Cancun & Cozumel Directions UPDATE

John Gray’s Grill 14 looked like it had already shut last time I went through town–short-lived. But I hear he has opened a location downtown, called…John Gray’s Downtown.

Unfortunately, the excellent Museo de Arte Folklorico in the hotel zone is slated to close soon and move to Xcaret. No details on a precise date for the move, but if you’re going to Cancun soon, be sure to check it out.

Writing about Puerto Morelos is hard–it seems like new restaurants open there every month. Here are the major changes:

Marlin Bleu is shut.

Dona Triny’s has moved into the former Marlin Bleu spot, on the plaza.

Bodo’s has moved out of Hacienda Morelos, into a space on Ninos Heroes, opposite Posada Amor.

Mama’s Bakery has moved a little bit south on Ninos Heroes.

Thanks to Rob and Joanna at Alma Libre Books for the news!

I’ve filed all the old update notes under “1st edition,” paving the way for the new edition, just now available in stores for your winter trip planning. Playa del Carmen and Tulum have both grown a lot, and I found several great additions to the book. Overall, I think it’s a pretty solid reflection of the Riviera Maya.

I also scaled back the hotel reviews, judging (I hope correctly) that most people taking short trips to the Riviera Maya and Cancun are going to already have some kind of hotel deal arranged.

If you want more historical detail, or are planning a longer trip around the whole peninsula, definitely look out for The Rough Guide to the Yucatan–the 2nd edition of that is coming in early November.

Sadly (and typically) one restaurant is already shut: El Manati on Cozumel. Too bad–it had a good bar scene too.

Night-time tours of the Tulum ruins recently started. I haven’t been yet, but the reports sound good–this isn’t a standard sound-and-light situation where you sit and watch. There’s an audio component, but you get to walk around. The cost is M$220, which includes the audio headsets, and the ruins are open from 8pm to 10pm.

I’m always on the lookout to good maps of the Yucatan peninsula. Rough Guides actually publishes a good one, but I know that it hasn’t gotten a really solid updating in a few years, and because there’s so much growth all over the peninsula, even a few years makes a difference.

But today the good people at MapsGoneTomorrow.com sent me a copy of a Yucatan map from German carto company Borch. The scale is 1:1,000,000, so not crazy-detailed, but it has everything you need on it for the beach and an inland trip (if you want more detail, see the excellent maps at CancunMap.com).

More important, it’s current: recently improved roads are actually shown properly (I’m thinking of the one north from Xpuhil), all the biosphere reserves are on there, and the bypass around Muna is actually drawn in. I haven’t seen this on any Yucatan map. It also very clearly distinguishes between super-highways and toll highways. Oh, and there are even small maps of Merida, Cancun, Campeche and Cozumel, plus several of the big archeological sites.

I’m not a big fan of the big icons to mark ruins and the like, because the placement is so imprecise. (In fact, the map does repeat one error I see on a lot of maps: Comalcalco ruins are on the east side of the road, not the west.) But it’s still very legible.

And it’s laminated and water-repellent.

Best of all, it’s reasonably priced: US$10.95, or 7.90 euros. In fact, it’s even more reasonably priced for Rough Guides readers, who are entitled to a 10 percent discount–email me (see link in sidebar) for the details.

These two hotels–one at Coba and one at Chichen Itza–are no longer run by Club Med, as the book says. They’re now run by the Islander Collection, and the contact information is 987/872-9300 ext. 8101, www.islandercollection.com. Rates and all facilities are basically still the same.

The main beach (Playa Caribe, p. 99) is looking much better–deeper sand, fewer rocks. But I would still advise against staying directly on the beach, except for a couple of specific hotels. With the real estate situation in Playa so feverish, it appears that many older beach hotels are letting maintenance slide while waiting for some great buyout deal to come along. No matter how slick a website a hotel has, the reality can be pretty stark…

Some shops (pp. 106-108)) have shut or moved.

Ide is now on Av 5 between C 10 and C 12.

Juan’s Hammocks is gone.

La Calaca is closed.

Que Pequeno es el Mundo is now just called El Mundo.

If you missed the chat I did for Budget Travel online, here’s the transcript. The questions I got about traveling in the Riviera Maya and inland Yucatan cover a lot of common issues: when to rent a car vs. when to take a bus, whether it’s possible to see all the Maya ruins in X amount of time, and whether safety and hygiene are big issues.

