I have booked a trip to the Grand Mayan resort for July/August. Anyone been there before? If so, can you recommend cool stuff to do while we are there? Thanks!!
Also, how many days are you going? If you are going for 6, you probably want to spend at least 3 at the resort, just hanging out. Your kids will meet friends and will not want to go anywhere. What I am getting at is if you have a 6 day trip and go to 2 different sets of ruins (Tulum and Chichen Itza) and Xel Ha, that is pretty much a full trip. Also, I always get a rental car when we are down there because I speak Spanish and I know where I am going. It makes it easy for our family because we can go where we want when we want. However, you have to be aware of certain problems - (Make sure that you thoroughly inspect the car beforehand and note every little ding and nick)(Stay on main roads). Also, realize that it will be very hot in the summer. Chichen Itza which is in the jungle will be especially hot and humid. Expect to be drenched if you go there. More than likely, you will want to stay by the water.
The ruins of Tulum are awesome and easy. Note that it's not the same thing as the town of Tulum, which is almost a mile away. There's a nice little beach there to go swimming and cool off. If you are scuba certified, you should go diving. But you probably already know that. If you want to snorkel, there's an easy place at Yal-Ku lagoon at Akumal. You can go swimming in a Cenote. There are tons around. Ask your hotel for a recommendation. Your kids wouldn't forget that. Chichen-Itza is amazing, but it's huge, and will be hot as hell in the summer. It's also a several hour drive or bus ride. I didn't do this, but if you want to get the family out on the ocean for cheap, you could try taking the ferry from Playa to Cozumel for the day. Just try to go on a day when a huge cruise ship isn't parked at Cozumel.
