Overview & Highlights
Take your family in your self-drive hire car across the Yucatán peninsula, visiting Caribbean beaches and ruined Mayan pyramids shrouded in jungle on a fun-packed family holiday, with direct flights from the UK.
Our family holiday to Mexico’s Yucatán peninsula is jam packed with fun things to do and exciting, educational opportunities to boot. It’s a perfect destination for families, with plenty of sunshine, sandy beaches and jungle ruins. Hotels have facilities and attractions for family members of all ages. Exploring by self drive hire car is not only economical; it gives you the freedom to travel at your own pace, stopping wherever your family would like a better look, but with the security of a pre-planned itinerary and accommodation booked.
The Yucatán peninsula offers you sunny Caribbean beaches on the Mayan Riviera offering both water sports and the ruined pyramids and temples of the Maya shrouded in jungle. Following a direct flight from the UK you collect your hire car and set off on good, well-signed roads to explore - distances between attractions are relatively short, there are service stations to fill up your car and a huge range of eateries to fuel yourselves on.
From Cancún airport you set off in your car to discover the peninsula. There, you’ll find vestiges of the once supreme Mayan civilisation. Sites replete with temples and pyramids festooned with sacred carvings were, once abandoned, swallowed up by a rapacious jungle but are now gradually being revealed. There’re all rather Indiana Jones. You’ll visit the best known sites, Chichén Itzá and Uxmal, both easily accessible; your guides will explain the history while the children climb the pyramids.
You’ll also be based at the friendly Spanish colonial town of Mérida, a friendly place with street markets, restaurants of all types and lively entertainment. You will drive up to the Gulf coast for your beachtime, at laid-back but up and coming Holbox.
Outline itinerary
Day 1
Arrive in Cancún. Collect hire car and drive to your hotel not far from the centre of town.
Day 2
Drive to Chichén Itzá, Mayan archaeological site.
Day 3
Explore Chichén Itzá.
Day 4
Drive to Mérida, lively colonial and Mayan city..
Day 5
Guided tour to sisal hacienda Sotuta de Peón.
Day 6
Guided explorations of Mayan site Uxmal.
Day 7
Drive to Chiquila and Holbox island.
Day 8
Relax on Holbox island; optional swimming with whale sharks.
Day 9
Day at leisure on Holbox.
Day 10
More time on the beach on Holbox.
Day 11
Drive to Cancún airport for international flight home.
What our clients say
97% of our clients rated their experience with us as Excellent or Good.
It was a wonderful trip. It was all good. In saying what I say next that is not to denigrate anything else. However, here we were at the vineyards outside Mendoza. It is a beautiful day weather-wise. We have had a fine tour of the vineyard and winery. The vineyard is itself beautiful and peaceful. Now we are in a lovely modern building for the 'lecture' and tastings. I am feeling very happy. Can it get any better? Yes. I look beyond the lecturer out of the window and there I see the beauty of the vineyard and 'just' behind that of the high Andes. Breathtaking!
IM, London
I have been travelling for over half a century but his was my first organised tour and it was wonderful. As I said on my return I would go again next week if my diary was not full, I needed a rest and was not minded to spend as much again so soon.
Tailor made holiday
Our specialists have been expertly crafting award-winning tailor-made holidays to Latin America for 40 years. We would be delighted to create a truly personalised trip which perfectly matches your wishes and requirements.
Hannah Waterhouse - Travel Consultant
Hannah had an early introduction to Latin America when her family moved to Ecuador and she returned to study in Buenos Aires for a year before backpacking across the continent.
Things to do
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Accommodation
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