How many days do you need in Cancun & Riviera Maya?
Five days. That is the length of the itinerary we built for Cancun & Riviera Maya.
Here is what each day holds. Every stop below carries its time, and every gap says how to get to the next stop, with the walk or drive time wherever both stops are mapped.
Cancun & Riviera Maya · 5 days Mexico
Best time: December to April is dry and perfect.
Arrive and Hotel Zone beachDay 1
🌳12:00 PMCheck in and beach
Playa Delfines is the free public stretch with the CANCUN sign.
🚌 Bus or walk
🌇5:00 PMLagoon side sunset
The lagoon bars catch the sunset the beach side misses.
🚌 Bus or walk
📍8:00 PMDowntown tacos
Parque de las Palapas stalls, where the city actually eats.
Chichen Itza dayDay 2
📍7:00 AMEarly drive to Chichen Itza
Beat the heat and the buses; the equinox serpent shadow is famous for a reason.
🚶 ~39 min · 🚗 ~5 min · 1.5 mi
📍12:30 PMCenote Ik Kil swim
Vine-draped sinkhole minutes from the ruins; life jackets included.
🚗 ~83 min · 24 mi
🌆3:00 PMValladolid stroll
Pastel colonial streets and marquesitas on the plaza before driving back.
Isla MujeresDay 3
⛴️9:00 AMFerry from Puerto Juarez
Twenty minutes across; rent a golf cart on arrival.
🚗 ~23 min · 6.6 mi
📍11:00 AMPlaya Norte
Waist-deep turquoise for hundreds of meters; the best swim beach in the region.
🚗 ~18 min · 5.2 mi
📍3:00 PMPunta Sur cliffs
Temple ruins and iguanas at the island’s wave-carved tip.
Tulum and cenotesDay 4
📍8:00 AMTulum ruins
A walled Maya city on a cliff over the Caribbean; go at opening.
🚗 ~11 min · 3.2 mi
📍11:30 AMGran Cenote or Dos Ojos
Snorkel between stalactites; turtles glide under you at Gran.
🚗 ~9 min · 2.4 mi
🍽️3:00 PMTulum pueblo lunch
Antojitos in town cost a third of the beach-road prices.
Slow morning and marketDay 5
🌳9:00 AMLast beach swim
Morning water is calmest; get the swim in before checkout math.
🚌 Bus or walk
📍11:30 AMMercado 28 souvenirs
Haggle kindly: start at half, land around two-thirds.
🚗 ~32 min · 9.2 mi
📍2:00 PMAirport with ceviche first
One last lime-soaked plate before the flight home.
This is how Petrel lays out a trip. Upload your own confirmations and it builds this for your dates: flights and hotels included, with live flight status and the travel time between stops.
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