Take it from not only someone who lives in Tulum, but who researches, plans, and does travel for a living; this is the ultimate INSIDER Tulum guide!
I’ll give you all the main popular slash touristy things to do, however you’ll also get the details on everything you seeing me doing with the other expats and locals here during our everyday digital nomad lives.
From salsa dancing at Palma Central, to knowing which beach clubs have the best specials, and of course, a lot of hidden gems that the regular visitor wouldn’t know about!
Don’t worry though, there plenty of affordable, and even, dare I say…FREE things to do in Tulum! There’s also a lot more to see and do than you may think!
If you visit Tulum, PLEASE be respectful of the environment and the locals! DO NOT bring or leave ANY plastic. Don’t flush toilet paper or anything else down the toilets. Try not to use electricity a lot since it’s all run by diesel generators.
If you rent a car PLEASE DRIVE SLOW! This is not your hometown, and most of us who live here drive motorbikes and bicycles! I was recently hit by an SUV on my motorbike by a tourist and he didn’t even apologize!
Before you get all this amazing free info, please consider using my affiliate links below to book your trip! It costs you nothing and I get a small referral which is what helps my blog running! Thank you!
Also don’t forget that if you need any travel gear or clothes like I wear, to click the SHOP tab on the menu above!
Now on to what you’re really here for:
You’ll need to fly into Cancun airport and then take a 2 hour transfer to get to Tulum. I recommend using Skyscanner for finding the cheapest flights to Cancun!
Soon the Tulum airport will open, but only with a limited amount of departure cities so far.
Depending on your budget, you have several options for getting to Tulum and to my apartment. Booking in advance is highly recommended, click the links to get tickets/reservations online!
If you’re flying into Cancun:
If you’re flying into the new Tulum airport:
My top recommendations if you don’t want to rent a car is to take the ADO Bus for only about 265 pesos (about $13) which is your cheapest option. Or you can get a private car for around $75 that will hold a sign with your name on it and everything! Both options are really easy to book using BookAway!
Tulum is a bit tricky, because there are four main areas, and they’re not exactly close to each other by foot. Especially the beach.
My top recommendation for guests is to use the bicycle that is included with my apartment. It may take longer, and require more energy, but it’s the easiest, cheapest, and probably safest option.
If you need to rent additional bicycles, there are several places on 5th ave and on the side streets stemming from it. They should only be max 100 pesos per day, so keep looking until you find that price.
My personal favorite way to get around is by motorbike/scooter. I have one and I love driving it, but they can be a bit dangerous. I’ve known of two people getting hit by cars on them….and I was one of them. If you are an experienced driver though, it’s a good option.
There’s a possibility that I can rent my scooter to you, but you’d need to sign a waiver and put down a deposit. Send me a text if you’re interested.
Otherwise you can find legitimate rental places on 5th ave. There’s one at the end, on the same street as the Oxxo (but across 5th ave) that rents them for around 600 pesos per day.
There are also ATV’s which are much safer than the moto, but more expensive.
The main ATV rental place is also on 5th ave, and they’re also around 600 pesos per day.
You can rent a car, but parking is a bit of a nightmare, as is driving in a car on the dirt roads. It’s do-able of course, I’d just recommend making sure you have full insurance!
As I mentioned before, I have a good local contact here who rents them without the hidden Mexican tax fees, and includes full coverage for around 800-1000 pesos ($45-60). You need to pay for it in cash though and also pay the deposit in cash (2000 pesos).
You can text her via whatsapp, and mention Alyssa sent you: Rosie Rides whatsapp: +52 990 131 0835
Otherwise there are tons of regular car rental agencies on the main Coba road.
***Important: make sure you have your license with you at all times and that it is valid. If a police stops you and you don’t have it, they’ll likely fine you or even make you tow the car! ….But also, they may accept a cash bribe….
Taxis are always available but they are expensive and rarely will bargain with you. In fact, don’t even try to bargain, because there’s a good chance the taxis are run by cartels.
