What To Do In Tulum For A Day & The Best Ways To Get Here
Planning A Trip To The Yucatan Peninsula Area Of Mexico And Wondering What To Do In Tulum For A Day?
I’ve visited the Riviera Maya area of Mexico a couple of times, but my last visit to this region included an actual stay in Tulum, and although I enjoyed a few things about my trip, I think Tulum can easily be visited in just a day so here are a few of the best things to see/do and the best ways to get here for a quick day visit.
🏝️ What To Do In Tulum For A Day
⭐️ Overall Options For A Day Trip To Tulum, Mexico:
- 🛕 Most Famous Site – the Tulum Ruins (plenty of tours include the ruins)
- ⛵️ Best Water Activity – beach relaxing or sailing and snorkeling
- 🧑🍳 Best Cultural Activity – Cooking from Scratch tour in a local Tulum home
- 🤟 Best Combo Tour – Tulum Highlights tour with ruins, cenote, and jungle village
- 🚐 Easiest Way To Get Here – guided tours are much easier (and sometimes cheaper) than driving yourself, using public transportation, or getting an Uber
Continue reading for more details on these and a few other options for things to see, do, or eat on a day trip to Tulum, Mexico.
Historical Sites
The most famous historical site in the Yucatan Peninsula is most definitely Chichen Itza, but it’s not the only ancient archeological site you can visit in this region.
The highlight of Tulum, in terms of things to see or do, is definitely the Tulum Ruins (pictured above), which are some of the most famous coastal Mayan ruins. They are no where near as complete as the Chichen Itza site, but because of their location they’re a very popular place to visit.
➡️ I recommend this highly rated Tulum Highlights Tour (which includes the ruins) or this Private Tulum Ruins Tour for the best guided options
Somewhat near to Tulum, you can also see the Coba Ruins (there are a few guided tours here from town) and the Zona Arqueológica de Muyil, plus the famous Chichen Itza site is also located a little bit closer to Tulum than it is to other Riviera Maya/Yucatan vacation towns (like Cancun).
Beach/Water/Outdoor Activities
🏝️ If you’re already staying somewhere close to the beach or plan to spend other travel days at the beach, I wouldn’t say Tulum beaches are a must, but a lot of tours include some beach, snorkeling, or sailing activities, plus a view of the ruins from the ocean would be pretty cool.
🏊 Being that Tulum is a more rural destination with a lot of still undeveloped jungle, there are quite a few cenotes nearby that you could visit on your own, or on a guided tour, like with this Cancun Adventures option or this Alex In Tulum Transfers & Tours option.
🐎 A lot of the resorts in the Riviera Maya and Cancun areas offer adventure type activities, and although they can often be pretty touristy, this option with horseback riding, an ATV ride, a zipline, and a cenote is highly rated so you might enjoy this kind of jungle adventure during your trip.
➡️ Can’t decide what to wear for a trip to the Riviera Maya, and Tulum in particular? here’s a list of some things to pack for a trip to Tulum to help you out
Places To Eat
One of my biggest reasons for visiting Tulum, Mexico was that there were a number of organic and healthier kinds of places to eat (the only kinds of places I can usually eat out at).
Unfortunately businesses in Mexico don’t always last or sometimes they are shut down for a short time, but two places that I ate at and loved that are still around are Burrito Amor (pictured above) and Olivia Organic Market (I got the wings and loved them).
There are plenty of other restaurants and fancier club-type restaurants around Tulum, but be aware that those latter kinds of restaurants can be a bit sketchy (like you go to use the bathroom and are bombarded/offered a number of substances), so I personally wouldn’t visit them again.
Also, a cool cultural activity you can do here is this cooking from scratch tour in a locals home where afterwards you get to eat what you’ve made with your hosts.
🚗 How To Get To Tulum
Tulum is one of the furthest south vacation towns in the Riviera Maya area so it’s not the simplest place to get to (nor is it super easy to get around), but it is a popular place to visit so there are a few different options for getting here.
On Your Own
Renting a car is fairly popular in Cancun, especially if you plan to explore more of the Yucatan area, but it’s not something I would highly recommend after experiencing it myself and not loving the road conditions, car qualities, police targeting, rental company overcharges, and gas station scams.
It is the most convenient option to go where you want when you want, but I wouldn’t personally do it again here.
On A Tour
The most stress-free option to get from Cancun or especially from Playa del Carmen to Tulum is on a guided tour. They usually include multiple stops, are pretty reasonably priced, and keep you from having to deal with directions, driving with these road conditions, or parking, so it can definitely be worth the touristy-ness.
➡️ Trying To Decide Between Staying In Cancun vs Tulum? here is a comparison between these two to help you out
Using Public Transportation
Although public transportation is not always the best everywhere in Mexico, there are busses that run all over the Riviera Maya area and they can be ok and very cheap. It won’t be the quickest or most convenient option, but it is the most budget-friendly.
Taxis/Ride Shares
Uber is generally safer, but Uber and taxi drivers have had some serious issues in this part of Mexico, so even Uber is not always super safe in this Cancun area.
Although Uber technically “exists” in Tulum (at least on their website), there really aren’t Uber drivers in Tulum so you might be able to get here from Cancun, but you likely won’t find any rides leaving out of Tulum.
Taxis aren’t usually very safe in Mexico but sometimes they are necessary, so if you have to use one, make sure to get an official certified taxi and don’t hail them off the street.
➡️ Wondering If Tulum Is Even Worth Visiting Or If There Are Better Places To Visit In Mexico? here is a comparison between Tulum and Cabo San Lucas, and between Cancun and Cabo San Lucas to help you decide
📆 Is One Day Enough In Tulum?
Although I spent a few days here, I think that it can easily be visited in just a day, so if you want to see the town but don’t want to stay overnight it’s definitely possible.
But if you want to only stay in this town for your Riviera Maya vacation, then I think about 3 or 4 days is plenty to visit some of the historical sites, go to the beach, and see the town.
➡️ Wondering Whether Or Not You Should Stay In An Airbnb In Tulum? here is a guide with some personal experiences I’ve had here with Airbnb and some alternatives you might want to consider
🔁 Sum Up: What To Do In Tulum For A Day
Although Tulum is a popular place to stay in the Riviera Maya area of Mexico, since there are just a few sites to see here (like the ruins, some cenotes, and the beach), I think it can definitely be visited in just a day, especially since there are a number of guided tours available (from Cancun and especially from Playa del Carmen) that will allow you to see all of the best parts of this Yucatan town.
