Where to go if you want a break from Isla Mujeres

It seems that in practice not many residents want to take a break from Isla Mujeres, quite the reverse; there are residents who arrived on the island ten years ago and never left, not even for a shopping trip to Cancun . However, some residents do like to get away from the island from time to time, especially those who own property, because as many have discovered it is possible to rent an Isla Mujeres villa, for two to three thousand Dollars per week and go on a very nice holiday, all paid for by the rental.

Many who do this tend to go to Merida, because it's a beautiful city and very safe, in fact one of the safest cities in Mexico. However it is four hours drive, or on the bus, whereas Valladolid is also a very good choice and  a lot nearer than Merida; about half the distance and half the travelling time from Cancun. 

If you decide to drive to either Valladolid or Merida there are two routes,  the Nacional and the Autopista. The Nacional is the far more interesting of the two; there are many local restaurants and  places where you can buy locally produced produce along the way. The only thing is that it can be a bit dangerous, especially if it starts raining, it isn't that wide and many large trucks travel this route. Dangerous, not Isla Mujeres type of  dangerous where you might hit or be hit by a golf cart, but seriously dangerous, like being squashed between two speeding trucks. The Autopista is the safer bet, albeit very boring; there is no change of scenery, just the same vegetation the whole route. You have to be careful not to fall asleep due to boredom, many motorists do.

Valladolid has an interesting history going back many centuries. It was founded by the Spanish conquistadores in the sixteenth century. Named after what was Spain's capital city at the time. Mexico has a number of what they call Pueblo Magicos, magic towns and Valladolid is one of them, as of course is Isla Mujeres.

Prior to the arrival of the Spanish in the sixteenth century the region was occupied by indigenous cultures. The Spanish would probably claim they brought great improvements to Mexico (minus their gold) as would the British in the case of India, other would claim they were just fine as they were. The Spanish experienced considerable resistance from the Mayans against the occupation. They went about teaching them the Catholic religion, rather like the west today; going about trying to introduce "democracy" to countries that don't want it.

There are many interesting ruins to visit in and around Valladolid, street markets and has the benefit of being like Merida; extremely safe. The other attractions are the Cenotes, the underground lakes there are a number around Valladolid. Some of the Cenotes are over one hundred meters deep, you can swim in them, the water is extremely cold. There is one that remained undiscovered until the 1950,s until a man fell through the ground he was walking on into the cenote, which must have been a bit of a shock.