This bar in Cozumel (p. 130) is still open, but seems to have tossed any style it had in favor of 2-for-1 Corona deals and the like. Ah well.

I’ll be doing an online chat for Budget Travel magazine next week, December 11, from noon to 1pm Eastern time. Any questions about trip logistics, where/when to go to the Yucatan, hotel and restaurant recommendations, etc.? Submit them in advance here, or just join me next Tuesday! A transcript of the chat will be posted online in case you miss it.

Bookstore La Rana Sabia (p. 74) is closed.

Two Much Fun ‘n’ a Boat (p. 167) is no longer operating.

Enterate Cancun (p. 159) is no longer published.

This hostel in Valladolid (p. 153) was closed for renovation when I was there in Nov 07. No sign of when it will reopen.

The laundry on the map on p. 137 is actually on the street one block north, Calle Jupiter, between Avenida Tulum and Calle Sole.

Entrance price is up to M$45.

The actual site entrance has moved, around the side to a break in the north wall. It’s also now easier to approach the site from the north end of the beach road, from where it’s less than 500m to the ticket booth–if you’re staying on the beach, much handier than going around to the highway entrance.

Caleta Tankah (p. 134) is closed.

Mar Caribe beach club (p. 134) is now marked by a big sign for Don Cafeto restaurant (which has taken over the concessions here). There are new cabanas.

Gran Cenote (p. 134) entrance is up to M$80. But Carwash (p. 134) is down to M$30.

Casa Cenote hotel, opposite the Casa Cenote (p. 135), is closed. But you can still eat at Blue Sky.

Xel-Ha ruins (p. 135) is up to M$34.

Los Cantaros (p. 141) is shut.

Tuti Fruti (p. 141) is shut.

Hola Primo (p. 142) has been rebuilt in cinderblock. Maybe I’m just nostalgic, but it doesn’t seem as tasty…

Cetli (p. 141) had been closed, but now it has reopened, on Calle Polar at Calle Orion. Great food, sweet owner.

These cheap cabanas in Tulum (p. 138) are closed. (As a consolation, the Mar Caribe beach club–now signed “Don Cafeto”–to the south has some very basic cabanas.)

This hotel in downtown Cancun (p. 72) is currently closed and undergoing a major renovation.

Checandole (p. 62) is open again in Plaza Flamingo, and also in Plaza El Parian, near Hanaichi.

Rincon Yucateco (p. 63) in the hotel zone is closed.

La Casa de las Margaritas (p. 62) has totally changed its menu, and it looks very, very boring. No Sun brunch either.

Batacha (p. 65) is closed.

The Ballet Folklorico (p. 66) no longer performs at the convention center.

Nieve de Dioses (p. 75) is closed.

This cafe in Cancun’s hotel zone (p. 61) is no longer in either of the malls–it’s around Paseo Kukulcan Km 10, just about opposite from Senor Frog’s, and next to a convenience store.

This summer, the new Terminal 3 opened at Cancun International Airport.

As far as I can tell, all US airlines and some European charter flights arrive here, so there’s a good chance this is where you’ll end up. Terminal 2 (the original terminal that all flights used to come through, which is divided into two separate wings) still handles all domestic flights, and a random selection of international flights: Air Canada comes in here, as do some American Airlines flights from Miami.

In Terminal 3, there’s an ATM just after customs, but it wasn’t working when I was there (Oct 31, 2007). There’s also a money exchange desk right there.

Transport desks are just down the hall, on your left as you’re walking toward the doors. The desk for buying ADO/Riviera bus tickets to either downtown Cancun or Playa del Carmen is the last one on your left. Just a note: it looks like the downtown Cancun bus doesn’t come to Terminal 3–so you just hop on a Playa bus for the short ride over to the other terminal (this is what happened to me).

But there is a dedicated shuttle van between the two terminals–it runs every 20 minutes. You can also walk between the two terminals, though it’s not advisable with a lot of luggage. The walk looks a little dodgy–you feel very “behind the scenes” for a little stretch–but it doesn’t take long. In Terminal 3, head left along the front of the building and basically keep heading straight; from Terminal 2, turn right and keep walking, past the bus depots.

(If you’re wondering whatever happened to Terminal 1…well, it’s still shut, and basically never used for commercial flights. Just pretend it doesn’t exist.)

The entrance fees to all sites went up earlier this year (2007). In most cases, it’s only M$3 or so (30 cents), but Tulum and Coba have both been bumped up into a higher price category, so their price jumps are more substantial.

