Mexico in 10 days: Mexico City and the Yucatán

Day 2 — Aztec centro and the murals

• 09:00 — Templo Mayor (~100 MXN): the Aztec great temple excavated beside the cathedral — Tenochtitlan surfacing through the Spanish city built on top of it.
• 11:00 — Palacio Nacional (free, passport ID): Diego Rivera’s staircase mural — the entire history of Mexico in one wall. Then the gold-domed Palacio de Bellas Artes (~90 MXN) for Rivera’s Man at the Crossroads — the one Rockefeller destroyed, repainted here in defiance.
• 13:30 — Lunch at a centro fonda: comida corrida (soup, guisado, agua fresca) for ~90–130 MXN.
• 15:30 — Coffee at the Sears café terrace for the Bellas Artes dome photo, then ride the Torre Latinoamericana (~200 MXN) for smog-and-volcano sunset views over the endless city.
• 20:00 — Dinner in Roma Norte — this is one of the world’s great food neighbourhoods; queue where the locals queue (~150–300 MXN a head).

Day 3 — Teotihuacán, then the Anthropology Museum

• 07:00 — Beat the sun to Teotihuacán (entry 210 MXN, under-13s free): the 80 MXN public bus from Terminal del Norte takes ~1 h, tours run 900–1,500 MXN with guide and pickup, and the sunrise hot-air balloon over the Pyramid of the Sun (~3,300–5,000 MXN) is the splurge people frame. Walk the Avenue of the Dead between the two great pyramids (climbing is no longer allowed — the views from the plazas still stun). Three hours before the heat.
• 14:00 — Back in the city: late lunch, then the Museo Nacional de Antropología (~100 MXN, closed Mondays) in Chapultepec Park — the Aztec Sun Stone, Pakal’s jade mask, and the finest museum in the Americas. Two hours minimum; it earns them.
• 19:30 — Stroll Reforma at dusk to the Angel of Independence; dinner in Polanco (upscale) or back in Condesa (better tacos, half the bill).

Day 4 — Frida, floating gardens, flying wrestlers

• 09:00 — Coyoacán: cobbled plazas, the mercado’s tostadas, and the Frida Kahlo Museum (Casa Azul) — 320 MXN foreigners, timed entry, and it sells out weeks ahead on the official boletos.museofridakahlo.org.mx — this is the trip’s second-hardest ticket after nothing. Book it the day your flights fix.
• 13:30 — Xochimilco: hire a painted trajinera boat on the Aztec canals (~600–800 MXN per boat per hour — the whole boat, not per person; take two hours, buy elotes and micheladas from passing canoes, pay the floating mariachis for one song).
• 19:00 — If it’s Tuesday or Friday: Lucha Libre at Arena México (~300–700 MXN) — masked wrestlers, flying grandmothers’ insults, pure joy. Otherwise: farewell-to- CDMX dinner and an early pack.

Day 5 — Fly to the Caribbean

• 09:30 — MEX → Cancún (~2h15; Aeroméxico, Viva, Volaris from ~1,200–2,200 MXN — budget carriers charge for every bag, price the total).
• 13:30 — Land CUN, skip the taxi hustle: the ADO coach to Playa del Carmen (~275 MXN, 1h15, hourly) is comfortable, cold and scam-proof.
• 16:00 — Check in, then Quinta Avenida (5th Avenue) — the walking street’s 20 blocks of everything — and toes in the Caribbean before dinner.
• 20:00 — Dinner off the Quinta (two blocks inland, prices drop 40%): tacos de camarón, aguachile (~150–250 MXN a head).

