Magnificent Mexico - March 2018 (part 2)

My family and I are not 'beach bums'. We can manage a few days but then we get bored, so excursions are a must for us. We all enjoy exploring new destinations and meeting different cultures. Our trip to Mexico was no different. Mexico offers lots of excursions, some very similar, so we chose 4 and I have written about them below: Isla Mujeres boat trip This was the first excursion we took part in and in all honesty, when I first saw it, I was not overly fussed. In my head I thought 'another boat trip, done one, done them all' but how wrong was I! I am so glad my family convinced me to book it with them. Pick up at 8am with a transfer to Cancun just over an hour away, onto a small harbour where our catamaran was waiting for us. As soon as we were onboard, the drinks were flowing! The crew worked tirelessly throughout the day to keep their guests entertained through music and games. After 40 minutes on board, the first stop was in the middle of the sea for snorkelling. It is entirely optional whether you do the snorkelling, as the sea is a bit rough and although given mandatory life jackets, is not suitable for weak swimmers. Being a strong swimmer and the adventurous type, I naturally wanted to jump in and see the marine life below us. We were taken into the sea in groups of 6 and instructed to follow a leader who had a rope and lifebuoy. He took us snorkelling for 30 minutes and showed us an amazing underwater museum. 30 minutes does not seem long, but out in the choppy sea it was long enough, and we were all grateful to be back on board after the short snorkelling stint. All dried off and another drink in hand, we set off again to our next stop. Another dip in the sea, but this time much smoother water, completely clear and not far from the shoreline. We were not handed life jackets here as the water was gentle. Back onboard for a third time but only for a short while, as our next stop and first land destination was in sight, Isla Mujeres. We jumped off and were given an hour to explore this side of the island independently. There is lots to do including the beach and quirky shops/bars, but the one thing we all wanted to do was explore and what better way to do so than to hire a golf buggy? Very reasonably priced, the golf carts hold up to 4 people and a provisional driving license is required to drive them. As there were 5 of us, we hired 2 and off we went. Isla Mujeres is unique, different to mainland Mexico. Our hour flew by as we drove half the length of the island, coming across everything from coconut shacks to 5* villas. If I ever return to Mexico, I would like to spend a night on the island & explore some more, as we only saw a glimpse due to the short time frame. Once the hour was up, it was back on the catamaran for a quick whizz to the other side of the island for a BBQ, Mexican style. Plenty of food & drink choices for all with enough time to rest on the beach before heading back to Cancun. A great trip that I recommend to all. Coco Bongo The famous Coco Bongo - a crazy show/nightclub/disco that in all honesty, I am not sure how to explain! Before I went to Mexico, I had friends tell me the same thing. 'It's crazy, I don't know how to describe it' and I didn't really take notice, I thought it can't be *that* crazy surely? Again, I was wrong! One minute there are dancers swinging from the ceiling, next 'The Mask' is behind you offering you tequila, then a pirate swinging past your booth, it's madness! My family age range is from 23-50 and we all enjoyed it. All I can say is go! Experience the madness for yourself and be as lost for words as us. I also recommend booking the drinks package, you are given a seat and a waiter brings drinks all evening but if like me, you get itchy feet, you do not have to stay there and can head to the main dance floor where the drinks from the bar will still be included in your drinks package at no extra cost. Xplor Mexico is home to lots ecological parks, with 3 of the most notable being Xplor, Xcaret and Xel Ha. All are slightly different, with Xcaret and Xel Ha being family friendly, Xcaret being the one my family chose to visit. This is the only excursion we did separately, as myself and my partner wanted to visit Xplor. All 3 parks are close, and our transfer was 20 minutes. Xplor is a park made up of ziplines, paddle boards, river swims, caves and a jungle trek in amphibious vehicles. It is not an excursion for the faint hearted, it is very action packed and most of the day you are spent in the air zip lining through the jungle. On arrival, you are given a locker and helmet with a number which you are required to wear throughout the day. At various points in the park, there are self-service photo buttons which record the number on your helmet and collect fantastic pictures for you at an extra cost. I highly recommend this, as cameras are not allowed on the activities and the pictures are great quality. You will see from my pictures, we happened to visit Xplor on a wet day! Luckily, we were in our swimming gear, so it didn't matter and made our experience funny, especially our jungle trek - we felt like we were in Jurassic Park! Highly recommended for adrenaline junkies. Chichen Itza Our final excursion was Chichen Itza, cenotes and a Mayan village. Pick up was 6am from our hotel as the ruins are 2 hours away and the tour we went for explained they take their guests to the site before the rush and before the sun reaches its max. As pick up is early, we were given a breakfast box containing juice, a cereal bar and a muffin. Upon arrival, there were already lots of tourists queuing up to enter, but we were taken straight past and to the ruins. Our guide was multi-lingual and extremely knowledgeable. She explained the history of Chichen Itza before allowing us time to take those all-important pictures. After about an hour at the site we were taken back to our coach for our next stop, lunch and swimming in a cenote. Lunch was traditionally Mayan in small bamboo style huts and as a veggie I was well catered for. The cenote was beautiful, very peaceful with only us there. Our final stop before heading back was a Mayan Village. This was a lovely site to see as I did not realise people still lived this way. Lots of children in pretty Mayan dresses playing games and a few stalls on the side of the road selling hand made goods. I bought a bracelet for no more than a couple of pounds but sadly lost it before I got home. Door to door this trip was 12 hours, but worth every second.