You can see the new prices and how each site is categorized on this page at the INAH website.

This water park (p. 57) no longer includes the Shotover Jet ride–that’s now up around Punta Cancun.

I’m getting in touch with people I know down there, and I’ll post news as I hear it. First off, it seems no one was killed–in part, I think, because Hurricane Wilma was so terrible, so a lot of people on the coast heeded warnings to evacuate.

So far, I think we can safely say that anywhere north of the Sian Ka’an reserve (basically, the scope of Cancun Directions) is relatively OK–I just got a note from Esencia hotel, for instance, which is midway between Playa and Tulum, saying the property just had some landscaping damage, but is otherwise fine. However, this CNN story says about a third of the beach huts in Tulum were damaged, but those should be relatively easy to repair.

I’ll be back down in the area in early November–it will be good to see the place firsthand.

This great little B&B on Isla Mujeres (p. 86) has changed its name to Villa La Bella, and its website has changed to www.villalabella.com. Nothing else has changed though–same great owners, same beautiful little setup on the windward side of the island.

Just pulling up some details that people added via comments a while back:

These two B&Bs in San Miguel (pp. 123 and 124) are no longer under the same ownership, and the contact details have changed.

So, Amaranto’s website is www.tamarindoamaranto.com, and its phone number is +52-987-564-4262. It’s now a proper B&B, and hosted nearly round the clock.

Tamarindo is at www.tamarindocozumel.com, and +52-987-872-6190. It also has two new apartments for rent, complete with private kitchens.

Pygrmees (p. 108) is closed.

The new pier at Av Constituyentes for the Cozumel ferry (p. 99) was shut down before it even started running properly. So all ferries–Ultramar and Mexico Waterjets–still come in and leave from the original pier at Calle 1 Sur. Also, the Ultramar boats are now nicer–they have an open-air deck on top–so there’s not a significant difference in service between the two companies.

The bus direct from Cancun airport (p. 99) now costs M$80 (about US$7.50).

I thought Playa was booming before, but now it’s almost completely out of hand. Countless super-chic condo buildings are going in—this is definitely the next South Beach. The construction noise—even in “quieter” Playa Norte–is a real drawback to what has been one of my favorite vacation places along this stretch. And everything is changing so fast it makes me want to give up guidebook writing.

Another drawback: tons of great restaurants are now shut.

Hot (p. 109) is shut at its C 10 location, but you can still find its other location at C 12 bis off Av 5.

Pan y Pasta (p. 110) is shut, as is El Olivo (p. 110), Osteria la Rucola (p. 110) and Carmencita (p. 127).

Tutix (p. 111) has also closed—this leaves the Blue Parrot (also referred to as the Dragon Bar, p. 111) as pretty much the last old-fashioned beach bar.

Puerto Morelos also looks good—same sleepy feel, just a few new paint jobs and generally tidier all around.

La Guadalupana II (p. 97) is now called Triny’s—not sure if the food is the same, but it looks great.

Picudo Azul (p. 97) is now called Le Marlin Bleu; it has the same French owner and has expanded its menu to include some French items, including full entrees, along with seafood tacos.

Caffe del Puerto (p. 97) is closed.

The road to Punta Bete (p. 94) has changed a little. The road now forks farther ahead (you’ll pass the old road to the right, all grown over with greenery), just at the entrance to Ikal del Mar. Hug the wall to the left and you still get to Los Pinos and Coco’s; head to the right (looks like you’re going into Ikal’s parking lot) and you get to the old road to Juanito’s beach hangout, which is now shut (though you can still pay M$30 parking and walk onto the beach here), and Bahia Xcalacoco (which I also think is shut, but have not confirmed).

There is no longer a tourist info booth on the highway at the start of the road to Puerto Morelos. Your best bet is just to go into town and stop in at Marand Travel on the plaza if you have any questions.

If you’re planning to spend more than a few days in Puerto Morelos, subscribe to the e-newsletter published by Alma Libre bookstore—the owners really keep up on all the town news.

Like everywhere hit by Hurricane Wilma last October, Isla Mujeres has some construction going on, but otherwise looks great. In fact, aside from a couple of boarded-up buildings, you wouldn’t know anything had happened.

Casa Maya Zazil-Ha (p. 85) is now using yet another name: Villas Kiin. All the signs leading up to the place say Casa Maya, however, and the owner is the same.

Cosmic Cosas used bookshop (p. 171) has moved in with the new Mananas cafe at the corner of C Guerrero and C Matamoros; as far as I can tell, there’s no Internet access here, though.