Where to stay on the Riviera Maya (five nights, Playa del Carmen base — central for every day trip below)

• Luxury all-inclusive: Grand Velas Riviera Maya — 4.8/5 (~7,000 reviews), the coast’s benchmark resort. ~12,000+ MXN all-in.
• Beachfront charm: Mahekal Beach Resort — 4.6/5, palapa-roof bungalows on the sand at the quiet north end, no wristbands. ~4,500–6,500 MXN.
• Family all-inclusive value: Paradisus Playa del Carmen — 4.5/5 (~18,500 reviews), kids’ club and swim-up everything. ~6,000–8,500 MXN all-in.
• Town-centre budget beds (Calle 38 area) run 1,100–1,800 MXN — plentiful; check current reviews before booking.

Day 6 — Chichén Itzá, done right

• 06:30 — Leave early — this is the day that punishes lie-ins. Options: a tour with Valladolid + cenote + lunch (~1,400–1,800 MXN pp, pickup included) or DIY by ADO coach. Entry is 697 MXN (100 MXN under-12s) — cash pesos; the state and federal desks are separate, keep both tickets.
• 10:00 — El Castillo: the calendar-pyramid whose staircases count the year, where the serpent-shadow crawls down at equinox. The ball court’s acoustics, the Temple of Warriors, the cenote of sacrifices. Two to three hours; the vendor gauntlet inside is part of the experience — a polite “no, gracias” on repeat works.
• 13:00 — Valladolid: pastel colonial streets, lunch of cochinita pibil, and a swim at Cenote Zací or Suytun (the Instagram light-beam one, ~150–250 MXN).
• 19:00 — Back in Playa by dark; easy dinner.

Day 7 — Tulum: ruins on a cliff, cenotes in the jungle

• 07:30 — Colectivo van down the highway (~50 MXN, every 10 min) to Tulum’s ruins at 08:00 opening (265 MXN including the national-park and Jaguar Park fees; +20 MXN shuttle): the only Maya city built on a cliff — iguanas, palm shade, and that view of green-blue water that sells a million posters. Ninety minutes before the heat and cruise crowds.
• 10:30 — Swim below the ruins at Playa Paraíso, or head straight for cenote hours: Gran Cenote (~500 MXN — snorkel with turtles under stalactites) and Cenote Calavera or Azul (~150–250 MXN) — two is the right number; bring biodegradable-only sunscreen, it’s checked.
• 15:00 — Lunch in Tulum pueblo (~150–250 MXN), a look at the beach-road boutiques if you must, colectivo home.
• 20:00 — Playa dinner and, if energy allows, the Quinta’s people-parade with marquesitas (Yucatán’s crêpe- cousin, ~50 MXN) for dessert.

Day 8 — Island day: Cozumel

• 09:00 — The ferry from Playa’s pier (Ultramar/ Winjet, ~270 MXN each way, 45 min) to Cozumel — Mexico’s best reef water.
• 10:30 — Snorkel trip to the Palancar and Colombia reefs (~800–1,100 MXN, 2.5–3 h, gear included) — visibility runs 30 m+; expect rays, turtles, walls of fish. Non- swimmers: rent a jeep/scooter and loop the wild east coast beaches instead.
• 15:00 — Lunch and a wander in San Miguel, late ferry home, sunset from the Playa pier.
• The alternative day: families with a parks budget swap Cozumel for Xcaret (~2,600–3,300 MXN pp — underground rivers, wildlife, the night show; expensive and, honestly, excellent) — or simply take the beach day a day early.

Day 9 — The slow one

• Morning — Beach proper: Playa’s Fundadores and Mamitas stretches, or a lazy Mahekal-style beach-bed day. You’ve earned a day of nothing; the Caribbean is best consumed horizontally.
• 16:00 — Last-souvenir sweep (vanilla, habanero salsas, a lucha mask for the desk at work), fish-tacos-and- marquesitas farewell crawl.
• 19:30 — Book-the-window-table dinner: whole grilled fish, coconut shrimp, one last agua de horchata (~250–400 MXN a head).

Day 10 — Home from Cancún

• Morning — ADO back to CUN (1h15 — leave 4+ hours before the flight; the highway has moods), fly home via Europe or Istanbul (or the US, for those whose visa made this trip free in the first place).