Tulum Excursion via Royal Caribbean

[crewsweeper]

Fully aware of Coz board.  But looking specifically for RCCL excursion as it's a bit of a hike from Cozumel and DW wants to see the ruins.

 

So has anyone done a RCCL ship sponsored excursion to Tulum (and not to the cenotes) recently?

How was it?  Length of excursion?  Condition of ruins? Snacks or water provided?   

 

TIA

[orville99]

10 minutes ago, crewsweeper said:

Fully aware of Coz board.  But looking specifically for RCCL excursion as it's a bit of a hike from Cozumel and DW wants to see the ruins.

 

So has anyone done a RCCL ship sponsored excursion to Tulum (and not to the cenotes) recently?

How was it?  Length of excursion?  Condition of ruins? Snacks or water provided?   

 

TIA

It has been a while, but Tulum was very worth the trip. Not sure why anyone would take an excursion that included a side trip to see large sinkholes in the ground however. The only potential downside is the ferry boat ride over to the mainland and back - it can get really rough in the channel between Coz and the mainland.

Edited April 11, 2023 by orville99

[crewsweeper]

1 hour ago, orville99 said:

It has been a while, but Tulum was very worth the trip. Not sure why anyone would take an excursion that included a side trip to see large sinkholes in the ground however. The only potential downside is the ferry boat ride over to the mainland and back - it can get really rough in the channel between Coz and the mainland.

Thanks.  We've done the cenotes on their own and have ridden the ferry across several times.  Would hope Royal would still offer their Tulum Beach break but can't find it on the web.  Just TA reviews pre COVUD.

[monorail81]

38 minutes ago, crewsweeper said:

Would hope Royal would still offer their Tulum Beach break but can't find it on the web.

They are still offering it. It is offered on our upcoming sailing, but it didn’t show up for some time. Keep checking. 
 

 

[Fouremco]

We took what appears to be a very similar excursion with Holland America in 2015. We visited the ruins first, which are well worth seeing, then drove to a hotel on the beach where we had lunch and then a couple of hours on the beach before heading back. I highly recommend an excursion to Tulum if it becomes available for you.

 

 

 

[crewsweeper]

1 hour ago, monorail81 said:

They are still offering it. It is offered on our upcoming sailing, but it didn’t show up for some time. Keep checking. 
 

 

That's it!! ThankYou!!

 

[joeyancho]

The tour takes all day. The ruins are impressive and worth the time. The coastline at the ruins is beautiful. The info the guides give you at the ruins may or may not be true. Be sure to bring sunscreen. If you are prone to seasickness be sure to take your medication before you get on the boat that takes you to the mainland. They don't call it the "Vomit Comet" for nothing.  Just a note to show my age:  years ago you were allowed to climb the ruins. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 11, 2023 by joeyancho
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[Tatka]

54 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

We took what appears to be a very similar excursion with Holland America in 2015. We visited the ruins first, which are well worth seeing, then drove to a hotel on the beach where we had lunch and then a couple of hours on the beach before heading back. I highly recommend an excursion to Tulum if it becomes available for you.

 

 

 

 

We had the same tour in 2016 on Oasis. Loved it!

[Kellie in Texas]

We also did that tour on Liberty in 2017. Went to Tulum first, then back towards town and stopped at a beach area that included lunch. As I recall, the lunch was very good. On the way back, we got in a pretty big rain storm. The tour bus -- at that time, anyway -- did not let you out anywhere near the pier where the ferry is that takes you back over to Cozumel. We had to make a mad dash through the cobblestone streets following our tour guide to get to the ferry. Once we got back on Liberty, we sailed fairly quickly, so I think we may have only been saved by the fact that we were on a ship excursion. I would definitely not try to do this as an independent tour, just because of the time it takes on the ferry from Cozumel to the mainland and then back. But Tulum is stunning, so definitely worth it. 

[Fouremco]

32 minutes ago, Kellie in Texas said:

I would definitely not try to do this as an independent tour

I agree totally. We almost never take ship excursions, but we were happy to make an exception for this one.

[Mum2Mercury]

6 hours ago, orville99 said:

It has been a while, but Tulum was very worth the trip. Not sure why anyone would take an excursion that included a side trip to see large sinkholes in the ground however ... 

Agree.  I've seen cenotes as a part of another excursion, and they were a bit underwhelming.  I mean, we have bodies of water where I live.  

2 hours ago, joeyancho said:

... If you are prone to seasickness be sure to take your medication before you get on the boat that takes you to the mainland. They don't call it the "Vomit Comet" for nothing.  Just a note to show my age:  years ago you were allowed to climb the ruins. 

Agree ... even if you have no problems on the big ship, these small ships can still do a number on you.  I very much like to take Crystalized Ginger (I make it homemade, but you can buy it at Harris Teeter under the brand name Sweet Melissa's), which gives INSTANT, though short lived, relief.  I like to chop it up into small bits and carry it in a little ziplock.  

