Central America Adventure Holiday (with Boring Ruins)

7hours 44min ago on 13/07/2015 - 15:49
Last edited 13/07/2015 - 15:50

My gf and I are planning to spend a month in Central America in November and wanted to check if anyone has some tips to get the best bang for my buck.

So far all I have is the flights into LAX booked on either side of November this year.

Would like to see Mexico, Cuba and maybe Guatemala.

Has anyone got any tips on

  • Cheapest way to travel around the area and what is the best order of cities to travel around. So far I figure I go fly from LAX to Mex City, bus it across to Cancun exploring Mexico, fly to Havana and then somehow get back to LAX. I did a test run through skyscanner and came up with about AUD$900 each worth of internal flights.
  • Do I use a US VPN with USD to book to get a better price or should I just book from Australia like a normal person?
  • I’m 2m tall so would prefer minimal time sitting down as I probably won’t fit anywhere.
  • We love getting off the beaten track (the missus is tiny and blonde so can’t get too off the track for safety reasons I guess).
  • Would love to see more of Central America but, as mentioned, don’t want to be actually travelling the whole time and we only have 26 days.
  • I’m probably going to be using hostels, Airbnb and Last Minute Travel Club for accomm.

Don’t really have a budget, I just don’t like paying more than I need to and we have simple taste so pretty easy to keep it cheap.
She wants to see all the picturesque stuff like the ruins and I want to have an adventure and jump off cliffs.

Any ideas?

Travel

Comments

  • nocure on 13/07/2015 - 16:08
    +3

    Don’t really have a budget

    Room for one more?

    • 7hours 44min ago on 13/07/2015 - 16:27
      +2

      Haha, I knew someone would pick up on that. The way I see it, I spend so much time saving money when I'm living day to day, when I travel I should splurge a bit and make it all worth it.

      Save to live, not live to save!

  • RockyRaccoon on 13/07/2015 - 16:44
    +1

    There are a lot of ruins around the Cancun area. Cancun itself is a beachside tourist resort. For ruins there is Chizen Itza and the rest of the Yucatan peninsula which frankly given you also want to go to Cuba, and maybe would be enough to visit for a week or so.

    Mexico City is large and a distance from Cancun. Personally given you want to go to Cuba, which would be an adventure as well, then maybe Guatemala, this might too much. Skipping Mexico City might be wise.

    Biggest issue with travelling is trying to cover too much territory and not taking time to enjoy whats in front of you. Massive pictures and a travelogue for friends isnt the real idea of a trip.

    Getting around in Central America is fun, but dont expect Japanese type scheduling. Mañana is very apt.

    Also when flying, picking a central base to fly in and out of maybe smarter and cheaper than many 1 way flights

    eg
    LAX - Cancun and return
    Cancun - Cuba and Return
    Cancun - Guatemala Return

    ( see LP for insights) https://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/forums/americas-centr…

    • zappy32 on 13/07/2015 - 19:29
      +1

      I enjoyed Mexico city but not nearly as much as Havana. I think you could probably do them both but not sure I'd bother with the bus from Mexico City to Cancun, you can fly quite cheaply and then travel around the Yucatan peninsula easily by bus.

      Cancun in just a big seaside tourist resort full of mostly Americans, if you're just after a relaxing stop at a beach resort it's fine but it's not really beautiful at all. I stayed at Playa Del Carmen which was meant to be a little less trashy and more European but it was still essentially just a big tourist resort without a particularly nice beach. I really enjoyed Isla Mujeres and would definitely recommend it over both of these or if you want to relax on a beach then head further south to Tulum.

      In Cuba I booked a casa in Havana through http://www.cubaccommodation.com/ which was painless and it was a really nice room, the only thing is the owner didn't speak English but sometimes her children or a booking agent would be there if we needed to know anything. Also stayed in an all inclusive resort there for a few days which I wouldn't bother with again, you'd find better value in Mexico for that sort of thing although you do avoid the American tourists in Cuba.

  • hellbound on 13/07/2015 - 16:49
    +1

    Not sure catching a bus from Mexico City would be the best idea from a safety standpoint. A few years ago me and some mates did something similar, flew from mexico city to cancnun, hired a jeep and drove around Yucatan for a few weeks. Lots of cool Mayan ruins to see, hidden waterfalls, etc and you can take your time.
    You can get cheap accommodation in the towns for around $30 a night with aircon.

    • 7hours 44min ago on 03/09/2015 - 21:22

      Hey mate,
      Can I ask a huge favour and ask for a bit more info on your Yucatan adventure? Sounds like just what I want to do. Hoping to get some destinations, accomm suggestions and hire car advice. We are planning on leaving Cancun and spending a couple of nights in Isla Mujeres and then getting a car from Cancun and driving down to Tulum. Would love to get your advice on how to make the most of the Yucatan area though. Thanks.

  • retiredfeline on 13/07/2015 - 17:21

    with boring ruins

    Hey that's not nice to fellow tour participants. :)

    • anth0888 on 06/08/2015 - 15:40

      Boring ruins!?! I guess it's a matter of opinion, but they're more intriguing than you think. Suggest a guided tour and maybe that will put the 'ruins' into context ;)

  • fedwood on 13/07/2015 - 19:55
    +1

    Did something similar last year. Used ITA Matrix to find good flight combo to Dallas and onwards to Cancun. From there we went to Cuba for a week and a bit on a tour, we used www.cubagrouptour.com its a company from Sydney, would recommend. Also we bought our flights direct with Cubana, bit fiddly but you can make it happen. http://www.cubana.cu/home/?lang=en

  • brisbanegirl on 14/07/2015 - 09:11
    +2

    Close to Cancun is a place called Tulum they have a water park or something similar (been a few years) it was the most amazing place and the 2 hour (Mayan) evening show is worth every dollar of the entry fee.
    We arrived early afternoon not knowing what to expect, big mistake, should have arrived in the morning with our swimmers and enjoyed the day.
    Found it easy to get around the Cancun area and drive to Chizen Itza etc. with a hire car. As Zappa stated Cancun is little America and next time we would stay in Playa del Carmen (way nicer area)

  • 7hours 44min ago on 14/07/2015 - 15:15

    Thanks for all the suggestions, have taken them all on board and will likely change our plans accordingly! I will put it to her to spend less/no time in Mex City and more time in the area around Cancun.

  • Donaldhump on 21/07/2015 - 00:53

    please dont fly cubana airlines…

    i flew from panama to havana

    also if ur interested in a cruise around cuba look at cuba cruise, is awesome

    guatamala is good i flew a domestic flight from antigua to tikal to save time, and was cheap on taca airlines

  • Donaldhump on 21/07/2015 - 00:55

    cubana airlines fly old pieces of russian shit, and cut engines mid flight to save fuel.

  • fedwood on 21/07/2015 - 08:15
    +1

    They fly Airbus 320s between Havana and Cancun

    • zappy32 on 06/08/2015 - 22:18

      Yeah, the A320s on international flights are fine, I flew with them Havana-Toronto and it was better than most American airlines bar the "sandwich" and "snack" they served. It's probably a good introduction to Cuban food actually. Here's a tip - take some hot sauce from Mexico or anything that can add some flavour!

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