Comparison of ports of Calica and Progresso on Elation

[flashdog_1]

For those of you who have been to both ports, and taken Mayan ruin tours in both, which would you say was the least strenuous, yet rewarding?

 

We are 70 and 75, get around okay, but are not accustomed to expending a great deal of energy! So we are concerned about comfort on the bus to any of the ruins (air conditioning?) since DH is 6'3 and arthritic pain from bouncing on bad roads, if applicable.

 

If we opted for Calica and Tulum, is it too far to consider the ruins and then going in to Cancun afterward? (separate tour/taxi I assume since Cancun is in the opposite direction).

 

I'd hate to go that far and not see a real Mexican town, so would be interested in seeing colonial Merida if we opt for the port of Progresso. I saw that tours of the closest ruin plus Merida were offered. Are the other two big deal ruins just too far to allow a drive thru in Merida?

 

Thanks for your advice.

[ddloml]

We took the Uxmal ruins tour thru Carnival at Progresso. The bus was air-conditioned and comfortable. The bus took the bypass around Merida, so we didn't see the old town at all. It was 1hr 40 min each way to/from the ruins.

 

The ruins are superb! The tour included a guide that gave us the highlights for about an hour or so, and then we had another 90 minutes left to explore on our own. The terrain is hilly, and the ruins are steep, so the climbing may be strenuous. There is a small shopping area and a nice restaurant at the entrance to the ruins. Use GoogleEarth for an idea of what can be seen at the ruins site.

 

So with 3+ hours of travel and 3 hours at the site, it's a full, exhausting day. Naps were had on the bus on the way back.

[WilliamLawson]

The Uxmal tour will take up enough time to make popping into Merida a bit tight, timewise. People often underestimate the traffic in downtown Merida and that eats into your available time.

 

If you want to see a typical Yucatan town (small) please note that many tours stop in Uman on the way to Uxmal, where you will see a gigantic church (note the Moorish dome on this one) and spend some time in the market which will be humming in the morning.

 

Happy planning!

[gtsuttons]

We did a private tour with an American who lives down there. Part of the tour was visiting Uman, a small town with a big, old cathedral and a lively market. Robert then took us to Uxmal, which as stated before is expansive with some hills though you don't have to climb them all to get an appreciation for the culture and what they did 1500 years ago. Robert can take you to some of the other sites if that is of interest to you. He even asked us why we didn't do the Dzib ruins with the flamingos as another stop.

 

Also, the roads we took were really good, even better than some in the US. Mexican drivers are another story.:p

 

Here is my old thread from last October: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1298375

 

 

If interested, his email is rabbit777mx@yahoo.com