Mexico – A Travel Deal for All Budgets

OK, I’m off to Mexico for two weeks, so what in the heck is this entry going to be all about? Well, let’s talk about how much I’m spending, and compare that to what this little jaunt would cost a family of three if we were flying off to jolly old London or the coast of Spain this summer. After all, this hits on the key point of The World’s Cheapest Destinations: it’s not so much how you travel as where you end up going. This is true whether you’re a backpacker on a shoestring budget or someone who has plenty of money, but doesn’t want to blow more than they need to. (This trip is falling somewher in the middle.)

First of all, wife, toddler daughter, and I are flying into Merida and out of Cancun. All in the Yucatan, but an “open-jaw” ticket nevertheless. I won’t go into specifics, but it was about what it would cost to fly to much of Europe in the spring, but far less than it would cost to go there in June. We’re spending our first two nights in a funky little hotel in Merida, $45 per night for a duplex suite, right in the historic district. I booked a one-hour massage for my wife for $25. (Hey big spender!)

Good luck finding a nice hotel suite with ample room and character in western Europe for anything approaching double or triple that price. And especially something that looks like this .

For the next week we’re renting a beach house on the gulf coast nearby. Not as crystal blue as the Caribbean side of the Yucatan, but uncrowded beaches, real Mexican food, and no highrises. Keep in mind there are only three of us, but we rented a three bedroom, three bath house with a small swimming pool for $300. On the beach, with smack-on ocean views from the bedrooms and living room. We would have rented something smaller, but couldn’t find anything. (Go here for some sample places.) Now pick up the latest Conde Nast Travel or Travel and Leisure and read the inevitable article about renting a villa in Europe. See anything under $1,500 per week, available this summer?

We rented a car for three days, but will hop on public transportation for the rest. After all, a local bus ticket along the beach road is around 25 cents. The most expensive executive bus from Merida to Cancun (4 hours on a deserted toll road) is $25, including swank seats that recline almost all the way, complimentary refreshments, and A/C.

We’ll then take a cab to a resort in Cancun (probably about $8) and splurge on a synthetic resort package experience for the last three nights and guiltily enjoy the hell out of it. It’s mostly for the little one–kid’s club and food she’ll like–but since we got an all-inclusive deal for dirt cheap via SkyAuction , I’ll be singing Mariachi songs after my 12th or 13th free drink. Big pool, hammocks, the ocean, beach volleyball…for the price of a tiny room with nothing included on the coast of France or Spain, or on most of the Caribbean islands.

Now I’ll admit this is a far cry from my backpacking trips when we also frequently got a room on the beach, for 4 to 8 dollars. But that was bamboo bungalows in Southeast Asia and that was when I had far more time than money. Now that I’m a working stiff again and have a family in tow, I still want to find a screaming bargain, but it has to be a more comfortable one to keep the chicks from ganging up on me. The beauty of a great value like Mexico, especially outside the resort areas, is that it’s a good deal no matter which rung of the budget ladder you’re on.