ONE WEEK PUERTO ESCONDIDO TO CANCUN
A week to get to Cancun from Puerto Escondido.
Benny is 26, and is meeting some friends in Cancun, so is time pressed, but wanting to travel. Here is what I suggested.
1. PUERTO ESCONDIDO TO SAN CRISTOBAL (2 days)
There is an overnight bus leaving Puerto Escondido between 1800 and 2000 arriving at 0800 in San Cristobal. You will be continuously awoken by military or Highway Police with flashlights and video cameras. Once there check into Puerta Vieja Hostel.
From that hostel, you can easily do a day trip to Chamula. There is an insane church (no photography) where you will find rituals involving chickens and Coca Cola taking place.
2. SAN CRISTOBAL TO TIKAL
This is not really a detour as Guatemala cuts into Mexico quite heavily. Ask your hostel to organise a bus. It probably goes first thing in the morning.
You will need to pay the tax to leave Mexico, as you were there longer than 10 days.
Stay overnight in Tikal at Flores, the best time to see the ruins is at dawn with the howler monkeys doing what they do best — howl — as background noise. Later that day you can leave for.......
3. TIKAL TO CAYE CAULKER (BELIZE)
Stay here until you have to go to Tulum. You will easily be able to get a bus to Belize City, then get on a boat at the dock to Caye Caulker. It is a dangerous city and there is no need to hang around.
I would suggest Yuma's Beach House as somewhere on the water to stay.
Kick back on Caye Caulker, and you can then make it to Cancun in a day.
4) CAYE CAULKER TO CANCUN
Make sure you get the ticket the night before for the boat to Chetumal. Don't be scared of the police officers and dogs: just a heads up. Try and grab your bag and get to immigration quickly as it is normally am understaffed shit fight. From here, take a taxi to the bus station, where a bus to Cancun should go in the next 2 hours.
10 DAYS SWITZERLAND, AUSTRIA, GERMANY AND ITALY OVER CHRISTMAS
Chris and his wife (www.abritandasouthener.com) have 10 days at the end of December 2014 to travel through Austria, Switzerland, Germany and Italy on a 5 day rail pass. Restrictions are that they fly into Heathrow on December 21st, and they want to spend a few days in Manchester with family before flying back to the states on January 3rd, 2015. Architecture and trains in Switzerland are high on their list.
BRIEF
Chris and his wife (www.abritandasouthener.com) have 10 days at the end of December 2014 to travel through Austria, Switzerland, Germany and Italy on a 5 day rail pass. Restrictions are that they fly into Heathrow on December 21st, and they want to spend a few days in Manchester with family before flying back to the states on January 3rd, 2015. Architecture and trains in Switzerland are high on their list. They are on a budget.
THINGS TO FACTOR IN:
- It is the busiest time of the year in the mountains, so flights and accommodation must be booked ahead (no room for spontaneity). Best to book the flights first and then work it out from there.
- it will be crowded and a minefield of public holidays and weekends to navigate. Note that these countries, especially urban areas pretty much grind to a halt. Possible basing themselves in a couple of locations and explore from there. I strongly suggest Innsbruck as it is affordable and central.
- Whilst it is a stunning time of the year, in the cities it can be gloomy and bitterly cold. Even though you want to see as much as possible it is no fun walking around outside for long periods of time.
- I would contemplate spending a few days in Ski Resorts and Alpine Areas.
- Italy is a stretch, almost out of the way. Verona and Venice are accessible, but doing a return trip would take two travel days, unless you took a day trip from Innsbruck to Bolzano.
- Switzerland is very very expensive.
A POSSIBLE ITINERARY
Screen shot from Momondo.
1) London to Geneva - Booking the flights is tough at this time of the year, but I did find this one, which will give you sufficient time with your family as well. Innsbruck is a wonderful departure point as it is accessible,
The Matterhorn in Zermatt Switzerland.
2) Zermatt - I would have this as a starting point, and stay here one night. If it is Swiss scenery you want then you cannot go wrong with a view of the Matterhorn. It is also the starting point for The Glacier Express, which is almost a must do. It transfers you in style to St. Moritz. It is 7 hours duration, and you will want to do it in daylight. I am not sure if you want to ski or not, but the resorts are great even if you don't ski. Zermatt has it all: the dogs, the mountains. the chocolate: you name it (or should I say St Bernards, The Matterhorn and Toblerone)?
3) St Moritz . Another hugely popular ski destination, and also super expensive. It is a rather large and developed town and there are many activities on the frozen lake during winter, such as Cricket, Polo and Horse racing, but that is not until January. When I have stayed here I stayed in the Youth Hostel (The Jungendherberge): it is not a typical hostel and it is the best that you are going to get price wise. Also, as St Moritz is located in the Engadine Valley it is likely to be sunny.
Innsbruck, the capital of Tirol, Austria.
4) Innsbruck - To get from St Moritz to Innsbruck is simple on the train, with two changes (at Chur and Sargans). But it still takes six hours. I would suggest basing yourself in Innsbruck for a few days at least as it is affordable, and not only is the town itself stunning with a rich history, there are plenty of day trips that you could make from there. For example, you could go to one of the surrounding ski resorts for a Christmas Lunch. If you like this option, I can tell you more about it and make some suggestions. Innsbruck is also a major hub: you can easily go to Italy and Germany from here. You could also do a day trip to Bolzano in South Tirol from here, thus only using one day travel.
5) Vienna - the architecture, galleries and culture of Vienna are really unmissable. There is so much to do there, whether it be go to galleries, listen to music or sit in Coffee houses. The decadence is breathtaking. Gustav Klimt and Sacher Torte are perfect for a rainy day!!
6) Munich - Munich is more expensive, but it is worth seeing. If you make it here, it is worth considering visits to Dachau (something I feel everyone needs to do once in their life), or Neuschwanstein, which is the Disney Castle. Two hours from Munich I think. Munich is only four hours from Vienna.
Then back to Innsbruck where you would fly out of, possibly after a day at The Aqua Dome.
Geneva - St Moritz, St Moritz - Innsbruck, Innsbruck - Vienna, Vienna -Munich, Munich - Innsbruck.
For train timetables, I find www.sbb.ch is the most user friendly.
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