Die Cancun-Ausgabe
Getting out of Cancun airport without overpaying
What it should cost to reach your hotel from Cancún airport, and which ride to book before you land. The arrivals hall is the worst place to make that decision.
Von Maja LindqvistThe city past the hotel zone
Walk out through the terminal doors at Cancún airport and there is a coach at the kerb with a posted fare to the Hotel Zone. A taxi booked at a counter inside costs about ten times as much. Playa del Carmen and Tulum have their own fixed-price options, and none of them involve haggling with anyone.
The coach at the kerb
The ADO coach is the single most useful thing to know when you land. It is a scheduled intercity service, so the fare is printed on the ticket and nobody negotiates it with you.
Buses leave from outside Terminals 2, 3 and 4. There is no service at Terminal 1, so check which terminal you are landing in before you count on it.
The Hotel Zone run costs $170 MXN and takes about 45 minutes, with up to nine departures a day. It stops once, near kilometre 9 of Boulevard Kukulcán, beside Plaza Caracol and the convention centre. Tickets to Playa del Carmen are usually $270 MXN, with up to 30 departures a day. That journey takes between 1 hour 15 minutes and 1 hour 50 minutes. It ends at the station on Avenida Benito Juárez 251, a short walk from Quinta Avenida.
Every ticket covers 25 kg of checked luggage plus a carry-on, and booking online before you travel can cut the fare by up to half.
The coach will not drop you at your hotel. It makes that one stop. If your room is at the far south end of Boulevard Kukulcán, you will need a second ride from there. The same goes if you are landing with three suitcases and small children. At that point the coach stops being the cheap choice, so book a van instead.
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Kostenlose Stornierung bei vielen Zimmern. Bei einer Buchung erhalten wir möglicherweise eine Provision.
Going south without a taxi
The Tren Maya has its only Cancún station, Cancún Aeropuerto, across Federal Highway 180 from the terminals. That is the catch. An ADO Mobility shuttle in Tren Maya livery links the terminals to the station, and it runs to meet the trains, so there is no fixed timetable. It cost $35 MXN and took about 40 minutes from Terminal 4 when last checked, so confirm the fare at the ADO booth on arrival.
Five trains a day reach Playa del Carmen in about 45 to 49 minutes, from $232.50 MXN. Tulum is about 1 hour 35 minutes away, from $467 MXN in Turista and $560 MXN in Premier. Fares move with demand, so check the price for your own date before you plan around it. For Tulum the train undercuts both the coach and a taxi and halves the journey. If your hotel is in Cancún itself, ignore the train, because the station is on the wrong side of a highway and nowhere near the Hotel Zone.
Colectivo vans are the local fare down Highway 307, about $55 MXN to Playa del Carmen against a much higher coach fare. None of them pick up at the airport. Playa Express leaves from a terminal directly opposite the ADO bus terminal in downtown Cancún, from 5 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., and the nearest the vans get to the airport is a highway turn-off two to three kilometres away. So it only helps once you are downtown. Pay in pesos, in cash, with the exact fare if you can, as drivers take neither dollars nor cards.
Vans you book before you fly
If there are more than three of you, or you are arriving with children, book a private van. The rate is per vehicle, and the figure is settled before you land.
Happy Shuttle Cancún publishes the clearest price grid. Prices go by party size, in brackets of 1 to 3, 4 to 6, 7 to 8 and 9 to 10 passengers. There is a bigger vehicle for 11 to 16. Every run is direct. Staff are posted in all terminals, flights are tracked so a late landing moves your pickup, and they allow 1 hour 30 minutes of waiting before chasing you. The published rates are in dollars, so ask what the peso price will be.
Cancún Airport Transportation lists starting rates by destination and vehicle class, which gives you a number to measure any quote against. Pick by luggage: a van takes up to eight passengers and eight bags, a Suburban up to five, and a group vehicle up to 15. Your pickup point depends on your terminal and arrives with the booking. A quote on the site is not a booking until you are holding a confirmation and a reference number.
Sacbe Transfers will quote in pesos if you ask, which takes the exchange rate out of it. The rate is fixed, nothing is added at the door, and drivers wait at the airport exit. Book at least 48 hours ahead to guarantee your vehicle and time, and ask for a child seat when you book. Booking early is advertised as saving up to 30 per cent. Shared rides cost less but take two to three times longer than a private van.
