Tulum with tweens

I'm still here! Thought I'd write about our vacation to Tulum this past week. The kids' school is off for 'fall break,' which includes Dia de los Muertos and our Halloween. Last year, Daddy was in VA, so we stayed put. This year, having learned how strict the school is about absences during the year, I decided to take advantage!

You may have heard that Tulum is either overrun with backpackers or has become the new celebrity hot spot. From our observations, both appeared true. We saw tons of hippies/backpackers and quite a few beautiful and obviously wealthy people who were enjoying the high end hotels. Very few kids, but now that mine are tweens (heaven help me), this wasn't a big deal.

I didn't know much about the area when I booked my hotel, and was a little surprised at the prices. I found a rather affordable hotel, Zamas Hotel, that we adored, but it turns out it is a little cheaper probably because it's not on the main beach. So, if you want to go to that gorgeous white sand/turquoise water beach, you have to get there on foot/taxi and pay to use chairs belonging to another hotel or endure the hot sun (the beach is public). We had a car, and fell into a lovely routine of visiting a cenote or ruins in the morning and then either having lunch in town or at the beach and spending the pm at the beach. It was utterly perfect but might not be for everyone.

Beautiful Zamas Hotel. There are about 4 bungalows right on the beach

Oceanfront chica room sleeps 4, across the street from the beach

Pros of Zamas Hotel: lovely setting, beautiful but rustic rooms, connection with nature, well maintained mosquito nets (how many hotels have I visited where they give you a net, but it is ridden with holes!? Not Zamas!), strong fans in the room, great restaurant, friendly staff, beautiful pool

Cons of Zamas Hotel: not on main beach, no a/c (not an issue this time, as it was cool at night and the fans were great, but I wouldn't stay here in summertime)

For comparison, here are photos of the main Tulum beach. So it's not that the Zamas beach isn't pretty, it's that this is even more gorgeous. This beach goes on for miles. The water was turquoise and the sand white and soft.

We had two wonderful meals on the beach at Ziggy's and Ahau Tulum. It seemed to be normal for the hotels to let you use their day beds/chairs in return for a minimum consumption, but I suspect in high season it's harder to do that. Prices were high ($10-20 for an entree) so I'm not sure I'd want to do this daily, but it was fine for two days. Amazing food!

Tuna tostada at Ziggy's 

beer battered fish tacos at Ziggy's

Grilled fish, pork tacos, hummus and veggies, tuna tostada at Ahau Tulum

Speaking of food, I was obsessed about eating at Hartwood, a restaurant I read about some 5 years ago. They had been closed for two months and reopened the day before we left. We went early and were able to get a table around 6pm. I will admit it was not AS great as I expected, but we had a lovely meal. My favorite was the jicama salad. Forgot to take a pic of the entrees!












And now for a cenote review. We visited four cenotes and from my online research it was hard to tell which were better than others. We really didn't see many creatures in the cenotes, which was disappointing, but we were amazed at the clarity of the water and found the cave atmosphere pretty cool. Luckily, the water was not too frigid, though it was 'refreshing.' We did see some fish, crabs, and small turtles.

Note that you should not wear any sunscreen or lotion unless it's biodegradable. I was worried about sunburn but in the first two, you are not exposed to much sun. At the second two, they are in the open, so we just limited our stay to about an hour or two.

My son, who really fell in love with the cenotes, recommends the four we visited in the following order:

1) Dos Ojos
This is the biggest and most expensive and involves the most caves. For 350 pesos, you can visit two cenotes on your own. If you want to hire a guide and see the third, it will be 600 pesos for the whole package. We just did the basic. This one is well equipped with lockers, restrooms, changing area. Lots of divers around. I didn't get any photos of this one but just google it.

2) El Gran Cenote
I think this one was 200 pesos per person. This is the main swimming area but you can wind around a bit. It's not that big and was a bit crowded when we went on a Sunday. In retrospect, we should have gone on a weekday. The kids liked seeing the turtles here. This one has restrooms, changing area, showers, hammocks for lounging, even a small cafeteria.

3) Cenote Crystal /Escondido (two for the price of one)

Crystal just looks like a big pond, but the kids enjoyed jumping from the platform and it's very peaceful. We heard Escondido is better, but on the day we visited, it was closed. They reduced the 120 peso fee for us to 60 pesos since only one was open, and kids were just 25 pesos I think. 

4) Cenote Manati (follow signs for Casa Cenote)
This cenote is like a lazy river- you just swim for a while and then turn around. There are no caves here - for snorkelers anyway. We saw fish, crabs, and even a small crocodile, which freaked out my husband a bit. This was the most rustic- portapotty only, a few flimsy lockers, no food. I can't remember the cost.