Anyway, the taxi drivers are at least very friendly, as long as you respect them. If you don’t…well..don’t expect them to be nice to you. You can grab one off the street, they’re always parked or driving around, or you can whatsapp my contact below:
Safe Taxi Tulum (English): +52 984 239 0149
*Note: the easiest way to tell taxis where to pick you up/drop off at the apartment is to say, “Edificio se llama “Rama”, cerca de Holistika”. You can also pull it up on google maps and show them.
There are a few main areas of Tulum; Centro, La Valeta, Public Beach (Playa Paraiso), Hotel Zone / Tulum Beach. Here’s some info on each.
La Valeta is where I have my condo, so obviously I think it is the best area. It has all of the brand new, chic apartment rentals, including mine, CasitAlyssa, and it’s where most of the successful digital nomads live.
We have one main road called “5th Avenue” with some nice restaurants, bars, and coworking spaces, and lots of exercise options. My current favorite is Tulum Muay Thai and Kundalini Yoga at Holistika.
My favorite restaurants/bars in La Valeta are:
As the name implies, this is the “center” of Tulum. It is the first place that a tourist area was established, and as a result it is where the souvenir shops and some older and more local bar/restaurants are.
I don’t often frequent Centro, but I have been to a handful of good restaurants and fun places there.
Here’s some suggestions for Centro Tulum:
When you first turn right from Coba road, you’ll be in the “Zona de Hoteles” (hotel zone) which is where the big resorts are like Amansala, Papaya Playa Project, and Azulik. I also like to refer to them as the “influencer resorts”, as they are extremely picturesque and desirable, and thus every “influencer” tries to go there. Don’t worry, they have policies against excessive photo taking (and if you’re an influencer trying to get it, contact them for the form/waitlist).
Also, if you don’t want to splurge to stay there, you can head to their Beach Clubs, just be warned that they may charge a hefty fee. Oh and definitely make a reservation in advance for a seat!
Past the hotel zone you’ll start to see cute little boho-chic restaurants and shops. If you’ve been to Bali, you’ll have immediate nostalgia! Endless adorable shops owned by expats with ridiculously over priced items (buy from the locals on the beach instead), and tons of delicious over priced restaurants!
MY Favorite Beach Clubs
Most visitors also like to go to:
Trust me when I say; there is a party or event every single night in Tulum. I try to keep my post about it up to date, but there are links on there as well to take you to a more consistently updated page!
Click below to access it!
For short stays, you might want to splurge to stay in the beach area, because that way you can just easily walk/bike everywhere. When I was there last, I stayed on the beach and a friend was staying Downtown, and it took her 30 minutes to get to me by car!
If you’re staying longer though like she was, I’d say stay in La Valeta. Namely at my apartment…email me to rent it ;). Not only is it cheaper, but the electricity and wifi is more reliable. Everywhere on the beach is reliant on diesel generators…which is not good for the environment.
I usually use Booking.com’s map feature first to A) Figure out where the most popular areas are (areas with the most hotels) and B) Use it as a price comparison with AirBnB.
FYI: most places that are listed on sites like Booking, also list themselves on Airbnb (and vice a versa), and sometimes they are more expensive due to all of their annoying fees. BUT! Sometimes you can find unique stays on Airbnb, and even better, you can attempt negotiating a better rate!
I did find a really cute tree-house like place on AirBnB called Origen! It was a GREAT value for the location!
Almost every hotel along the beach has its own beach club attached to it. A beach club is basically a cute outdoor area on the beach that serves food and drinks, and later might have a DJ or something. You can go to many of them for free, but the more popular ones have started charging per person! When I was there last weekend, they wanted $70 USD PER PERSON!
Here are some that I went to that I liked, as well as some of the most popular ones:
As I’ve mentioned several times, Tulum is an “influencer”‘s heaven. I know that not only as an influencer myself, but because of the extreme amount of them you constantly see there! If you’re hoping to get some awesome shots yourself, here is a list of all of the most popular ones!
