Tulum Ruins excursion - Cozumel

[jlay68]

We are almost to our booking date for excursions on our Disney Fantasy cruise in March. My husband really wants to go to the Tulum Ruins - a 7 to 8 hour excursion.

We have 2 daughters, ages 5 and 7. The Disney cruise line site gives a price for ages 5 and up, but then says the excursion is not recommended for under age 8. Has anyone done this excursion and can advise about taking a 5 and 7 year old?

FYI: they are both good travelers. I saw there is a 45 minute ferry and 1 hour bus ride each way. They typically do well with things like that. We are blessed with well behaved munchkins. They like the Oceaneer Club on the ship, but would not be happy spending 7 to 8 hours there if just my husband and I went on the excursion.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We are almost to our booking date for excursions on our Disney Fantasy cruise in March. My husband really wants to go to the Tulum Ruins - a 7 to 8 hour excursion.

We have 2 daughters, ages 5 and 7. The Disney cruise line site gives a price for ages 5 and up, but then says the excursion is not recommended for under age 8. Has anyone done this excursion and can advise about taking a 5 and 7 year old?

FYI: they are both good travelers. I saw there is a 45 minute ferry and 1 hour bus ride each way. They typically do well with things like that. We are blessed with well behaved munchkins. They like the Oceaneer Club on the ship, but would not be happy spending 7 to 8 hours there if just my husband and I went on the excursion.

I've taken that tour. I wouldn't have taken it with my 5 & 7 year olds (when I had them). The ferry can be a challenge if anyone is at all susceptible to sea sickness. And then it's a long (sometimes hot) ride out to the ruins. And then the whole procedure in reverse.

All that said, I loved the ruins. Even though you are first dropped off at the gift shop/give us more money complex before taking the tram out to the ruins.

There is a beach there, but it's down (and back up) a whole bunch of wooden steps, and we only had about an hour at the beach.

You get a sack lunch (subway wanna-be sandwiches) included in the tour.

 

[tinkerone]

I agree with shmoo. as well behaved as your children are I would seriously think this one over. the ferry ride really can be rough and the bus ride long and bumpy. when your at the ruins its very warm. lots of walking around. in my mind, not a lot for entertaining small children.
jmo though so take it for what its worth. lol.
have a great cruise!

 

[Aviator621]

As a data point we took this tour just last week with our kids (7,9, and 12), and they did fine. For the ferry, they actually enjoyed it quite a bit as they sat on the top deck to get a good view (they are not prone to sea sickness though). Be aware that you have to walk about a half mile through Playa de Carmen to get to the bus, but the bus ride was pleasant and comfortable, and you got the lunch early if you want them to snack. The guided portion at the ruins was short so lots of time to explore--probably my only complaint--too MUCH time, given the size of the complex (smaller than you expect). It was early so heat not too bad, while our youngest did get bored a bit, he still had a good time, especially looking out for the iguanas and other wildlife. What made it worth while for the kids though was the beach--they LOVED that. Just be warned, according to our tour guide, the beach can often be closed due to surf conditions. We also took them to the Starbucks at the entry afterwards for a cool drink and snack and that helped. They mostly slept on the bus and ferry ride home. Bottomline is that while obviously not the highlight of the cruise for them, the kids still had a good time. So while there are valid concerns about taking young ones, think you can make a good call based on your own kids likes and dislikes. Let me know if you have specific questions.

 

[jlay68]

Thank you everyone. We reserve on December 20th, so we will mull it over some more.

 

[lillygator]

we don't cruise for 365 days!! but I have been researching what to do in Cozumel. Last night I was looking at Xel-Ha but it has the same amount of travel time and I just don't know if I want that to eat into our day. Our kids will be 5, 11, 14 at the time and they are pretty easy going but think we will stay in Cozumel and maybe go to an all inclusive. But if you do decide to go, please post a review.

 

[MUN]

we don't cruise for 365 days!! but I have been researching what to do in Cozumel. Last night I was looking at Xel-Ha but it has the same amount of travel time and I just don't know if I want that to eat into our day. Our kids will be 5, 11, 14 at the time and they are pretty easy going but think we will stay in Cozumel and maybe go to an all inclusive. But if you do decide to go, please post a review.

I bet your kids would like Paradise Beach. We were there 2 years ago and loved it. Our kids were 15, 13, and 9 at the time.

MUN

 

[steves100]

The ride over was very bad. Wife almost lost it. Would not go with young kids. Daughter was 12 and right on the edge of boredom. I like the tour alot. We did not get to down to the beach to much waves.

 

[Heard02]

We've done it with a 9 year old and it was super boring for them....with such large groups, it can be hard to hear anyway.....
I would not take a child if it were me doing it again. I'd save it for when they aren't on vacation with you.

 

[Aviator621]

We've done it with a 9 year old and it was super boring for them....with such large groups, it can be hard to hear anyway.....

Forgot to mention one thing; when we went last week, they gave wireless headsets to everyone, including the kids, so we could all hear the guide clear as a bell. Only slight issue was his accent

 

[tinkerone]

factor in the cost as well. would you be okay with paying for this excursion, not cheap, and maybe having a miserable day? its a lot of money to invest in a 'maybe okay' day.
its going to come down to how you feel about it. on here, your going to get lots of 'loved it' and lots of 'thumbs down'.

 

[rwjx2kahaj]

Tulum is one of the most beautiful and interesting places I've ever been. That being said, when we went to Mexico with our children we chose an excursion that was shorter on travel and longer on time at the site. They had a blast!

 

[turtle27]

DM and I just did this on the EBPC cruise. I do tend to get motion sickness. Let's just say that I barely made it on the way to Playa Del Carmen, having had taken a bonine. I took a second bonine for the afternoon trip and that did the trick. Much better. You will meet for the excursion, wait to go load the ferry, wait in line at the ferry, take the 45 minute ferry ride, then it is about 3-4 blocks to get the bus, then a 55 minute bus ride just to get to the ruins. We had great tour guides, and really enjoyed the tour of Tulum. We were at the ruins for maybe 1.5 hours, maybe. Our all aboard time was 3:45 pm, we made it back with maybe 20 minutes to spare. Well worth it to see it at least once. However, as I told my DM, that was probably the only time she would get me on that ferry. If I go again, I will find a way to fly into the mainland and avoid that ferry ride.