Akumal
We also went to Akumal to see the turtles, and that experience was rather disappointing, but if we hadn't done it, I would have wondered. It was an absolute tourist trap- from the moment you pull into the parking area, people are trying to sell you packages. It was hard to know what/who to believe. We ignored everyone until we got out to the beach and tried to understand how to see the turtles. Due to the incredible tourist volume, they have cordoned off the water access so that you can only see the turtles if you hire a guide and swim/snorkel within a specific path. Each guide is only allowed to take 12 people daily. You must wear a life vest and no fins are allowed due to possibility of hitting the coral.  I believe we spent 300 pesos per person, bargained down from about 500. We stored most of our stuff in the car, but left the key and clothes in a plastic bin (unlocked) watched by the group we chose. It was not ideal, but we chose to believe it would be ok.

When the guide reported to a uniformed Ministry of the Environment worker that she was taking out four people, I finally believed that we had been told the truth about the rules. We did see two big turtles, a barracuda, and a manta ray, but I felt a bit sad about the whole experience and would not do it again. Afterwards, we stayed and swam, but the beach was super crowded (and yet, this was not high season!) and it was a lively scene. Fine for a day, but I'm glad that was not where we were staying.

Imagine this little bit of water with about two hundred more people. I must have taken a shot before it got busy. 

Tulum Ruins
So I'm going to be honest with you- I thought I was interested in seeing the ruins, but really I was all about the beach. I wanted to get that iconic shot of the ruins from the beach, but I was too busy swimming, claiming my tiny spot in the sand among all the tourists, and dealing with my cranky son who just wanted to go to the cenote. The grounds of the ruins are just lovely- you could definitely spend some time here, but we did not...it was straight down to the beach.

Ok we got one ruin pic at least

Seriously, that's the color of the water

Sadly, our vacation came to an end much too soon. We did not visit Xel-Ha, Xcaret, and any other 'manufactured' water park. I thought there was so much natural stuff to see that we had no need!

I loved the beauty of Tulum and the diversity of activities, but I'm not sure if we will go back as a family. I would definitely go for a long weekend where I can just plop myself down on the beach and chill. But I kept thinking about what it would be like in high season- terrible. There is just one long and skinny road that connects everything. It has no pedestrian/bike path and I kept thinking how wonderful it would be if everyone just worked together to build one. Then they could seriously reduce the car volume. It's a bit dangerous to walk down that road with the volume and speed of all the cars/trucks/etc.

I'm sure when Tulum first became popular they did not need sidewalks, but now they do...

Overall, it was a wonderful trip and I hope to go back someday, but not in December or April!

Hong Kong with kids and friends (Part Two- Lamma Island)

On our second day in Hong Kong, we finally fulfilled another goal- hiking in Hong Kong! We followed these instructions and took a ferry to Lamma Island to try the 'Family Trail.' My friend wasn't feeling so well, they were mostly carrying their toddler, and it was really hot at 2pm when we were doing the uphill part, so they may never go hiking with me again, but hopefully they still had fun.

This outing is great in that you take the ferry to one side (Yung Shue Wan), hike for about 1-1.5 hours), finish at an area with a bunch of seafood restaurants (Sok Kwu Wan), have a great lunch/dinner, and take the ferry from that side of the island. I mean, really, that is my kind of hike. You could do it the other way around, too. 

It starts out with an easy walk through the town, where you can stock up on snacks and drinks, and buy a hat or two. It's a cute little town! You keep walking down an easy path and arrive at a lovely beach pretty soon (maybe 20 minutes?). 

The beach is well equipped with nice changing areas/bathrooms and some shady spots. The water was so refreshing!

After an hour at the beach, we headed up the mountain, hugging the shore. This is where it got more intense. It was HOT and quite steep, but luckily, at the top of the mountain, there was a guy selling frozen pineapple and drinks. The view was exquisite. I don't think the uphill part was more than 20-30 minutes, but I could be wrong. 

Then you start going downhill to Sok Kwu Wan village and end up there for lunch. 

I really loved Lamma Island and would like to do this hike again in cooler weather. HK just has so much to offer. 

Hong Kong with kids and friends (Part One)

Over Labor Day weekend, we went to Hong Kong again, this time to meet up with my dear friend who served with me in the Dominican Republic and her family. It was wonderful to see them and their adorable baby! We lucked out with warm, sunny days. This time, we stayed at the Cosmopolitan Hotel,  one of the few hotels I could find that provided 2 queen beds in a room and didn't break the bank. It's about a 10-15 min walk to Causeway Bay MTR station; they also provide shuttles to some major spots. If only they included breakfast I would stay there every time- the room and beds were very comfortable.