Note: Most of these are connected to small businesses. If you decide to take a photo there, please at least consider purchasing a beverage or snack from them as well!
Also, I’m including the ones that are “strictly guests only” so you don’t get your hopes up when you see someone post it on social media, and they don’t tell you they aren’t open to the public…
*Click on the camera icons on the map I created to see the name of the photo spot!
Oh and let’s not forget the beautiful photo spots that were in Tulum before the mass construction of Instagrammable places:
Tulum is popular year round, however from November to February is the extreme high season! All of the snow birds come down, completely booking out and crowding the area, so I would suggest coming any time besides then!
Do note that it is very hot and humid most of the year, and rain showers are common (and refreshing!). Hurricane season is end of September to early November.
Since I now live here, I have found many fun activities to try and do, most of which I do on a weekly basis! Here are some of my favorites:
There are a of course TONS of tours to do near Tulum! They are especially great to do if you happen to go to Tulum during “sargassum season” (when the beaches are covered in seaweed).
Below are a few of my favorites:
Xel-Ha: Out of all of the Xcaret parks, this was probably my favorite. It’s a giant natural lagoon with cenotes as well! You can do a river float, swim, snorkel, ziplines, AND! It’s all-inclusive food and drinks! It does cost around $100-120, but you can use one of the discount links below!
I usually go to Chedrauli Selecto. They have literally everything. It’s on Coba road so you’ll need some sort of vehicle, bike, or taxi to get there.
There’s a few small grocerias in La Velata with the basics though. Like fruits/veggies and dry foods. A nearby one is called “Chultun Fresh Market” for produce, and we also have “Gypsy Market” near the main road which is vegan health food (and expensive).
Oxxo or 711 are popular convenience stores here where you can get snacks, drinks, and WATER.
You can also use Tomato (food and grocery delivery app) here.
PHARMACIES; Are EVERYWHERE. If you haven’t been to this area yet and experienced the slightly sketchy “farmacias”, you’re in for a treat! They sell pretty much every prescription drug for low prices, and without a prescription…. including ones that are illegal in some countries…
As beautiful as well all make Tulum look in photos, and as alluring as it is in real life, you absolutely MUST take crucial safety measures while visiting. In the two months I’ve been living in this area, I’ve already heard of multiple violent crimes, and I wouldn’t feel right posting this guide without letting you know that it exists.
Please follow these crucial safety tips if you visit Tulum:
Local Emergency Numbers
If you visit Tulum, I’d also highly suggest visiting Bacalar just 2 hours away!
Also check out one of my Top Read blogs on how to do a Riviera Maya Roadtrip!
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This is a very good post! I totally agree with you, yes we enjoy traveling and taking pictures and selfies and eating delicious snacks, but let us not forget to be responsible by not throwing our trash anywhere or don't just leave it out there. Be a nature lover so that we can preserve all of the beautiful places on earth so we can travel more!
OMG yes! I can't believe there are people out there who STILL litter!!! How can anyone be Ok with that!
Thank you for sharing this! What a difference from what you see on IG and certainly disappointing to hear about the greenwashing. Definitely makes me rethink visiting...
Yes I'm always a little shocked that literally no one talks about the reality of it. BUT! If you're in the area it's definitely worth visiting for a day or two to decide about on your own! It's definitely cute...just very hectic lol
Thank you for your honesty! I've actually been turned off Tulum by these pretentious "influencers" and the video showing the dark side. I actually want to see more of the Yucatan and other locations for a more authentic experience! Loved your post on Dia de Muertos!
I can understand that for sure! Luckily there are so many lesser-known gems in this area! I think you'd love Bacalar or Valladolid!!
This is so helpful!! And THANK YOU for being the first blogger I've seen actually talking about the green washing. I have decided to spend less time in Tulum after watching the documentary you recommended. And honestly, I'm a little sad I see so many bloggers post about Tulum and never talk about the damage being done the to environment. Way to use your platform for good!! Repinning on Pinterest now!