By Shane Melenko
Well it was that time of the year again, too much snow and bad weather, time to pick a warmer location to enjoy a week of kiteboarding. This time around I went to the Caribbean side of Mexico and stayed in Cancun. There are two great areas to stay. First is Cancun itself or you can go a little south and stay in Playa del Carmen. I managed to book 2 months in advance and traveled to an all inclusive resort for around 1200.00 CDN everything included. The hotel chain that I prefer to stay at in Mexico is always the Riu family of hotels. They are always of great quality and have the best staff. But there are lots to choose from and they will all do the job.
The flight from Vancouver is about 6hrs direct flight and you arrive around 3pm local time. The hotels are about an hours drive from the airport for either Cancun or Playa del Carmen and the all inclusive packages usually have transportation waiting for you at the airport.
Kiteboarding In & Around Cancun
I hooked up with local instructors from
Ikarus Kiteboarding as they have two great locations. The first is just north of Cancun (Isla Blanca) and the second just south in Playa del Carmen, about 45 minutes from Cancun. The drive to Isla Blanca is about an hour from the hotel row in Cancun and is very simple to get to. Simply turn on to Bonampak Ave and head north until the road ends. When you get to the round about at the end of the road you will see a gravel road to your left. Follow the road for 7 KM and a couple turns and you will arrive at their property. You can rent a car in Cancun for $15.00USD a day and do the drive yourself or take a cab. Driving in Cancun can be a bit of an adventure but luckily you will be bypassing most of the congested area and then it is all open road. You should be able to get a cab for around $30.00USD, the cabbies will always start with a much higher price but make sure you negotiate a price before you leave. Taking a cab does make it difficult to get back as there are no cabs hanging around, so make sure you make a time for the cab driver to pick you back up and return you to your hotel.
There is a small house and a hut set back on the property and not much else. The location does have a shower and facilities but you will want to make sure you pack a lunch and something to drink. The setup and launch area are very nice with clean sand and very few obstacles to be concerned about. There is lots of room to set up kites and run lines. The water is a sheltered inlet and there are miles and miles of water that is only 4 feet deep. This is a great place to take lessons or just ride and practice your tricks. The water was very clean and free of coral and weeds with soft sand for a base. If anything does go wrong it might be a long walk back to shore but not a difficult one. There is a charge of $5.00 USD a day for use of the area to help pay for upgrades and maintenance. The instructors are very friendly and helpful, they do have a rescue boat if you happen to go out beyond the shallow water and require help. I rode for several hours and found the wind to be very solid. You will need to get out a little from shore to get clean wind depending on the direction. The best winds for this location are from the north.
If you are looking for more of a surf ride you can check out their other school that is in Playa del Carmen. Located on the gulf side of Mexico it has great conditions with the option of surf riding or shallow areas for riders of all experience levels. Lots of nice clean sand to setup kites. The winds here are great from the south and east. There are lots of all inclusive resorts located around this area and is not difficult to find great accommodations within walking distance or a quick cab ride.
The school is fully set up for lessons and rentals so you can travel without your gear if you wish. It is recommended that you make prior arrangements with the school before traveling as they do have a steady stream of people taking lessons and you will want to make sure you are booked for rentals or lessons. I packed everything I needed into my NSI golf bag and had no problems going or coming back at the airports.
Travel TipsThe most important info I can give is one I learned from experience: make sure your checked baggage has a sheet of paper in it that has your flight and contact info. This includes where you are staying when you arrive at your vacation destination, in case it is lost on the way there, as well as your home contact number. When a bag loses its tag they don’t make much of an effort to return it to you if there is no identifying information on or in it. They will usually open the bag to look for anything to identify it. You will stand a much better chance of getting your baggage back if your information is the first thing they see when they open it.
When arriving in Mexico you will be swarmed by people once you go through customs, they are either trying to make money by carrying your bag or are trying to sell you a time share. They are very aggressive. Simply avoid the hassle and just say “no” right away. If you are traveling through a travel group like Sunquest or Signature you will see a large sign for them. Your representative will take you to your transportation to your hotel. If you are doing it yourself you can find lots of cab drivers and just remember to negotiate your price first. $60.00-$80.00 cab rides can be negotiated down to about $25.00. They always start high hoping to catch the unsuspecting tourist. You can take American money with you as all the hotels will exchange your currency at good rates. There are several large banks available within Cancun and most businesses and tours will take visa and master card.
I have traveled to the Cancun area several times and have always felt safe, even walking in the wee hours of the morning. Taking tours is always fun and can be a little expensive but well worth the money. I recommend Xel-ha if you like snorkeling and fish. It is located about an hour south of Cancun and very close to Playa Del Carmen. It is an amazing way to spend the day and is very safe and clean. Very close by are the ruins of Tulum and you can do a split day tour of them both. You can also take a day trip to the larger ruins of Chichen Itza, located about 2.5 hours inland from the coast. I swam with the dolphins on the Isla Mujeres which is a short boat trip from Cancun to the north. I chose to do the swim there as they have open water pens for the dolphins instead of a small concrete pool. Almost all the places charge the same amount to swim with the dolphins so you don’t have to worry about paying more at one place than at the other. People who are looking for a different travel story to tell can feed sharks from within a cage at the aquarium in Cancun. Traveling the markets in Cancun is the same as everywhere in Mexico; you get talked to by every shop keeper promising you the best stuff at the best prices. Just remember that every thing is negotiable. I did find a great little mall right across from the Riu Cancun that had a lot of the things found in the markets but at fixed prices that were very good, and you are not bothered by pushy shop keepers. They have a wide variety of merchandise, everything from 5 dollar sunglasses to super upscale shops, all within a two story mall. As far as evening entertainment goes you can do something different every night. If you like big flashy shows the Coco Bongo is a must see. It is part Vegas show and part dance club and is well worth the entrance fee. Almost all the bars in Cancun charge a fee to get in but are open bar. Keep in mind though that the girls walking around with shooters are selling them and they are not covered by the open bar. There is also a lot of other great clubs like Dady O’s, Senor Frogs, Fat Tuesdays, and the super club “The City” that brings in some of the best DJ’s from all over the world. Getting around in Cancun is very easy as public transportation is very good in Cancun as there is a bus every 5 minutes and since it is only 6.50 pesos (0.65 cents) it is a cheap way to get around. Make sure you have exact change or very close to it as they will not always make change. I hope you find this article helpful and if there are any questions please contact me at kiteboarding@shaw.ca
Source: Shane Melenko, kiteboarding@shaw.ca
Labels: article, cancun, review, travel