After breakfast, we headed to the Peak, one of Hong Kong's top tourist attractions but a place we had never been. It was a long, hot wait in line by the time we arrived, but it was worth it! Again, cool transportation options are key, and we all loved the tram ride up. I didn't realize there would be so much at the top- shopping, food, even a park and playground- and you could easily stay there for hours. What a view! I'd like to come back early in the morning and at dusk and watch the city change.

 During our weekend, we also ate at one of our favorite restaurants, Din Tai Fung, a chain famous for its soup and other dumplings. We have a branch here in Guangzhou and I just love their soup dumpling mascot!

We also saw the daily 8pm light show at Tsim Sha Tsui promenade, which honestly, wasn't anything to write home about. The view is gorgeous at any hour without a bunch of lights trying to shine to the beat!

Macau with kids (Part Two)

If you go to Macau with kids, I highly recommend you spend a few hours at the Guia Fortress, a 17th century colonial military fort, chapel, and lighthouse complex. It's a short cable car ride up to the top, where you can visit a museum and a chapel, take a lovely shaded walk with great views of Macau, and lock your brother in a military jail.

Everyone's excited about the cable car!

The whole crew!

Macau with kids (Part One)

Lately, before I travel anywhere, I google “xx with kids” and find all sorts of helpful advice for traveling to these destinations with school-aged kids. Especially here in China, it’s helpful to get a readout before going. I really want to instill in my kids a love of travel, so I do this research to make sure we hit the best spots. We all get excited about cool transportation options and they are starting to read the guide books and tell me where they want to go. Anyway, I’m going to entitle my travel posts “xx with kids” going forward, so maybe my posts will help someone else.

One thing that appeals to any age, of course, is food. I look up mid-range/budget restaurants that are highly recommended, and I take note of special desserts/treats a place is known for (in Macau, it's the Portuguese egg tart, yum). If that’s not happening, there is usually ice cream or McDonalds somewhere, and it’s amazing how a little treat can turn around an attitude. I want my kids to associate travel with fun, treats, exploration, challenge, and some indulgence. So far, it’s working!

So anyway, Macau with kids. To be honest, during my first year, I wasn’t that excited about visiting Macau, though it’s literally next door. But my husband was, and my brothers couldn’t sit still, so we decided to go for about 36 hours. I am SO glad we did- what a fascinating place!

According to Wikipedia, there are some 600,000 people living in a 11.6 square mile region – plus hundreds of thousands of tourists. It is incredibly densely populated, and we could feel it. It was a bit overwhelming. 

Ginormous train station!

To get to Macau from Guangzhou, there are a few methods, but we took a cab to the Guangzhou South train station, a 60 minute train ride to Zhuhai, and then a walk across the border. It’s not well marked, but we just followed the crowds. Even though Macau is a “special administrative region” of China, you have to go through immigration. We waited in long lines on both the China side and the Macau side. It was a long and complicated ordeal for such a nearby destination, and I would recommend spending more than one night for that reason. The next day was too soon to go through such hassle. I did appreciate understanding everything as soon as we arrived, since written Portuguese is so close to Spanish!

Our hotel 

Anyway…we made it through and found our way to our hotel, Ole Tai Sam Un Hotel. We stayed downtown in a budget/mid-range hotel – we wanted to be near the colonial area and it was a great little hotel in a bustling and really convenient neighborhood. It had a decent breakfast, a great map showing bus routes, and comfortable beds. We couldn’t find a hotel with 2 double/queen beds in the room but this place was willing to add 1 small bed to each room for a small charge.

neighborhood around the hotel

We arrived around lunchtime, and headed immediately out to Senado Square for lunch. I had done my food research and so we ate at a popular place called Wong Chi Kei, famous for its shrimp roe and wonton noodles. The wait around 2:30pm wasn't too bad and we all enjoyed it, though I wasn't crazy about my shrimp roe noodles (I probably don't know what to look for but they were a little too dry/hard for me). We got to look around the beautiful square while waiting. 

Charming Senado Square (Largo do Senado)

We then set off to find the Ruins of St. Paul's Church. We thought it was just a busy Saturday afternoon, and then realized we and thousands of other people were all heading to the same destination. I have to admit, it was pretty cool. But did I mention crowded?

Following the throngs through a narrow passageway of shops, restaurants, and bakeries! So many bakeries!

We stopped to sample egg tarts, cool off with milkshakes, and take photos. It's such a lively, interesting place!

oh, egg tarts, how i love thee

Pretty majestic 

View from the ruins, looking down

My cute little travelers.

After this adventure, we were a little worn out and headed back to the hotel to decompress while my brothers pushed on.