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The beach below the walled Maya site of Tulum, looking north along the cliff
A small tour boat crossing a lagoon edged with mangroves in the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve
The steep stepped pyramid of Nohoch Mul at Cobá, above the forest canopy
El Castillo, the tall temple pyramid of the Maya site of Muyil, rising from the forest
A green sea turtle swimming over the seabed off Akumal

Things to do in Tulum: 8 experiences

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Photo: FeldBum, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve

Cross the Sian Ka'an lagoons by boat to Punta Allen

Check dates and prices

Photo: Tschips, CC BY-SA 3.0

Cobá

Cycle the jungle paths of Cobá to Nohoch Mul

Check dates and prices

Photo: dronepicr, CC BY 2.0

Muyil, Chunyaxché

Walk Muyil's ruins, then float down the old Maya canal

Check dates and prices

Photo: Dennis G. Jarvis, CC BY-SA 2.0

Akumal

Snorkel with green turtles in Akumal Bay

Check dates and prices

Photo: Serge Melki, CC BY 2.0

Tulum is three places that share a name: the walled Maya port on its cliff, the town on Highway 307 where the buses stop, and the beach road of hotels and beach clubs that runs south towards Sian Ka'an. The Mexico page already covers the ruins. This page is about what surrounds them.

The ground here is limestone full of holes, and inland the cenotes are the reason to stay a few days: the Gran Cenote and Calavera on the road to Cobá, Dos Ojos to the north, Casa Cenote where fresh water meets the sea. South of town the Sian Ka'an reserve starts at the Mayan Arch, with Muyil and its canal on its inland edge. Cobá, the other great Maya city of the area, is 45 minutes inland.

8 things to do in Tulum

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A small tour boat crossing a lagoon edged with mangroves in the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve

Cross the Sian Ka'an lagoons by boat to Punta Allen

Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve

A full dayBook ahead

South of Tulum the beach road enters a huge reserve of lagoons, mangroves and reef, with one fishing village at its end.

Check dates and pricesDay trip by van and boat to Punta Allen
Been there?
El Castillo, the tall temple pyramid of the Maya site of Muyil, rising from the forest

Walk Muyil's ruins, then float down the old Maya canal

Muyil, Chunyaxché

Half a dayGo alone or with a tour

A Maya town older than Tulum on the edge of Sian Ka'an, with a canal you drift down in a life jacket.

Check dates and pricesMuyil ruins and a float down the Sian Ka'an canal
Been there?
The steep stepped pyramid of Nohoch Mul at Cobá, above the forest canopy

Cycle the jungle paths of Cobá to Nohoch Mul

Cobá

3 to 4 hours, plus 45 minutes each wayGo alone or with a tour

A Maya city spread through the forest between lakes, linked to its neighbours by raised white roads and crossed today by bicycle.

Check dates and pricesCobá ruins with a cenote swim and lunch
Been there?
A turtle swimming in the clear water of the Gran Cenote near Tulum

Snorkel the clear caverns of the Gran Cenote

Highway 109, Tulum

1.5 to 2 hoursNo booking needed

A cave cenote a short ride from town, where you snorkel between open pools and lit caverns over a white limestone floor.

Tours in Tulum
Been there?
Light falling into the turquoise water of Cenote Dos Ojos under its cave ceiling

Snorkel or dive the twin caverns of Dos Ojos

Dos Ojos, Highway 307

2 to 3 hoursNo booking needed

Two linked cenotes, the 'two eyes', open into one of the world's longest underwater cave systems north of Tulum.

Tours in Tulum
Been there?
A green sea turtle swimming over the seabed off Akumal

Snorkel with green turtles in Akumal Bay

Akumal

Half a dayGo alone or with a tour

Green turtles graze the seagrass of a shallow bay half an hour north of Tulum, a few metres from the beach.

Check dates and pricesSmall-group turtle swim with two cenotes
Been there?
The three openings of Cenote Calavera seen from above, among the jungle near Tulum

Ride a bicycle to the cenotes Calavera, Cristal and Escondido

West of Tulum town

Half a day by bicycleNo booking needed

Three small cenotes on the edge of town, close enough to reach by bicycle and made for jumping in rather than looking at.

Been there?
Aerial view of the mangrove-lined Casa Cenote channel a short distance from the sea at Tankah

Swim the mangrove cenote that flows into the sea at Tankah

Tankah Bay

2 to 3 hoursNo booking needed

A long open cenote among mangroves behind Tankah beach, whose fresh water runs underground and bubbles up in the sea.

Tours in Tulum
Been there?

Traveller picks

Hidden gems suggested by travellers. We check each one before it goes up; the words are theirs, not ours.

No traveller picks for Tulum yet. Know a place most visitors miss?

Plan your trip

  • Getting there

    ADO buses run from Cancún, both downtown and the airport, in about two hours, and from Playa del Carmen more often; colectivo vans also leave Playa del Carmen every fifteen minutes or so. Tulum's own international airport opened in December 2023, about 45 minutes from town, and has a Tren Maya station with trains to Cancún, Chichén Itzá, Mérida and Bacalar.

  • Getting around

    A bicycle covers the town, the beach road and the nearby cenotes on flat ground. Colectivos run along Highway 307 to Akumal and Playa del Carmen, and buses go to Cobá. For Sian Ka'an and Punta Allen you need a sturdy car or a tour.

  • How many days

    In must30's view, four: one for the ruins and a cenote, one for Cobá, one for Sian Ka'an or Muyil, and one for Akumal and Dos Ojos. Add a day if you want Punta Allen by car rather than on a tour.

  • When to go

    December to April is dry and best for the lagoons and the dirt road south. It is hot and humid all year; June to November is the rainy and hurricane season, when the Punta Allen road floods. Sargassum can reach the beaches between spring and autumn.

  • Where to base yourself

    The town is cheaper, close to the bus terminal and the road to the cenotes. The beach road is for being on the sand, but it is more expensive and further from everything else.

Questions travellers ask

Can you visit Sian Ka'an without a tour?

Yes. Drive the beach road south through the Mayan Arch, pay the reserve fee, and follow 45 km of dirt road to Punta Allen, where you hire a boat. It takes about three hours each way, and in the rainy season a 4x4 is safer. The easier way in is Chunyaxché, on Highway 307, where boats leave for the Muyil canal.

Can you climb the pyramid at Cobá?

No. Climbing the pyramids, Nohoch Mul included, has been banned since 2020. You can still cycle or walk to its base and see the rest of the site.

How do I get from Tulum to Cobá?

It is about 45 minutes by car on Highway 109, or about an hour by ADO or Oriente bus from the town terminal. Buses back leave in the afternoon, so check the last one.

Which cenote near Tulum is best for snorkelling?

The Gran Cenote and Dos Ojos, both clear cave cenotes with caverns to look into. Calavera, Cristal and Escondido are better for jumping in and swimming.

More places in this region

Things to do in Mexico

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