47 minutes ago, Kellie in Texas said:

... Once we got back on Liberty, we sailed fairly quickly, so I think we may have only been saved by the fact that we were on a ship excursion. I would definitely not try to do this as an independent tour, just because of the time it takes on the ferry from Cozumel to the mainland and then back ...

9 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

I agree totally. We almost never take ship excursions, but we were happy to make an exception for this one.

Agree.  As a general rule of thumb, I DO NOT take ship excursions (and cost is the least important of several reasons), but this is just too far /too many modes of transportation to DIY it.  I wouldn't have thought, for example, about weather affecting things as the above poster mentioned.  

[ATG]

4 hours ago, joeyancho said:

The tour takes all day. The ruins are impressive and worth the time. The coastline at the ruins is beautiful. The info the guides give you at the ruins may or may not be true. Be sure to bring sunscreen. If you are prone to seasickness be sure to take your medication before you get on the boat that takes you to the mainland. They don't call it the "Vomit Comet" for nothing.  Just a note to show my age:  years ago you were allowed to climb the ruins. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We’ll show our age also - we were allowed to climb up the first time we visited (had to be 1983 or earlier since it was before kids).  We went again in mid-90s with the kids and no climbing.

[Steppy08]

Just got off Mariner yesterday and did the Tulum Ruins (and the cenotes). There were at least 3-4 variations of the Tulum tour that included a beach break, just Tulum, or the one we did. 
We’ve done many tours both with the cruise lines and on our own. Given the time frame we would never do this one on our own. We were the first group off the ship at 7am and the last group onboard at 4:40 (all aboard was 4:30). Royal arranged for the fast ferry to come right to the dock (as opposed to taking a bus to the other dock in Cozumel where the ferry normally goes)

45 minutes on the ferry, about 45 minutes drive to Tulum. We had about 2.5 hours in Tulum, about 1 hour was guided and the rest time to wander around. They provided snacks and a bottle of water. The ruins looked to be in the same condition they were in 2005 I guess? That’s the last time I was there. 

I thought it was a good tour and worth the cost. We enjoyed Tulum (my husband had never been before) and loved the cenotes as a refreshing end of the tour. 

[Mum2Mercury]

I was allowed to climb when we visited Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexico City).  That would've been in the 80s, as I was in high school.  

[Rogueperson]

I would not do any excursion in Cozumel that requires the ferry to Playa del Carmen independently.  Too many variables that could make you miss the ferry.  The ferry itself is 45 minutes each way and apparently the schedule is not always reliable. 

 

I also suspect that the cruise lines (not just Royal) may charter entire ferries for their excursions because every time I've done an excursion, we come back and hop right onto the ferry with no pause, but i see people hanging at the terminal looking like their waiting.  That too may screw up their schedule.

 

As for the Excursion itself, I thought Tulum was great.  Its about an hour or so from Playa Del Carmen, so your travel time is almost 2 hours each way including the ferry transit.  Sometimes, the cruise lines will also offer excursions to Coba, which is about 30 minutes farther, but in my opinion, a far superior experience, but only go on this excursion if you have at least 12 hours in port.  Its about a mile or so hike from the parking lot to the central temple and last I heard, it is probably the only temple that still allows you to climb to the top.

[CntPAcruiser]

We did this years ago, not the one with the beach break, but the one that includes a lunch. It was rather rushed once we did get to the ruins. There's more time spent traveling than actually seeing anything, but it was the only way we were going to see it, so for us it was ok as a one-time thing. Afterwards, once we finally made it back to the ship, late, we were completely exhausted. 

[ladybugpug]

We (husband, 2 older teen daughters, and I) did a Tulum excursion through RCCL about 8 years ago maybe. Advertized as seeing the ruins and then a "beach break" to include a buffet meal at a beach front restaurant and then time to relax on the beach. It was a  whole day of absolute misery that started around 6am. The bus took us to a stop that was supposed to be a bathroom break but was instead a tourist trap where we were kept for nearly an hour while they tried to sell us all crap. Off to the ruins where we got to try and maneuver around past the thousands of other tourists to see anything in 100 degree heat. We stayed there about an hour I think. Then the beach break which ended up being 30 minutes where they refused to refill the food for our tour bus and did not provide cups for the drinks.  When we realized there was no food, my older daughter started crying and I wasn't far behind her lol. No time for the promised beach The bus did provide bottled water thank God. When we got back to the ship we hadn't eaten since the night before (no food for 16 hours) because nothing was open to get food that early when we left that morning. I can say we actually laugh about it now because it was so so bad but an experience for sure lol. If you leave super early like we did get food the night before to eat in the morning. 

[Jaedog105]

On 4/11/2023 at 10:31 AM, orville99 said:

It has been a while, but Tulum was very worth the trip. Not sure why anyone would take an excursion that included a side trip to see large sinkholes in the ground however. The only potential downside is the ferry boat ride over to the mainland and back - it can get really rough in the channel between Coz and the mainland.

Can confirm re the ferry ride. I have never been more seasick.