Getting from Cozumel Mexico to Tulum w/o doing an excursion?!? How?

[briannejfl03]

We are going on a 5 day cruise to Mexico and stopping at Cozumel. The ONE thing I wanted to do at that Port of Call was to go to the Tulum ruins--unfortunately, that excursion is not offered on our cruise. Has anyone gone to Tulum from Cozumel w/o doing an excursion? Where do you catch the ferry and taxis?

[DaDivaMom]

You can buy ferry tickets right at the cruise termininal and board there as well. It is about 1 hour round trip and I think around 12 bucks a person.

 

Once you land you will need to rent a car, jeep or van. They have rentals available right at the ferry terminal or you can take a taxi into town to rent one. About 80 bucks a day average. It is around a 45 minute drive to the ruins. The ruin also have an entry few of around 5 bucks a person.

 

We did it this way a few years ago and it was fun.

[briannejfl03]

Thank you! Are there any special requirements to rent a car from there, as far as international drivers license, etc.? And is it easy to find?

[gill_boo]

One thing I would caution is, Carnival doesn't offer this excursion if there isn't a long enough time to allow for it. The ferry isn't a constant thing, they only leave at specific times and if you happen to miss one by a few minutes you could be waiting up to an hour for the next one. Plus depending on where you dock you may not be at the main pier area and have to get a taxi to that area and may miss on that side. If you don't have at least 8 hours in port I wouldn't even attempt this. You have to figure you are travelling for about 4 hours of this time, plus if you miss a ferry, plus if you get lost.

[flapr]

We did a ship's excursion to Tulum, but I wouldn't try it on our own.

[Chigirlcruzin]

I would not recommend going to mainland Mexico on your own. Like the previous poster stated, the excursion is not offered because there isn't time.

[kyrisong1]

I would not recommend going to mainland Mexico on your own. Like the previous poster stated, the excursion is not offered because there isn't time.

I totally agree.

Another bit of advice I'll add is if you go on the ferry, ride up on top where it's open air, downstairs is kinda pukey, the people are handing out puke bags as soon as it starts moving and lots of people get sick. I felt sick down there, but felt fine once we got upstairs, and I am NOT prone to seasickness.

Oh also with the carnival tour, you can ditch the tourguide once you get there if you don't like them, we had one that was just dragging along as slow as he could, pretty sure he didn't want to have to climb up the hills, it was hot and he was kinda overweight and looked really bored. So we went off on our own.

Tulum is beautiful and you can just feel the history everywhere you look and go. Really beautiful and special is the ruins right along the cliffs that overlook the beach, just perfect!!!

Have fun!!! Carole

[martinchem]

We just went to Tulum a week ago. Booked online from Cozumel through Carnival. We left about 8:30 and got back about 4:30. The ferry was chartered and was faster than the downtown ferry, about 45 minutes each way, they picked us up right at our port (Puerto Maya), then a 45 minute bus ride. We did some shopping first then about 3 1/2 hours in the ruins, only sad part was many were roped off with little access. Chances are if your ship is in port for more than 8 hours they'll offer it to you onboard, cost $79.00. Check out cozumelinsider.com for excurtions offered to Tulum for $75.00 round trip.

[briannejfl03]

I have been to Tulum before--about 5-6 years ago, but my husband hasn't and I talk about ALL the time. I went while vacationing in Mexico, not on a cruise. I really wanted to show him what I have been raving about! Our docking time is 9:00 am, and we leave Cozumel at 5pm--is 8 hours not enough time?

[Tsi2quick]

The ruins are definitely a reason we are choosing western Caribbean vs. eastern, however we are also going to Costa Maya and it appears there is an excursion to some ruins there as well.

 

Is there a ferry involved at Costa Maya to get to the ruins? I wouldn't think so but I've obviously never been! Are the ruins at Costa Maya comparable to those in Tulum? I'm not a huge fan of small ferries and do tend to get motion sick so that concerns me a bit about going to Tulum.

[LHP]

We are going on a 5 day cruise to Mexico and stopping at Cozumel. The ONE thing I wanted to do at that Port of Call was to go to the Tulum ruins--unfortunately, that excursion is not offered on our cruise. Has anyone gone to Tulum from Cozumel w/o doing an excursion? Where do you catch the ferry and taxis?

 

I can not stress this enough....

 

UNLESS you are comfortable getting yourself back to the US on your own, if you miss the ship.....please do not take this as an independent excursion.

 

We go to Cozumel 4 to 5 times a year...and I can not count the number of times this SHIP tour has been late. Of course the ship waited because it was a ship tour...but if you are on an independent tour...you are on your own.

 

EVEN if it is just by 5 minutes!!!

 

The roads, the ferry and other factors simply make it to difficult to do on your own...UNLESS you are comfortable paying for airfare from Cozumel back to the home port and missing the rest of your cruise.

 

We never take ship excursions in Cozumel...but this is the ONE that I harp on to only do through the ship.

[tnt091605]

I agree with the above posters. I would not attempt this on your own. Tulum is still a long way from where the ferry docks at Playa. A lot can go wrong and the ship will not wait.

[suzy1212]

We went to Tulum on a Carnival tour. This is the one thing in Cozumel I would never try on my own.

[arom729]

We are going on a 5 day cruise to Mexico and stopping at Cozumel. The ONE thing I wanted to do at that Port of Call was to go to the Tulum ruins--unfortunately, that excursion is not offered on our cruise. Has anyone gone to Tulum from Cozumel w/o doing an excursion? Where do you catch the ferry and taxis?

 

I would suggest doing this tour as part of a land-based vacation. There are many all-inclusive resorts 30 min away from Tulum. I can give you the resort/agent info we used when we went to Tulum...it was included free. Including Chiten Itza and other "excursions."

[mr0315]

We just got home from our Western cruise on the Glory and did Tulum as an excursion through Carnival. So glad we booked through the ship for this one! We were supposed to be back on board by 4:30 - we made it back at 4:50. Luckily, the ship will always wait if you're on one of it's trips. Tulum is very beautiful and our guide Manuel was excellent. The surf was rather rough last Monday, so they closed off access to the beach, but we got some great pictures from above. There is a shopping area by the ruins with the usual souveniery stuff, but is you have time, try the little restaurant called "Senor Frostie's" -delicious!

[Tsi2quick]

I just noticed looking through a book about Ports I bought that Cozumel has ruins as well, are they worth the visit if I didn't want to venture onto a "pukey" ferry? lol