Along Boulevard Kukulcán
Once you are here, the R-1 and R-2 city buses run the length of Boulevard Kukulcán between the Hotel Zone and downtown. Flag one down anywhere on the strip and pay the driver in cash, $12 MXN on the strip and $10 MXN on routes that stay inside the city. A rise was announced and then frozen, so carry coins and check the fare shown on the day. Look for the destination board in the windscreen.
These buses do not serve the airport at all. And if you are hauling a suitcase in the afternoon crush, do not bother, because they fill up and there is nowhere to put it.
If you are staying on Isla Mujeres
Plenty of Cancún bookings are really Isla Mujeres bookings, and the people selling rides at the airport will happily send you the expensive way round. Ultramar sails from Puerto Juárez on the mainland. The crossing takes 20 to 30 minutes. Boats leave about every half hour, from early morning until around 11 p.m. Adult tickets are $290 MXN one way and $580 MXN return, with children at $220 and $440 MXN, plus a small environmental fee. Published figures vary a lot, so buy at the Ultramar booth.
From the airport, take the coach downtown first. From the Hotel Zone, catch the R-1 with 'Puerto Juárez' in the windscreen, or a taxi for $150 to $250 MXN. There are also sailings from the Playa Tortugas and Playa Caracol docks in the Hotel Zone, which suit a day trip. Land late in the evening and you will miss the last boat, so have a mainland room booked.
Hiring a car
The airport office of America Car Rental is staffed 24 hours a day, year round, and the advertised rate includes insurance, taxes and unlimited mileage. The disagreement at the desk is usually about cover. Tyre and glass protection is sold separately and is not part of the included package. Get the tyre, glass and third-party liability limits confirmed in writing before you pay, as cover bought through a booking site may not match what the desk recognises. The insurance is valid in Mexico only.
A car makes sense if you are driving yourself to cenotes, Valladolid or Chichén Itzá. For a resort and back, parking, tolls and the insurance argument cost more than two transfers.
Before you land
Book your van or your train seat before you fly, and ask for a child seat 48 hours ahead. Carry pesos in cash for the city buses and the colectivo vans, which take nothing else.
See the Cancun guide and the Cancun hotel search.
Vor der Reise
Is there a bus from Cancún airport to the Hotel Zone?
Yes. The ADO coach leaves from outside Terminals 2, 3 and 4, costs $170 MXN and takes about 45 minutes, with up to nine departures a day. It stops once, near kilometre 9 of Boulevard Kukulcán beside Plaza Caracol and the convention centre, so you may need a short taxi or an R-1 bus for the last stretch. Terminal 1 has no ADO service.
Can I take a colectivo from the airport to Playa del Carmen?
No. Colectivos do not pick up at the terminals, and the closest they come is a highway turn-off two to three kilometres away. Playa Express vans leave from a terminal opposite the ADO bus terminal in downtown Cancún, from 5 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., for about $55 MXN in cash. From the airport itself, take the ADO coach or the train.
Does the Tren Maya help if my hotel is in Cancún?
Not really. Cancún Aeropuerto station sits across Federal Highway 180 from the terminals and nowhere near the Hotel Zone, so you add a shuttle leg for nothing. It is worth it heading south: Playa del Carmen takes about 45 to 49 minutes from $232.50 MXN, and Tulum about 1 hour 35 minutes from $467 MXN.
How do I reach Isla Mujeres after landing?
Take the ADO coach into downtown Cancún, then continue to the Puerto Juárez ferry terminal, where Ultramar sails about every half hour until around 11 p.m. The crossing takes 20 to 30 minutes and costs $290 MXN one way for adults, $220 MXN for children. If you land late in the evening, book a mainland room for the night.
Is a private transfer worth booking in advance?
If there are more than three of you, you have a lot of luggage, or you are travelling with children, yes. Vans are priced per vehicle, so the cost per person falls with party size, and the fare is agreed before you travel. Sacbe Transfers needs 48 hours' notice to guarantee your vehicle and a child seat, and will quote in pesos on request.
