I had never heard of Tulum before until a few years back when a girl friend of mine took a vacation there with her boyfriend. She touted how great it was but I didn’t think much of it at the time, as Mexico was not high on my Travel list. I had been to Cancun and Cozumel as a teenager and did the whole “Senior Frogs-cocobongo-takeshotstillyoublackout” thing and wasn’t really impressed nor did I have a desire to ever go back. In fact, it took me YEARS and years after that trip before I ever drank tequila again (which is now my favorite choice of poison) ! I also went to Cabo last summer and enjoyed it, but again, wasn’t super impressed and wouldn’t go back unless it was for something important.
I started hearing buzz of Tulum more and more. I stalked a fashion bloggers trip there on IG and spoke to some friends who had been there. They described it as a magical little beach town with a laid back vibe, reggae music, and chill-out bars strung along a white sand beach. OKAY now you have my attention! It was then on my radar.
As a music festival lover, BPM in Playa Del Carmen (1 hr from Tulum) was also on my to-do list. I started going back to school this year and wanted a quick beachy get away before signing my life away and a close girl friend of mine insisted Playa Del Carmen would be the best choice. As it turns out, the week before school that I wanted to go was ALSO when BPM was going on. I call that fate.
Both myself and my 2 girl friends that came with me had an interest in Tulum, so we planned a day trip there during our short 3 day get away. We woke up late after a long night out in down town playa enjoying BPM and honestly, I didn’t think we would make it to Tulum. To my surprise, everyone rallied and we made it there around 2-3pm just in time for lunch. This also happened to be the only day of the 3 that the weather was nice, so it worked out perfectly.
I’ll clarify that there is a difference between Tulum Beach and the city of Tulum. We were only interested in going to the beach so we skipped the city altogether, and the beach is the part I heard such great reviews about. As we drove down the main street of Tulum Beach I already started to fall in love. Hippy vacationers cruised down the street on bicycles. In contrast to down town Playa, there was no big buildings or clubs, just cute little boutique hotels and restaurants. Being the over-planner that I tend to be, I had googled before the trip ” best beach bar in Tulum” and Ziggy’s Beach popped up. The beach photos and menu looked good to me so we headed there first to scope it out.
We walked into a giant thatched roof hut that covered the bar and restaurant. You could see the open fire they used to cook food and wooden swings circled around the bar. Putting drunk people in swings?! Genius. As we walked through, toes in the sand, we saw white woven hammocks and strings of light hanging up. Making our way out the beach, they had more tables outside for dining and then beds by the beach for lounging.
We went straight for the beds (which were free to my surprise, you only had to rent a towel if you didn’t have one). They were able to serve us lunch and drinks right at the beds also which was a double bonus! We ordered a feast of delicious fresh seafood and a round of spicy margaritas. I was in heaven! The food and drinks were both amazing.
We went for a refreshing dip in the ocean afterwards and lounged on the beds the rest of the afternoon. I may have even dozed off for a minute for a perfect little beach nap. When the sun went down, we moved inside to the bar…and the swings of course… and kept the spicy margaritas coming at a slow but steady pace.
The bartender may have convinced us to do a few shots after bringing out the secret weapon, Clase Azul reposado, my absolute favorite tequila! We sat and swang for hours, making friends with other folks at the bar and dancing with the magnificent mariachi band. We had dinner there as well, which was equally as amazing as lunch.
We stayed until they closed at 11pm. ALL DAY at one place, and I would have stayed longer! Everything was perfect. Ziggy’s beach is a part of The Beach Tulum Hotel. I looked at the rooms online and I will absolutely be coming back here and staying at this hotel next time!
I loved Tulum Beach just from this one place, I can’t wait to explore more and see what else it has to offer! It definitely put Mexico back on my radar. My head always wants to wander off to these far far away places across the world and I forget how much beauty can be found right here in North America.
If you are planning a trip to Mexico and want a beautiful, quiet, chilled out place to go- Tulum Beach is it! If you can’t swing the hotel prices at The Beach Tulum Hotel, I would at least make a day trip there to hang out at Ziggy’s.
Through My Wandering Eyes 