A rant on my time in Tulum
I've been staying in Tulum for about 1.5 weeks on a 2 week long trip. I planned on working remote here as a digital nomad. Here's how my time has gone. Let me start out by saying it's the start of May, it's hot. I'm honestly fine with this, but be warned if you aren't. I started my stay in Cancun airport and took a $150 USD Taxi ride that I prearranged to Tulum. I arrived in my first hotel in Tulum. The hotel was run by one lady that was genuinely helpful and communicative. The hotel was cheap and look fantastic in the photos. When I arrived at the hotel, it looked exactly like the photos with a private plunge pool. Very nice experience.
But here's where things go wrong. On my second night there, I accidentally locked the kitchen door and and patio door was broken so I was locked out of the kitchen. They came to unlock it the next day.
Seems fine right. Well, I had already told them the patio door was broken. They did not fix it. Only unlocked the door. A couple of nights later I was out having fun with my friends on the phone. When I try to come back in, the patio door was not opening and the slide door was locked... It was 10pm, and I was locked out on the patio. I tried everything for 10 minutes to open the door. Nothing. I messaged the manager on Whatsapp and didn't get a response. After an hour of calling every contact I could find. I accepted my fate. I'd sleep out on the patio.
Later in the night I got a message. The manager responded at 2am and thankfully came to unlock the door. I was happy that happened. But mad it even happened.
My experience there was sub par to say the least. The room just seemed badly maintained in the small areas. The door, the shower head, the couch. The place was nice. But I'd give it a 3 star, and with me being locked out for 4 hours and the kitchen incident, 1 star...
After a week in the first hotel. I checked into an apartment. The place is a dream. Private full pool, full kitchen, 2 bedrooms and more. The place is truly luxurious.
But now comes more problems. This is my second night here and today the power has already gone out once while I was working today and again tonight at 9pm. Both times, the power was out for about 1 hour.
While each of these things in isolation is not that big of a deal, all of them on one vacation is pretty wild.
I tell my story to say this. Tulum is not worth the time or money for digital nomads to come and stay here. The taxis are a scam (300 peso or $20 to literally anywhere, each way), no real buses, restaurants over charge. And one strange thing, no one has change?
First, restaurants and taxis want to scam you on American prices, then they don't have change? 300 pesos, hands 500. "I don't have change." 450 pesos, hands 500 "I don't have change." I know it's a scam, but you can't even give me change? In the end they figured it out but come on.
Prices here at easily 8x more than Mexico city. The only good thing is cheap hotels and good food.
In closing, the biggest problems in Tulum truly is transportation and infrastructure. Roads need to be paved, electricity needs to be more stable, more trash cans. Bring in the taxi apps, stop scamming tourists and then when you want a taxi, not being able to find one.
I won't be back to Tulum until these problems are fixed. I'd rather stay in Mexico City, Playa Del Carmen, or dozens of other places than here. I am also ending my trip 3 days early and going home on Wednesday.