staying in Cancun. It's a very long day and I wouldn't do if for a day trip from a cruise unless I was flying in.

It was amazing and I would definitely recommend going there. As for climbing it, you don't have to do that to enjoy how fantastic it is.

Sea Jewel · December 27, 2014

Tulum, Chichen Itza or Coba Ruins, which do I choose?

Tulum and beach sounds nice. Doesn't sound like much travel time besides the ferry. Sounds like there is much to see. I don't think you are provided with a guide at the site. The beach break and buffet sound nice.
Chichen Itza is listed as one of the 7 wonders of the world,

Coba Ruins sounds appealing.

Thank you.

I was pleased with both excursions.

Chichen Itza

I took the Chichen Itza Mayan Ruins excursion on the December 7, 2014 sailing of RCL Navigator of the Sea. We got on the ferry about 9:10am. The ferry ride was rough. I was wearing SeaBands and had taken some non drowsy sea sick CVS brand Triptone pills. Ferry ride to Playa del Carmen was about 35 min. The air-conditioned motor coach ride to Chichen Itza was about 2 1/2 hrs. Mexico has built a really nice toll road, so the bus ride was nice. Our guide gave us some history for about 30 min then let us rest/sleep until we arrived at Chichen Itza. We got there about 12:30 pm. They do not let you climb the ruins or go in any of the buildings.

We received a snack pack with chips, juice box, and fruit when we got on the bus. We were given a sandwich and soda when we got back on the bus on our way back to the ship.

About 2:30pm we were back on the bus and heading back to the ferry at Playa del Carmen. Arrived and boarded the ferry about 4:45pm. Off the ferry about 5:50pm. The ship was waiting for us. As we walked along the dock to the ship, a crew member was there with a walkie-talkie and I heard her say, “they are getting off the ferry now and are almost here.”

Passengers were to be onboard by 5:30pm. If thinking of doing this excursion, I highly recommend booking through the cruise ship. We set sail as soon as thee last passenger from the tour was onboard. I would definitely do this shore excursion all over again.

COBA

I took the Coba excursion on the March 9, 2014 sailing of RCL Navigator of the Sea. The ferry ride was rough. I was wearing SeaBands and wished I had taken some non drowsy sea sick pills. Ferry ride to Playa del Carmen was about 35 min. The air-conditioned motor coach ride to Coba Ruins was about 1 1/2hr. Our tour guide gave us some history of the area on our trip to Coba. This is a long shore excursion but totally worth it to climb the large Mayan pyramid at Coba.

After we arrived we walked through the ruins towards the large pyramid while tour guide told us some history about what we were seeing. From the entrance of Coba, it is about a 1.5 mile hike to the large pyramid.

Once at the pyramid we were on our own to explore and climb to the top of the pyramid. There is a rope to help you climb up and down. The view at the top is amazing. It s the tallest pyramid on the Yucatán Peninsula.

There is the option to hire bike/taxi service for guests not wishing to walk during tour of the ruins, for approximately $10 per person round trip, payable at site.

I walked to the pyramid, however, took the bike/taxi option back to the bus. Boarded the bus back to Playa Del Carmen where we had lunch (included as part of the excursion) at Aluz.

Alux is located in a natural cavern. The largest cave restaurant in the world. The restaurant tables are located in the main vault of the cavern which can seat up to 120 people.

The caves at the restaurant are awesome. Be sure to take the time to look around and explore after lunch. I found the food was quite delicious.

The ferry ride back to the ship was not near as rough. Got back to the ship just prior to sailing. So there really was not any time to shop in Cozumel. I would definitely do this shore excursion all over again.

Sea Jewel · December 27, 2014

Hi,

C.I. is not available through Royal cruises from Coz...way too far by bus.

:cool:

Chicen Itza is now available through Royal Caribbean cruises as of December 2014. A new toll road has been built so the bus ride is about 2 1/2 hours. I took the Chichen Itza Mayan Ruins excursion on the December 7, 2014 sailing of RCL Navigator of the Sea.

It was a really nice excursion. They don't let you climb the pyramid so that was kinda disappointing. However, I did know that when I booked the excursion.

Sea Jewel · December 27, 2014

Thank you so much everyone for your replies. I enjoyed reading your post birdylady and your use of the phrase barf rocket. I'm sorry you had such a rough ride. Chartering a plane sounds great but I don't think it is something I could budget for. Is there anyone that has been to Coba?