The tourist info office on the road to the beach (p. 131) is now shut.

The Tulum bus station (p. 154) has been moved across the street and a little to the north, so recalibrate directions accordingly.

There’s also a town bus that runs out to the beaches, though I couldn’t find out a schedule. Look for it on Avenida Tulum. Taxis to the closest beach hotels run about M$40 now, and about M$90 to the hotels on southern end of the beach road.

Speaking of the beach road (p. 131), it’s now paved all the way down to the entrance to Sian Ka’an, which is a great improvement, especially for people worried about their rental cars.

Cetli (p. 141) is shut.

The restaurant at Posada Margherita (p. 142) is closed Sundays, at least during low season.

The museum (p. 115) only costs M$33 now, which is nice.

Chankanaab (p. 119), however, is up to M$170, or US$16.

The tourist info booth (p. 113) is no longer at the end of the ferry pierâ–it’s now a freestranding kiosk directly across the street from the end of the pier.

And I really should’ve made this clearer in the book: You don’t want to do any major shopping on cruise-ship days, as the prices often go up. You can check schedules at www.cruisecal.com.

Especias (p. 128) has moved to Calle 3 Sur at Avenida 5.

I’ve heard some reports of attempted overcharging at Sabores (p. 129). I would still recommend this place, as the food is great, and the gouging seems to come from one of the waitstaff, rather than the owner herself–but know that _everything_–chips, side of beans, agua de jamaica, etc.–is included in the price, which I think now is M$45 or M$50. The only thing you should actually get charged extra for is if you order a soda or something like that.

Serious Munchies (p. 127) is closed, and so is Garden of Eatin’ (p. 126).

Palma Dorada (p. 123) has a new email address: palmadorada[at]prodigy[dot]net[mx], and it should have a new website soon: www.palmadoradainn.com.

Pepita (p. 123) has put a/c in all of its rooms, moving it out of the budget category (a double goes for M$390 now). That leaves Sosilmar, Marruang and Aguilar as your budget options, none of which are outstanding, unfortunately.

Museo INAH (p. 60) is closed–no sign of whether it’s a temporary closure or a permanent one, however.

Canal Sigfrido (p. 53) is more clearly marked with green street signs saying “Jardin del Arte.”

Kukulcan Bowl (p. 171) has been made super-swanky and renamed something like Area 20-2. There’s still bowling, though.

There’s no “slow boat” to Isla Mujeres (p. 78) anymore–it’s all fast ferries, from Gran Puerto and Puerto Juarez (now with a company called Magana, not Mexico Waterjets), or from the hotel zone. Ultramar now runs the service from Playa Tortugas in the hotel zone, for a not unreasonable M$110 (about US$10) one-way.

La Casa 940 (p. 77) is now a reggae bar called Capucino–it still seems to be a popular young subculture hangout, though.

G-Spot (p. 66) is now called Basic, allegedly with a website at www.basic-cancun.com, but so far there’s nothing on it.

La Boom (p. 65) is shut.

Glazz (p. 65) is shut.

Rincon Yucateco (p. 63) is shut in its hotel zone location; the downtown location is the same, though.

Rosa Mexicana (p. 76) is shut.

Le Hooka (p. 77) is closed, and has been replaced by a sort of Goth lounge called Reliquaria.

Teatro La Tramoya (p. 77) is closed.

Royal Bandstand (p. 66) has closed–it’s now a big Mexican-theme dinner-show place called Hacienda Sisal.

Over 30 club (p. 66) is closed.

Checandole (p. 62) can now be found in Plaza el Parian, near the Japanese resto Hanaichi. I didn’t check if it’s still in Plaza Flamingo as well, but as that mall (Flamingo) was pretty battered by the hurricane, my guess is no.

I just got back from a long research trip around the Yucatan, and the whole Caribbean coast looks great–you’d never guess Hurricane Wilma had even happened, unless you’re really looking for evidence (a lot of the mangroves around Cancun are still battered-looking, for instance). Almost all of the hardest-hit hotels have reopened by now, and there’s a lot of new landscaping and construction.

Here’s what’s new in lodging in Cancun:

Aristos (p. 74) is gone–something new and bigger is being built in its place.

Villas Tacul (p. 60) is shut–it doesn’t look like it’s being renovated.

El Pueblito (p. 59) is still closed, but should reopen this month, following extensive renovations.

