When planning a vacation, there are a lot of things to consider if you want to make sure you have an unforgettable experience. Some people manage to plan and book all the activities they want to try while visiting an unknown destination based on the best rates and reviews they find.
Some others, prefer to get to the destination and take the “come what may” solution.
Sometimes luck is on their side, but unfortunately there are some cases when they miss the points of interest or the incredible info and history about the places they visit or they don’t get what they paid for and their expectations are not fulfilled. I myself have had some bad experiences when choosing that path. Been there?
I’m not a good planner at all, but when it comes to choosing a tour or excursion I expect to get the most out of it. I also consider myself a conscious traveler/consumer when it comes to the eco friendliness of the services I hire, and I also try to take care of some details that are important to me: Is the tour company responsible with the land and its people? Will I be able to get in touch with nature without becoming a threat to it? How big are their groups? Is it going to be an authentic experience or is the tour just the bait to take me shopping?
So for my trip to Tulum, one of the most precious jewels of the Riviera Maya in the Mexican Caribbean, I decided to ask my friends about their experience in this Magical place and they recommended me with Tulum Bike Tours.
I’m glad I listened to my friends’ recommendation, as Tulum Bike Tours are really into responsible tourism, focusing on ecology and involving local communities.
The experience began right on time at my hotel, where the small group of six plus our guide named Tare and our driver Christian, gathered us to begin the adventure.
Our first stop was the Natural Reserve and monkey sanctuary of Punta Laguna, where the local people (Yucatec Maya) welcomed us and helped us with all the activities we did. First, we participated in a ceremony conducted by an elder of the community where he asked for our protection and we asked for permission by showing our respect for the place.
This helped us to get ready to immerse into the jungle. What an experience it was to walk in the jungle while listening to the sounds of nature all around us. We could observe spiders and howler monkeys, wow! what an amazing sound! You can feel it!
We got to a thrilling zip-line as we were also promised some adrenaline. Although it wasn’t a big one, we had a fun experience flying over the jungle and the lagoon. On our way back, we canoed while being curiously watched by some monkeys from the shore. It’s an intriguing experience to feel like a stranger as we humans sometimes forget that we’re not alone in this planet.
The tour continued with a visit to an impressive cenote, we were lowered into this flooded cave about 50 feet until we reached the crystal clear water where we swam while Tare our guide told us about the formation process of this caves and about their importance.
Of course a good tour isn’t complete without good food and our guide had it all covered for us, first with some natural fresh snacks and then with a traditional Mexican buffet lunch with some vegetarian options. Nothing compares to having lunch in front of a lagoon with crocodiles!
After the delicious meal it was time to head to our final destination, the great pyramid of Nohoch Mul one of the tallest in the Maya Area, in the impressive archaeological site of Coba, a very important city of the Mayan Civilization. After our expert guide provided an explanation in English about the history of the site, we grabbed our bikes and headed for the big temple, making some stops at the constructions found along the gorgeous jungle paths. There it was, magnificent, majestic, huge… the big Temple, daring us to climb its 120 steps, a challenge not recommended for the fragile minds, but we hadn’t traveled so far for nothing, right? There are no words to explain the amazing view at the top, about 130 feet above the jungle.
Right there all we could see were the buildings of an ancient city now covered by jungle; the colors, the wind, the sun, the lagoon far away and us. After some introspective time sitting there, it was time to go back, but not before taking a deep breath, stretching our legs and drinking some water (it was hot!).
Visiting Punta Laguna and Coba is by far one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. Not only for the magic that surrounds visiting this kinds of places but also as I said first, for the whole experience of leaving everything in the hands of experts. I will definitely call my Friends of Mexico Kan Tours when I go back to Tulum.
Oh yes, I’m definitely going back.
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