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why stay at El Crucero instead of other Tulum hotels or cabañas on the beach?
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We have our favorite restaurants, cabañas and hotels in Tulum and, while we may be omitting a number of good ones, this is not intended to be a complete list.

Activities:

Snorkeling and Diving

• Cave and Cavern Diving: If you are a cave diver, you may have to stay for a few weeks just to get a taste of the world's largest cave systems. If you are open water certified you can take advantage of the plethora of reef, cenote and cavern diving in the area.
  • Maya diving Dive Center, Maya Diving Dive Center has a full service dive center at the hotel for all our guests and visitors to tulum. The multilingual dive instructors provide courses and guided tours to the reef in Tulum. Cenote snorkel tours as well as cave diving also offered. The professional and dedicated staff of guides and instructors will make your dive experience the best in Tulum. Top quality equipment, service and attention to detail make Maya Diving "The" number one dive center in Tulum. After making your hotel reservations with El-Crucero you can book your dive adventure at the link highlighted in red above. Sure, you can spend a couple of Ben Franks a night on a room at an all inclusive frilly hotel, or save your money and combine your dive with a stay at El-Crucero.
• Casa Cenote/Tankah Point - Casa Cenote (Cenote Manati) is a long mangrove channel that connects to the ocean. There is a restaurant that also rents snorkel gear. The reef is delightfully close to the shore and well populated with fish, and sea life.
• Grand Cenote - our favorite local cenote, just five minutes by taxi, Grand Cenote is perfect for a two hour snorkel or just splashing around on a hot day. snorkel gear availabe for 60 pesos. 5 minutes by taxi, 20 min bike
• Dos Ojos - Our favorite cenote. Much less tourists than Hidden Worlds, (Listed below) Dos Ojos, (Two eyes) is an incredible spot. The water crystal clear and refreshing. You can spend a long time snorkeling or diving the cavern zone. 20 minutes collectivo from El Crucero plus some walking from the highway.
• Aktun Chen - Five million years hidden in nature! In the beautiful tropical jungle, 107km from Cancun, between Akumal and Xel-Ha, you will find the The Aktun Chen Caves in Mayan "The cave with cenote inside" An easy walk through the caves, will show you fantastic formations of stalactites and stalagmites, built five million years ago by water and calcium carbonate.
• Hidden worlds - The "Disneyland" of cenote parks. Hidden Worlds Cenote Park was the site of the IMAX film "Journey into amazing caves" and the Cheesy Hollywood Thriller "The Cave".
• Swim with Dolphins - For some it is a life changing experience. Dolphin Discovery located in the heart of the Riviera Maya at Puerto Adventuras can give you the ultimate memory of your stay.
• Xel-Ha - A huge eco park offering the opportunity to mix with the big crowds and noise that is expected of such a place. If the tranquility of Tulum is too much and you need a sanitized eco adventure Xel-Ha can give you that. You can spend the day all inclusive for about $55 USD, eating drinking and eco parking. About 20 minutes collectivo ride from Tulum.
• Xcaret - The other mamoth eco park which has about the same style of fun and activities as Xel-Ha, Xcaret offers a bit more natural beauty plus live Mayan culture shows at night. Good organized place to take the kids. They have several price packages based on your wants and needs. About 40 minutes collectivo ride from Tulum.

• Tulum, the only Mayan city built by the sea, a small and very picturesque site, is best seen before 9:00 AM before the hordes of tourist arrive. 10 min. walk from El Crucero
• Coba, one of the largest Mayan cities, is still mostly covered in jungle. Because of its size renting a bicycle is recommend. Bring your bug spray. 45 min bus from El Crucero
• Chichen Itza, the behemoth tourist attraction still has its points. It is a must see, but be warned, you will be under constant assault from venders hawking their wares. Keep your head down and just say "No" Some vendors are very polite others are just plain rude. Don't let them ruin your visit. We recommend staying at the The Dolores Alba hotel for a tranquil and inexpensive stay. Their hotel is located between the ruins and the Balankanche caves, as well as just across the street from Cenote Ik Kil. Staying here allows you the chance to get to the ruins early. They also have another Dolores Alba in Merida, If you are headed that way, which we also highly recommend. 2 hrs bus from El Crucero
• Palenque, a legend of the Gringo Trail, is an impressive archaeological zone, with a spectacular waterfall nearby, and a dedicated hippie colony. Overnight bus from El Crucero

