Tour to Ek Balam and Chichen Itza?
Feb 25, 2016, 1:24 pm
#16
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Montral, Qubec
Posts: 3
Both are extremely recommended. I agree with Valladolid as a choice for a central base. Quite nice little city. Casa Tia Micha and Casa Marlene are great friendly places to stay.
Chicken Pizza
is indeed marvelous. I recommend getting there very early in the morning. For the heat, and also because most buses from Cancun arrive at 11. So you'll be ahead two hours before the crowd.
Ek Balam (30 min north of Valladolid) is great too. Much more quiet. And you can climb the main pyramids. Superb view. it is said you an see Chichen Itza and Coba from the top of it, but I wasn'y able to confirm
Indeed I'd visit them in the morning, then a cenote in the afternoon. Cenote Xkeken just south of valladolid is heaven on earth.
Jol
Chicken Pizza
is indeed marvelous. I recommend getting there very early in the morning. For the heat, and also because most buses from Cancun arrive at 11. So you'll be ahead two hours before the crowd. Ek Balam (30 min north of Valladolid) is great too. Much more quiet. And you can climb the main pyramids. Superb view. it is said you an see Chichen Itza and Coba from the top of it, but I wasn'y able to confirm
Indeed I'd visit them in the morning, then a cenote in the afternoon. Cenote Xkeken just south of valladolid is heaven on earth.
Jol
Feb 28, 2016, 4:27 pm
#17
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Body in Downtown YYZ, heart and mind elsewhere
Programs: UA 50K, refugee from AC E50K, Marriott Lifetime Plat
Posts: 5,132
The drive from CUN to Chichen Itza is straightforward and unfortunately monotonous. Once you get on to highway 180 you put the car in cruise and keep driving until you get to Chichen Itza. The tolls along the way are very expensive by Mexican standards. Most tolls in other parts of the country are around 30 to 50 Pesos but the Chichen Itza toll is a whopping 276 Pesos.
Right after you pay the toll though, there's a large hut where you can buy your entry tickets to Chichen Itza. This is an official booth so there's no haggling, and nothing untoward about the operation. It's actually quite convenient to stop there, get a bit of info and buy the tix. They even have a few pictures which they helpfully show you so you know to turn here or there when you get to Chichen Itza.
The speed limit on Highway 180 is 110 kph. It's unfortunately slow - were this road in Europe the limit would be 130 for example. You can cheat and drive at least 120 kph but there are police hiding occasionally so don't push your speed and your luck too much.
I drove from CUN to Chichen Itza then after seeing the site went on to Merida afterward. It was an easy drive and we made it without any difficulty. After a couple of days in Merida we drove straight back to CUN and again, made it without difficulty.
Right after you pay the toll though, there's a large hut where you can buy your entry tickets to Chichen Itza. This is an official booth so there's no haggling, and nothing untoward about the operation. It's actually quite convenient to stop there, get a bit of info and buy the tix. They even have a few pictures which they helpfully show you so you know to turn here or there when you get to Chichen Itza.
The speed limit on Highway 180 is 110 kph. It's unfortunately slow - were this road in Europe the limit would be 130 for example. You can cheat and drive at least 120 kph but there are police hiding occasionally so don't push your speed and your luck too much.
I drove from CUN to Chichen Itza then after seeing the site went on to Merida afterward. It was an easy drive and we made it without any difficulty. After a couple of days in Merida we drove straight back to CUN and again, made it without difficulty.
Aug 30, 2016, 7:19 pm
#18
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: California
Posts: 1,140
For any one else considering doing this, yes, very easy to do both - I did both, plus lunch in Valladolid and a dip in the Ik Kil cenote in a day last year.
I used Canada Transfers, private driver in an immaculate van (cold water and towels provided, which was a nice touch after CI) and he was totally willing to go off book, stopping at roadside snack places, loo stops he spoke excellent English, gave some colour about the area, history, etc. but was not a tour guide per se. He helped arrange an English speaking guide at CI, we didn't use a guide at Ek Balam.
Found it very relaxing, as we got everywhere before the tour buses did, so all the sites were very quiet
I used Canada Transfers, private driver in an immaculate van (cold water and towels provided, which was a nice touch after CI) and he was totally willing to go off book, stopping at roadside snack places, loo stops he spoke excellent English, gave some colour about the area, history, etc. but was not a tour guide per se. He helped arrange an English speaking guide at CI, we didn't use a guide at Ek Balam.
Found it very relaxing, as we got everywhere before the tour buses did, so all the sites were very quiet
Basically, the money we may have spent on a self-guided tour with a rental car we used on this private tour and supplemented with short cab rides (groceries) and the R1/R2 bus for the rest of the stay in Cancun.