It’s a hard thing going on vacation.
Money, location, time, energy; all precious resources that demand careful attention, even doubly so when you consider the needs of two people.
Add that in to any unexpected circumstance in the duration and you’ve got a tenuous cavalcade of fun or certain doom.
Ours to the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico started out great. Technically, we started in Playa del Carmen, the touristy beach resort-laden stretch southwest of Cancun.
I’m not one for resorts, but a few nights at Mahekal were pretty damn fun. Ignoring the the thumpy bass of a nearby party hotel in the afternoon, it’s stretched-out cabanas were nice, with three loungy pools to cool off in.
Then off to Xcaret, a crazy water/culture/entertainment park with way too much to do and little time to see it.
Freediving discovery in Tulum
Our time in Playa spent, we gladly headed towards Tulum and took the first day there learning how to freedive from Sabrina and Matt at La Casa Surya. Despite starting the day out of my element and frustrated as hell, I ended up enjoying this much more than I thought thanks to their calm instruction.
After that, relaxation time kicked in and we pretty much spent the days after that lounging in our hotel, Coco Tulum.
One night, the stars made a furious showing with great views of the milky way despite nearby city lights. With my Fujifilm X100F, I stacked four or five shots to get a bit of the sky as well as plants right outside our room.
Ruin exploration and cenote fun
One of the coolest things about the Yucatan peninsula is the tendency for large portion of its limestone to give way to water, creating sinkholes that fill with crystal clear rainwater and make wonderful swimming holes for anyone to enjoy.
After a playing around on bikes in the Coba Ruins, it was finally time to cool off in three cenotes nearby. Brittany’s Adventures does a great job of detailing how to make the fun happen at those.
ELIAS VISUALS 
Great.
Do you have any tips / recs for getting good flight prices? What websites do you use? What made you decide on Tulum? I’m on a photographer’s budget (haha).
Websites like Kayak.com or Fare Hopper can help you find cheaper prices but it seems like certain places aren’t competitive on prices; that is most flights seem to be similarly prices in my opinion unless someone has a flash deal. It totally depends on where you’re flying from and what time of year.
The girlfriend was the primary reason for Tulum and was a bit more expensive than I hoped but luckily having credit card points (Chase Sapphire) built up throughout the year helped with airfare costs.
I’m always on a photographer’s budget. 😉