Riviera Maya and Cancun diaries: Toddler calls it home!

Kids look forward to birthdays, and when its a week of celebration with sun, beach and sand, its’ likely they’ll never want the celebration to end. Last year for Thanksgiving, we planned a trip to Cancun to celebrate N’s second birthday. After our week long trip in the Mayan Riviera, when we were packing bags to head back, my toddler tells me ‘I like this home, I don’t want to go back to the other home! Can we stay here?’ I told him we will be back when he grows up a little, but it was a trip he talked about for a long time after coming back. And going back to day care after the vacation was not easy. I don’t remember him calling any other vacation spot that we’ve been to as ‘home’ so I have a feeling he had a blast!

We decided to stay in Riviera Maya over Cancun because of its proximity to few of the attractions we had planned for our trip. Here are highlights from our trip – things that we were able to do with a 2 year old in Mayan Riviera.

Private tour to Chichén Itzá, Valladolid and Ik Kil Cenote: We opted for the private tour to Chichen Itza over guided group tours, since its a 2 hour drive from the resort area and it definitely makes sense to go there early to avoid the crowds and pick your stops, especially when you have a toddler with you. This option also gives you a chance of stopping for tequila tasting that most guided tours don’t offer. Within Chichen Itza, we decided to stick to a route and missed out on going all the way to the Sacred Cenote, but were able to cover a lot of the ruins. The trails are stroller friendly and that was a huge help :). The town of Valladolid is vibrant and reminded us of the streets of Old San Juan in Puerto Rico! We did go to the Ik Kil Cenote but it was quite deep and decided against jumping in with our 2 year old. But if you are traveling without kids, its a great way to cool of the humidity. We saw several folks diving in!

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Dolphin Interaction: There are plenty of eco-parks in the area including Xel-Ha which offer activities for older kids, but we opted to visit the Dolphin discovery center at our resort for an interactive tour since its more suitable for younger kids. My son really enjoyed his encounter with Plata – the dolphin. He was hesitant at first but then did not want to come out of the water.

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Mayan Ruins of Tulum: A trip to the Mayan Riviera is not complete without a visit to the ruins in Tulum, so we opted for a half day group tour of Tulum since it was only 30 minutes from our resort. The beach at Tulum is one of the best! Though we didn’t carry a hiking carrier with us so were not able to explore the entire area within the allocated tour time! If there’s an option drive there instead of the tour so you can explore as well as spend quality time at the beach.

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Sand castles and serenity of white sand beaches: Nothing excites my 2.5 year old more than a sand pit, so the resort’s beach was a perfect way for us to relax at the beach while he immersed himself in the sand.

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Pool fun, especially if you have a water baby like mine :): I can see why staying at all inclusive resorts is a great idea after you have a baby.  With more than 5 pools with plenty of kiddie areas and water slides, we couldn’t get enough of pool fun! Seriously, if we had an extra day or 2 there, I would have opted to have him in the pool rather than going any place else because being in the pool brings out a mile wide smile on his face every single time he splashes in the pool!!!

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And much, much more: Carousels, shopping, eating, kids club, vibrant statues and Christmas decorations – These were all part of our trip but my memory fades! Looking at the pictures makes me feel very nostalgic 🙂

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What we saved for a later trip: We got great valuable input from the resort staff and they suggested saving XCaret, Xplor, snorkeling at Akumal and Coba ruins for a later trip since those are more suitable for slightly older kids, especially if you want to enjoy majority of the attractions.

I know the kiddo is not going to remember his second birthday blast except for the pictures and videos, but it was a good one! M and I will surely cherish it :).

Tahiti and her islands: Exotic French Polynesia

Words cannot do full justice to a place that is apt to be called a paradise on earth and that was the reason I initially did not want to blog about Tahiti and her islands. But, since this is post number 25 and almost a year since I have been blogging, I had to make my silver jubilee post special! Be it the brilliant turquoise lagoons, the colorful marine life and corals, the lush green mountains as a backdrop, or its untouched beauty, the exquisite islands of Tahiti are truly enchanting and magical. So, what better topic than this for my 25th post :). I have been asked by quite a few folks as to how we planned this South Pacific island vacation, so hopefully this post will answer at least the basic questions pertaining to your idyllic Tahiti getaway.

Which islands to visit: There are a lot of islands in French Polynesia (118 in all), but most tourists visit the islands of Moorea and/or Bora Bora along with the main island of Tahiti. You could take a ferry to Moorea from Tahiti or take an inter-island flight. Bora Bora is a little far away from Tahiti, so an inter-island flight saves a lot of time.

First glimpses of Moorea

TAHITI
All international flights fly to Papeete (Tahiti), so you definitely have to visit the main island and spend one night there, if not more since most flights land at night-time. I won’t elaborate but while you are in Tahiti, some of the things that you could do apart from spending time at the resort are:

• A circle island tour that will take you to the only black sand beach in Tahiti, the famous Vaimahuta waterfalls, a tropical garden and caves of Mata Va’a. This works out best if you are not planning to rent a car.
• Visit the Robert Wan Pearl Museum. Tahiti is famous for black pearls and if you are looking for a souvenir, what better than a black pearl
• Take a Le Truck (public transport bus) from your resort to the public market and visit the public market to shop for Faara bags and Pareo (Traditional Tahitian dress for females)

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MOOREA
Only a 30 minute ferry ride from Tahiti, the island of Moorea has one of the nicest lagoons among the Tahitian islands. So if you are not visiting Bora Bora, Moorea would be your next best bet to explore the blue lagoons and its marine life in the French Polynesia. Things that you could do while vacationing at Moorea:

• A lagoon excursion for shark and manta ray feeding. Don’t freak out, there are no killer sharks in the calm waters of Tahiti. And you’ll surely spot lots of dolphins on your excursion.
• Snorkel and enjoy a picnic at a private island (called a motu). Snorkeling at a lagoon is much more easier and fun than snorkeling in the ocean.
• Take an ATV Quad tour that would take you to some of the most amazing vistas including Belvedere point, Mt. Rotui, Magic Mountain View point.
• Check out the pineapple plantations. Moorea is the ONLY island where these plantations are found and they make and sell pineapple wine.
• Rent a car and drive around the island. Moorea has some great public beaches that are not to miss. Cook’s bay and Oponohu bay in Moorea are home to few of the prettiest beaches in the world. The south side of the island has no resorts and hotels so it is even more serene there.

How to get to the Tahitian islands: Air France and Air Tahiti Nui fly from Los Angeles to Papeete (Tahiti’s capital). I am not completely sure of flight options outside the US, but there are flights from Paris, Tokyo and cities in Australia and New Zealand. We flew Air Tahiti Nui – French Polynesia’s flag carrier airline.

Mt. Rotui - Moorea

Currency used: French Pacific Franc (XPF) is the currency used around the islands. Make sure to take local currency cash if you are planning to shop or eat at the local market and for tipping. Finding ATMs can be difficult.

Visa Requirements: Depends on your nationality and French Polynesia visa requirements are different from France so it is best to check with a French Consulate. For Indian citizens, a short stay Schengen visa is required to travel to Tahiti and her islands. There’s a French Consulate in San Francisco, so it worked out well for us. It is advisable to apply for a visa 2-3 months in advance. You do require confirmed flight tickets as well as hotel reservations to obtain a tourist visa, so everything needs to be ready before you start filling out the visa forms.

There is much much more to Tahiti and her islands apart from breath-taking scenery, spectacular landscapes and emerald/blue lagoons. Glimpses of Tahiti are memories that I am going to cherish for a lifetime! And yippeee…25 posts in a year now 🙂 🙂 🙂