Mexico Hostel (p. 72) is now being managed by Tulum’s Weary Traveler crew, which just means the place is generally a bit more organized.

Cancun Rosa (p. 71) has remodeled and gotten rid of its groovy old lobby–which was really the most appealing part anyway. I won’t be putting this place in the next edition.

This little home-style Mayan/Mexican restaurant in Playa del Carmen (p. 109) is shut. This is a shame, because it was the closest really local-feeling place to main-drag Playa.

Sure, the maps in Cancun & Cozumel Directions are good, but I do have some space constraints.

The good people at Can-Do Maps, however, can make maps as big as they like. They do really excellent fold-out maps to all the major beach towns, even showing building outlines and restaurant and hotel locations. They’re very handy if you’re considering a certain resort or rental place and want to find out just where you’ll be in relation to everything else.

And the reason I’m mentioning them here (they get a nod in the book) is that they’ve expanded their offerings. In addition to Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Cozumel, Isla Mujeres, and the whole Riviera Maya (including Tulum), they’re now doing a map for the Chichen Itza area, and one for Cozumel’s reefs.

Check ‘em out before your trip–they’re perfect for getting the lay of the land.

Normally I would just save new places for the next edition, rather than post about them here, but the nice folks at Villa Las Brisas (p. 86) were raving about this restaurant, and even sent me this photo. Since they steered me toward some great ballpark tacos, I trust their judgment.

Varadera is the name of the place, and it’s Cuban, and, as you can see from the pic, they even make mojitos! It’s about a third of the way down the length of the island from the main town, before you reach Puerto Isla Mujeres, the big marina. Ashley and Curtis write, “From the low road, the best landmark is Las Palmas nursery. When the road dead ends, you make a right then a left into Varadera’s drive. It’s a great place to watch the boats coming in and out of the lagoon, especially around sunset.”

I’ll check these directions on my next trip, but in the meantime, I hope this will get you there!

UPDATE: I cruised the place in November. The name is El Varadero, and it doesn’t look like much from the road–you have to go back into the lot to actually see the restaurant. Tell the cab or bus driver “El Varadero del Burgos,” as there’s another place in the area named El Varadero de Oscar.

La Posada del Sol (p. 156) has a website, finally: www.laposadadelsol.com, with very nice photos. The “jungle” rooms mentioned in the book are still one of the best deals in Tulum, considering the size and attractiveness (on the website, they’re the rooms, not the bungalows).

And the same owners now have a second hotel, Posada Lamar, about 1km south of La Posada del Sol. I haven’t seen it with my own eyes, but if it’s like Posada del Sol, it’s probably beautiful.

Sol Cabanas del Caribe (p. 124) is closed. It got pretty battered by Hurricane Wilma, apparently, and since it was an older resort, it probably wasn’t worth fixing up.

[UPDATE on the update: all the info below is no longer accurate. Please see this post for news.

Palapas Amaranto (p. 123) has a new website, www.tamarindoamaranto.com, which also gets you info for Tamarindo B&B (p. 124), under the same ownership. (And to clarify, at Tamarindo, all guests have access to the kitchen, not just two of the rooms.)

Additionally, you can now contact each place via the following mobile phone numbers:

AMARANTO
01-987/800-5571 (in Mexico)
+44-987/800-5571 (from outside the country)

TAMARINDO
01-987/112-4111 (in Mexico)
+44-987/112-4111 (from outside)

Because Amaranto is unhosted (meaning there isn’t someone there around the clock), you should call before you arrive, to make sure someone is there to meet you with keys.

This nice little family-run place on Isla Mujeres (p. 55) has new contact information:

tel: 998/877-0861
email: hfrancis[at]prodigy.net.mx

This women’s crafts organization in Puerto Morelos (p. 97) has moved to a spot near the jungle, in “downtown” Morelos, on the west side of the main highway–a M$20 taxi ride from the beach (tell the driver “Calle Dos”). The artesania is open one day a week, for “Sunday Market Day,” with lots of craftswomen coming out, along with food vendors and the like–very festive and off the usual tourist route, if you happen to be in the area.

For reservations at Zamas, a great little hotel in Tulum (p. 140) and one of the older ones on the beach, you have to call the US number: 1-415/387-9806 — not the local phone listed in the guide. Sorry for the confusion.

EDIT: The owner writes:
We have a local tulum phone: 984 877 8523 (add 01152 in front), but ALL reservations are done by email: info@zamas.com or online at zamas.com