It occurred to me that as I was preparing for this trip I did not find much information about driving - so for the folks who are looking for such details, I will take a moment to share what we have learned.
First - if you land in Cancun I highly recommend that you spend the first night somewhere on the coast between Puerto Morelos and Playa del Carmen. The drive will be a little over four hours from Playa del Carmen, and it's better to avoid driving after sunset.
Second - Plan on leaving sufficient room in your car to pack the food supplies you will buy. In our case, we are a family of 4 so we purchased a rooftop bag (roofbag.com - good price and fast delivery) to store our clothing luggage. We also carry a banjo, a mandolin, a violin and a guitar, so the bag was absolutely necessary. Playa del Carmen has a few super stores, we went to Chedraui, but you could also go to Sam's - they are both very easy to find on the East side of the 307 in Playa del Carmen. We bought 2 styrofoam coolers, lines them with a garbage bag (the coolers may leak over time), and 2 bags of ice to store meat and dairy products. This type of cooler is not too big and gettin two is easier to place in your trunk than one big cooler.
Third - Get cash, there are no banks in Xcalak and the closest ATM is in Majahual (60km).
Fourth - fill-up you gas tank in Tulum, and when you get on the road to Majahual, fill it up again at the gas station located about 5km before arriving in Majahual (the only gas station here...).
Fifth - The turn off to Xcalak is just before the gas station, so you will have to go back on the road and turn left on to the Xcalak road and you should arrive in Xcalak in about 40 min. Thist is the only road going that way but there are no big signs, just a bunch of small ones. This is the ONLY road to Xcalak at this time (mid-November 2010). There used to be access from Majahual to Xcalak along the beach road, but one bridge has collapsed and has not yet been rebuilt.
FINALLY! You should know that the tortilla guy drives down the road every single day, a package of fresh warm corn tortillas cost $150 pesos. A food truck comes by twice a week, on Tuesdays and and Fridays. They have plenty of fruit and ) veggies, and meat (chicken, beef and pork). The beer truck also comes by twice a week, also on Tuesday and Friday.
The people who liv here are mostly Mayans, and they are honest, kind and simple people. And last for not least - Enjoy you stay!!!
NEXT POST : Yummy and simple apple cake recipe!
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