What we learned
In this section, my travel buddy and I are going to review the trip, the places we stayed, the things we did, and the business we encountered!
ISLA MUJERES
Make it stand out
Garrett: YYYOoooooo! Hard to rate an entire island. But I’d recommend it overall. Excellent blend of local spots and attractions as well as overbuilt, touristy stuff (I’m a tourist. I like touristy things). It’s unique and definitely feels like a better experience than staying in a sanitized area like the hotel zone in Cancun.
SOGGY PESO AIR BNB
Garrett: Excellent room, though we were upgraded to a nicer room due to renovations, so your mileage may vary. It was also so nice that the place closed down in the evenings–I loved coming “home” to a quiet, dark place that had a relaxing pool and chill vibes. Big fan!
AQUA ADVENTURES
Garrett: I have mixed feelings. The whole place had an extremely relaxed feel, which is cool and always nice, but it also meant that the dives didn’t really seem that prepared. The employees all seemed like cool folks. I especially liked Pedro (a divemaster), the shop manager, and the lady who seemed to organize everything (I wish I knew her name!)
I understand that I’m being a Karen about this, but: I hated the use of a diesel boat–the motor was so loud. My watch measured it as high as 90dB–which is fine for a few minutes, but would induce a major headache by the time we’d made it to the dive site or back to the marina.
SEA HAWK DIVERS
Garrett: We only had one morning with these folks, but I *loved* my time with them. The morning briefing was exciting, information-dense, but also very relaxed. The Whale Shark experience was phenomenal–due in large part to our guide, Raul, and the captain (whose name I have, sadly, forgotten–whoops).
BEACHES/ ACTIVITES
Playa Centro
Garrett: 5/10. Not a beach person. It’s cool. There’s sand and water and drinks and food and happy folks. Sand was 6/10 if you like sand :).
Playa Norte
Garrett: 4/10. Kind of a let-down, honestly. This was listed in several places as “the best beach in the mexican caribbean, but, like, eh. Sand was 7/10, sun was 4/10, rich people parking (mooring?) their ugly yachts every damn place they could fit them was 0.2/10. As stated, I’m not a beach person, so take my opinion with a grain of salt, but if you’re gonna claim “best” you should maybe be pretty good.
Playa Mascotas
Garrett: 9/10. Keep in mind that this is a beach for pets (you know, “mascotas”), so you’re gonna run into doggos playing and having a good time. Non-beachers rejoice! This beach is our jam! It faces east, so no sun in your eyes; there aren’t any vendors or shops, so it’s nice and quiet; there are rocks everywhere, so you have places to sit; there are li’l tide pools, so you can watch the sea critters; there are shells and coral to collect (and then not take home, right? right?); the sand is delightfully coarse, so it feels nice on your feet and is easier to walk on. Overall, I’m a big fan.
Punta Sur
Garrett: Statues, amazing views of the water crashing on the rocks! A super visually stimulating spot–The best views I saw above water, I think. That said, it was (ahem) hotter than the surface of the sun. Bring an umbrella and some water!
Garrafon de Castilla
Garrett: Cute little place! Service was great. Water was nice.
PLACES WE ATE
Coco Snack and Beach Bar
Garrett: Delicious! I ate pasta (which is a sin in mexico, I think?) But I loves my carbonara.
Pizza Mikes
Garrett: DELICIOUS. Garlic knots are phenomenal! If you put one of those on your head, I’d eat your brain trying to get at it.
Churros
Garrett: I’d like to be buried with an order of street churros. That is all.
Elote
Garrett: Fine. Fine enough. I went for the corn in a cup for portability, and I regret it. I think grilled on the cob would have been a better choice.
Soggy Peso
Garrett: I’m a lightweight and the margaritas are SO STRONG–Which is dope if it’s your thing :). The charred chicken wings were very tasty.
Mango Cafe
Garrett: 10/10 I drank the watermelon juice and saw the face of God. Incredible. I would do terrible, terrible things for just one more sip of that juice. The empanadas were delicious as well!
CANCUN
Garrett: Uh, hard to rate a city that I spent nearly no time in, but it has a weird feeling in it…like, there is a clear demarcation between how the people who actually live there live, and the “hotel zone.” Without getting political, the word “gentrification” came to mind.
CANCUN AIR BNB
Garrett: Nice, like a hotel room. Super run to see the beach and get to watch the influencers taking silly pictures. Maybe it’s because I’m a carpenter, but it was weird–the whole place was made with very nice material (marble tile, etc) but installed very very poorly. Crooked seams, gaps in drywall, gobs of caulking everywhere. Wild.
CANCUN ADVENTURES
Garrett: Fun! Informative while also being informal. Super nice to have a fun guide and have a driver take care of us! Cold water and snacks anytime you could ever want them, an umbrella for the sun, pretty ruins and cenotes, and then a tasty tasty meal afterwards. What could be better?
Annoying that they are all, “no taking pictures in this spot,” and then they charge you for the pictures they take. Silly.
PLACES WE ATE
Navios
Garrett: I pretended to be rich and got a big ol’ steak. It was very tasty, the mojito was delicious, service was excellent, and the pricing was good. The live music was a little gimmicky, it being a guy on a saxophone standing at the end of the dock, playing along with top 40’s.
KM 19.5
Garrett: Food was fine. Service was terrible. Like, wait 40 minutes for drinks to come out bad. It was frustrating.
