Our stop at Cozumel, Mexico was by far my favorite of the entire trip, even though we didn’t have a chance to explore the island of Cozumel at all. AT ALL!
We were one of the firsts off the ship that morning, bright and early in order to catch a ferry to the mainland. I was warned by fellow shipmates (yes, you Casey!) to bring some Dremamine because it was pretty rough waters on that small boat. If I’m completely honest, being that neither of us had ever experienced sea sickness of any extent, we weren’t all that concerned. So when we hopped aboard that little ferry, we didn’t worry for a second that we had left it behind.
But we should have. We reeeeally should have. The moment we started moving I knew I was in trouble. It was one insanely painful half hour ride. Hubby snagged a barf bag for me immediately. I gripped that little bag with sweaty palms and prayed I wouldn’t need to use it. I know from experience that once I start, I’m not going to recover. Thankfully I held it in and survived, but it made for a VERY rough start to the day. But as you know…it only got better.
From there we were herded like cattle in a single file line down the streets of Playa del Carmen (moooooo!) until we reached a couple huge tour buses. I was already insanely nervous that this day was doomed. I hate crowds and I felt nauseous from the ferry. Before we knew it, the two buses were full and there were eleven of us left standing confused. They led us over to a tiny (well, tiny in comparison) passenger van. I’ll be honest here (as I always am) that my initial thought was that we got the short end of the stick. I thought for sure the hour drive in this thing was going to do me in when I was already teetering on the edge.
Turns out that blessings come in disguise, as the eleven of us had our own private tour guide. After talking with several others on our ship that did the same excursion, I’m convinced that we lucked out!
The drive was somewhat lengthy, but doable. Especially in the company of the other amazing couples we got to know. Diego, our travel guide, told us tales of the history of the Mayans as we drove, capturing our interest with his story telling skills. He also explained to us what to expect of this day. It was going to be somewhat rushed (in order to make it back to the ship in time) but hopefully well worth it.
When we arrived at Tulum, we had time for a quick bathroom break and peruse around a couple shops before we had to head on our way. It was a short trek to the actual ruins. Hubs was concerned that I was in sandals, but I assure you, it was not an issue.
There are only three entrances to the ruins and they are pretty small, (and one of them is by boat) so the lines were pretty lengthy. But because we were a small group, Diego was able to get us ahead of some of the crowds. My jaw dropped as soon as I got my first glimpse.
It was so unbelievably beautiful and kind of gave me goosebumps thinking about the history that took place in the very place we were standing. Diego was able to take the time to answer all of our detailed questions and take everyone’s couple photos, all while keeping it precise and efficient so we could make it to our next stop in a timely manner. That’s a skill, I tell ya!
Diego described to us the process of building the ruins. So much attention and meaning went into every detail.
We ended at the most beautiful point of the ruins, overlooking the beach. What a backdrop! Visiting places like this make me want to just pick up and move our family to a place where my jaw can drop at my surroundings every day. Unbelievable.
We had a little time for ourselves to do some last photos and exploration. Diego gave us a half hour before meeting back at the van. We thought it was plenty, but after striking up a conversation with the most hilarious couple from our van and taking a leisurely walk back to the shops, we had just minutes of actual shopping before Diego hunted me down and insisted we join the group who was all waiting for us. Oops.
Shop This Look:
Tank: Target (Here)
Skirt: Forever 21 (Similar)
Headband: Francesca’s (Here)
Sunglasses: Kohl’s – old (Similar)
Earrings: Noonday Collection (Here)
Sandals: Nest Boutique (Here)
Don’t forget to check out the rest of our trip photos on my Instagram feed under the following hashtag:
Coming Up: Tulum Beach Break
