Getting around Cancún

If you plan on spending most of your time in Cancún proper, you probably won’t need a car, unless of course you’re traveling with children and find it a more convenient way of getting around. A rental also makes a lot of sense for day trips to nearby places such as Chichén Itzá, Tulum, and Cobá.

Rates increase significantly during the spring and winter holiday breaks, and in July and August when Mexican families go on vacation. Road conditions in the city are generally good but keep in mind that driving in Cancún, not unlike other large cities in Mexico, can be a bit of a free-for-all. Pay particularly close attention to the buses, which swerve in and out of lanes like nobody’s business. Beyond city limits, it’s a more relaxing ride and much less congested.

In theory, Cancún’s taxis are supposed to charge government-established fares according to zones. In practice, however, it can be a totally different experience as you find yourself haggling with drivers over sometimes arbitrary rates. The good news is the government recently announced that thousands of cabs will be getting meters installed, so if all goes according to plan that should help to make things more transparent.

For a short ride around downtown, expect to pay anywhere between M$40-70 ($2.50-4) and you can easily double that for getting around in the hotel zone. Fares often increase by at least 20% at night. Downtown taxi bases charge M$300 ($17) to the central hotel zone and M$450 ($25) to the airport. In fairness, most taxi ranks post their fares to each zone, bless their hearts. It’s generally considered safe to hail taxis on the street.

Rideshare companies such as Uber and Didi have legal permission to operate in Cancún, however, powerful taxi unions aren’t happy about the competition. Some locals comment that if the taxistas charged lower, there wouldn’t be a need for app-based services. Until the conflict can get resolved, rideshare drivers have been forced to circulate on the down-low, so if you decide to use the service, do so carefully.

City buses in Cancún are inexpensive and efficient. Routes R-1, R-2, and R-27 run about every 10 minutes between downtown and the hotel zone from 5:00 am to midnight. Fares range between M$10-12 ($0.56-0.67) and the drivers carry change, but they frown on passengers who try to pay with large bills. R-1 plies a route along downtown’s heavily transited Avenida Tulum and it stops at the ADO first-class bus station before veering east to the hotel zone. It then heads as far south as Punta Nizuc before turning around and making its way back to the Centro.

You can also reach the hotel zone aboard the R-2 and R-27 lines, which stop at the corner of Avenida Tulum and Cobá. If you’re heading to downtown’s Isla Mujeres ferry terminal, catch a colectivo (shared passenger van) across from the bus station or hail any bus marked ‘Puerto Juárez.

For an easy island getaway, Ultramar’s Isla Mujeres-bound passenger ferries depart every half hour or so from Cancún’s Puerto Juárez Maritime Terminal, just northeast of the city center. Their boats also leave, albeit less frequently, from hotel zone docks at Playa Tortugas, El Embarcader,o, and Playa Caracol. Jetway, the new kid on the block, offers a slightly more affordable ferry service from Puerto Juárez to Isla Mujeres. Round-trip tickets cost around M$450-540 ($25-30) and it takes about a half hour to zip across the azure sea.

Bicycle culture still has a long way to go in Cancún, but the city does have a cool ciclovía (bike path) that runs parallel to Avenida Kukulcán, stretching from downtown into the hotel zone. Along the way, you can make stops at some of the city’s prettiest and most swimmable beaches. Downtown shop Elite Cyclery rents mountain bikes and beach cruisers, and for an additional fee, they’ll deliver them to your hotel’s doorstep. They also run guided tours through the city and to outlying cenotes. Many hotels loan bikes to their guests as well.

One of the best ways to discover downtown Cancún is on foot, especially while exploring the muraled streets near Parque de las Palapas and barhopping to the neighborhood drinking establishments lining Avenida Yaxchilán and Avenida Carlos Nader. The downtown tourist center is considered one of the safest parts of the Centro to wander around after dark.