7 Things to Do Outside of a Cancun All Inclusive Hotel

Akumal Beach

We've all heard the stories- Cancun is synonymous with spring breakers and all-inclusive resorts. I grew up with this mindset for so long that I never really considered the Yucatan as a destination to visit purely because neither of those travel styles really stood out to me. It took several years, but when I finally made it to the Yucatan I found a plethora of activities that were so far removed from the party and resort crowd that I was upset that I didn't consider visiting earlier.

If you do it right, you can avoid all of the stereotypes that come with the Yucatan and have an incredible experience. During our travels around the Yucatan, we found seven stellar attractions you may be interested in checking out if you are looking to get away from the resort mindset. (Or, if you are interested in staying at a resort, we have seven reasons why you should here!)

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Are Tacos al Pastor the Perfect Food?

Halfway through our long-term trip, we asked the question: “Are Greek gyros the perfect food?” For gastronomy-focused travelers like ourselves, finding what we consider to be the perfect food has always been the ultimate goal when we dine out.

For many months after publishing that post, we continued traveling the world and ate many unique and authentic meals that were absolutely worth the trip.  But none of them topped the gyro (or even came close, for that matter). 

It wasn't until we hit the last country of our long-term trip, Mexico, that we found a contender in the form of tacos al pastor.

After the first bite, we realized something interesting- these two meals are identical in almost every way.

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How to Bring a Dog into the USA From Mexico

We never expected to bring home a pet from our 465-day trip around the world. But when we saw Tamale's big brown eyes staring up at us and heard the story of how she was found on the streets of Valladolid, Mexico, cowering under a car, our hearts melted. At first, we thought the logistics of bringing a dog into the US would be too complicated, but after researching the requirements, everything fell into place.

This is the story of two weary world travelers, one adorable dog, and our journey together from near the ruins of Chichen Itza in Mexico to Dayton, Ohio.

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Chichen Itza – Why Not Visit The Ruins of Uxmal Instead?

When the media talks about the Mayan ruins in the Yucatan, it is all Chichen Itza, Chichen Itza, Chichen Itza.  You can hardly read a report about Mexico without this famous site coming up time and time again.

We understand why the hype for these ruins is the way that it is- the ruins of Chichen Itza are large and incredibly well preserved.  But when such rapid-fire promotion comes out to the world, the crowds are sure to follow. 

If you are one of those people who just cannot stand the sight of 50+ tour groups in one day, I'm sorry to say that Chichen Itza may not be for you.

Luckily, the ruins of Uxmal just a few hours away offer a wonderful alternative that we think all visitors to the Yucatan should check out.   (Okay, maybe not all visitors since that would defeat the purpose, but definitely the amazing readers of our blog).

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