Other

• Sian Kaan Biosphere Reserve, located 20 minutes to the south of Tulum is highly recommended for anybody interested in the unique flora and fauna of the area. Check out Centro Ecologico de Sian Ka'an for guided boat tours.
• Playa del Carmen, this extremely popular tourist town is good for your last night before going home. It has some great restaurants, some fun bars and is a good place to do a little shopping. Playa Info Virtual Guidebook has loads of tourist information
• Vallalodid, a nice colonial town, boast two incredible cenotes, some wonderful architecture and the authentic feel of old Mexico. Worth a day trip or as a place to stay before visiting Chichen Itza in the morning.
• Merida, the largest city in the Yucatan Peninsula, is a fairly cosmopolitan and car-oriented city. The home of many guayabera shirt factories and markets, Merida is best visited on the weekends, when they shut down the center and dance salsa in the streets. 2 hrs from Valladolid by bus.
• Bacalar, If your travels include the southern most regions of Q Roo, check out Casita Carolina Casita Carolina is a delightful place about 1 1/2 blocks south of the fort. It has a large lawn leading down to the lake, four fan rooms and a palapa that sleeps up to four and space for one tent. Guests can explore the lake in the casita's kayaks or swim in nearby cenote Azul. Its best reached by taking a bus into Bacalar and walking or taking a taxi.
• Study, Learn, Enjoy Spanish In Paradise, Want to combine your Yucatan adventure with the opportunity to learn to speak Spanish? Friendly and professional intructors will guide you through a course of study that is tailor made for you or your group. Classroom or beachside lessons offered! Check out their website The pink Iguana for detailed info. A rare opportunity to play and study in the Riviera Maya.
• Go Green! with Mexiconservacion. We are pleased and honored to have as a resident office here at the hotel, Mexiconservacion. Their group is helping to educate and inform visitors and locals alike of the importance of "Green awareness". They offer earth friendly products for sale that help fund their environmental actions and continue the valuable work they do. Check out their website mexiconservacion.org for detailed info and if so inclined send them a contribution or donation to fund their efforts. Good people, Good cause, good Karma!
• KITE BOARDING. Learn to kite board. Or come on down with your gear and shred it up. The calm water combined with the constant breeze on the beach at Tulum provide the ideal conditions for you to catch some massive air. Hotel El-crucero's budget prices afford the serious boarder the opportunity to stay comfortable on the cheap allowing for a longer stay and mastery of this sport. Look forward to upcoming competitions in the near future.
• Food & Drink:
  If you want a break from our restaurant, we can recommend the following restaurants in Tulum

• Azul is great for a drink, lunch or snack with a comfortable upscale atmoshpere with a middle eastern influenced menu and friendly staff.
• El Mariachi has cheap, good mexican food. Go for dinner when they have the fixin's bar available.
• La Nave has great italian food for a reasonable price. Try the pizza, fresh gnocchi or eggplant parmesan and you will not be disappointed.
• Il Basilico is slightly more upscale than La Nave, with a great ambience and tasty spinach crepes.
• Mezzanine Thai food and atmosphere. A bit pricey, but the food and drink are great. The crab wonton kick ass! 2 for 1 margaritas at early happy hour. Disco overlooking the beach every Friday night. No cover before 9pm, As james says, "Shake what your mama gave you!"
• Posada Margarita is a tiny gem of a restaurant with a limited menu featuring fresh handmade pasta and choice antipasti.
• Nero di Sole Great Italian food with an ever changing daily special board. Very nice presentation and portions. Veal scallopini, tirimisu?!! in Mexico? Great food nice people.
• Mar Caribe Beach Bar is located right next to where the fishermen land their boats. Their ceviche is the freshest possible. Also, they have hotdogs and burgers and the cheapest beer on the beach.
• Casa Cenote is on the Tankah bay. With it's own cenote it is a great place to get some true Texas BBQ on a sunday afternoon.
• Charlie's Comida Mexicana good food and drink in a friendly garden setting located in the pueblo. Live entertainment.
• El Pequeno Buenos Aires Argentinian steak house. A great place to get a steak and a good bottle of wine.
• El Pollo Bronco One of several Mexican grilled chicken places in town. Very cheap and comes with rice beans and pasta. Good to get it to go and head to the beach.
• Don Cafetos Popular meeting spot and good cheap food and Coffee. One on the beach, one in town. Budgie gives it a two thumbs up!!!

If you insist on budget beach accomodations, Try Zazil kin but keep an eye on your valuables. Cabanas and or a place to pitch your tent. Sand in every orifice you own, noisy generators no hot water and nasty bathrooms...but hey it's about the romance right?

If you can afford the nicer beach hotels (70 USD and above), we can recommend the following:

• El Paraiso Their broad expanse of white sand is clean and tidy and they have a nice beach bar. The new management has built a condo and now charges outrageous prices to sit on their lounge cushions. Bring your towel and lay on the beach or under a coconut tree.
• La Vitta e Bella has recently remodeled their entire hotel. The beachfront cabañas were given an update after Wilma.
• Diamante K has the greatest price range of the beach cabañas, dormitory beds from 150 pesos to private villas at 5000 pesos. Unique ambiance and nice, private setting.
• Dos Ceibas is near the entrance to the Sian Kaan Biosphere Reserve and has secluded ecological Cabañas which are perfect if you want to get away from it all, or have a rental car available.
• Sol Caribe is in the reserve. On the road to Punta Allen. Very private with 4 rooms. At $160 a night, it is a bit pricey, but the best value for a high end stay in the reserve. Great service, food, and ultimate privacy. The rooms are clean and very nice. It is where we go to get away. Also you can visit their sister hotel "Casa Ascension" in Punta Allen. Lil' bit cheaper but still swank and chill..

Our Hotel in Tulum

Looking for other Tulum Hotels or Cabañas? Check out the following Tulum Hotels and Cabaña sites: Riviera Maya Travel Guide to hotels in tulum, Tulum Travelers hotel and travel guide, Caribbean Trip Hotel Guide, Trip Advisor Tulum Hotels Guide, Tulum.com Accomodations Guide, Mexico Hotel Finder for Tulum Hotels