I'm packing!

[ajm47]

Hi All!

Thanks for all the wonderful information to be had from this forum!

We are leaving Wednesday to stay 7 nights!

One snorkel question::shark:
We are going to get gear here and bring it along. The sacrifice in backpack space seems like it is worth the flexibility once we are there. My question is what do people do with any 'other stuff' when you are out snorkeling in a cenote or the ocean? Is it okay to leave a bag at the water's edge?

One transportation question::trafficlight:
As we've never been to Mexico before, we prefer to ride rather than drive. We're planning on taking the bus down from Cancun. For day trips, we would like to go to Coba and Chichen Itza. It looks like we can take the bus to both, as long as we are willing to give transport a bit of extra time. We would also be up for renting a car for a day or two if that would make life much easier. Would renting a car let us combine the ruin trips with cenote trips in a way that buses would not allow for? Any thoughts?

One margarita question::margarita:
Who makes the best one on the beach?

Thank you for any advice! Can't wait for that sunshine!:)

-ajm

[kcaraco]

I can't answer any question other than the rental car, but I would definitely encourage the car for your plan of a day or two. You'll be able to amble along and stop wherever your spirit moves you, plus you can come and go anytime you please, instead of being on the bus's schedule. If you plan on visiting any ruins, this will come in mighty handy, as you will be able to arrive before the busses get there and the place is overrun with people.

PS We have always rented from Hertz and feel very satisfied with their cars and service and will probably rent from them again this year. Gotta remind DH to do that tonight!

Have a spectacular trip!

Cheers,
Kathy

[kcaraco]

Actually, I can answer one other question you had. I assume you are a twosome traveling together, and leaving your stuff while you snorkel is a hard one. I guess the best advice I can give you is not to leave anything you cannot afford to lose. We have always traveled in a group of at least 3, whereby 2 of us would snorkel whilst one would guard belongings. Another reason why a car is a good idea. Lock your stuff in the trunk, not in the car, and you should be fine, just be careful not to let anybody see you stash your stuff in there. DH puts our stuff in the trunk before we ever leave the hotel. So, when we get to wherever we're going, we just jump out of the car, and away we go!

Cheers,
Kathy

[Lynnette]

I would not leave a bag at water's edge...that would be an open invitation for theft. You couldn't get to it fast enough from the water, anyway. We take as little as possible when we snorkel. There was a discussion on this topic a few pages back. http://www.tulum.info/showthread.php?t=1895

I would definitely rent a car. You will enjoy the freedom to explore that it provides! We've rented from a lot of different rental companies, but we prefer the local ones. We've had our best experience with Easyway!!

The best margarita at a beach restaurant is so subjective. I like mine on the sweeter side and my hubby likes a lot of tequila in his. We usually have our happy hour on the beach before we go out, making our own with fresh limes, Gran Centenario, Controy & sugar water...YUM!!. Those are the best on the beach IMHO. :).

[beachreader]

How much "other stuff" will you be bringing to the beach? If you have a waterproof camera, you'll have that with you, and if the rest of it is just money, you can easily get a waterproof wallet or something similar and carry that with you too. I have a very flat waist pack thing that's waterproof. I think I got it from Travelsmith, and I bought it when I was going to Puerto Rico and was warned that beach theft is very common there. I needed my cell phone with me because I was expecting an important call, so I put the cell phone and all my money in this waist thingie when I went swimming and it really worked.

Everything else in my bag was just stuff like a towel, hat, book, sunblock, none of which would kill my vacation if it were taken.

[DougSR]

I just purchased a new snorkel bag this morning...

http://www.scubatoys.com/store/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=Akona_Snorkelbag

If I it "walks off" I'll be bummed but it's not that big of a deal. All of the places I'm staying are on the water so I won't bring anything else that will have to stay behind on the beach except maybe some pesos which I will put in my board short pocket.

As far as margs...there are a few posts on this topic. Check this one out.

http://www.tulum.info/showthread.php?t=1669&highlight=margarita

[mayaflya]

We were real happy with the locking backpack we bought before our trip:

http://www.tulum.info/showpost.php?p=19154&postcount=8

We took it to Yal Ku, and I locked up my DSLR camera and other gear in it, looping the cable around a tree...we also used it in our room for securing camera gear when we were out...

I also used it as a carry-on on the plane...they count a daypack as a personal item, so you can take that as well as another bag.

[ajm47]

Thanks! Thanks! Will give a quick report late next week!

[Lynnette]

We were real happy with the locking backpack we bought before our trip:

http://www.tulum.info/showpost.php?p=19154&postcount=8

We took it to Yal Ku, and I locked up my DSLR camera and other gear in it, looping the cable around a tree...we also used it in our room for securing camera gear when we were out...

I also used it as a carry-on on the plane...they count a daypack as a personal item, so you can take that as well as another bag.

I hadn't thought about a locking backpack...good idea. Is the cable heavy enough to be "cut proof"?

[mayaflya]

I hadn't thought about a locking backpack...good idea. Is the cable heavy enough to be "cut proof"?

The cable is braided stainless steel, about 1/8" dia. You could probably cut it with the right tools...but it's meant more to keep someone from walking off with the bag. The locking section is a steel mesh reinforced bag with a "drawstring" closure that velcros into the main backpack. The cable is the drawstring and it has a clever clip that the cable passes through to hold the bag shut, and then the free end can be looped around any secure object and back to the clip, where it is secured by a small padlock. You can remove this secure bag from the pack and use it by itself as a portable "safe".

The backpack itself has snap clips that you can secure the various zippers to keep someone from easily opening the pack in a crowd for example. The backpack straps are reinforced with steel cables to prevent slash and run theft. The instructions suggest sticking your chair leg thru the strap if you take the pack off in a restaurant or other crowded place. It is a pretty normal looking backpack, with some very serious, well constructed features...I was impressed. You have an enhanced level of security without looking like a Brinks truck.

When we were snorkeling I just carried the pack key on a lanyard around my neck. I pulled the steel reinforced section out of the pack and put it in my checked luggage when we flew, mostly because I didn't want to raise any eyebrows at the security checkpoint....although I'm sure it would have been fine...

The only problem I had was getting on the plane wearing the pack I turned the corner too sharp and I knocked a stewardess into the cockpit...too be fair she was really pretty skinny, but I didn't even feel the impact...that's a solid piece of luggage!