Tulum Holiday Photo Diary #2

 Breakfast at La Luna wearing Zimmerman bikini

Hartwood: 100% worth the wait

Still missing that view.... Charlotte Taylor bikini

Zara shirt, Mango shorts, Larson and Jennings resurgence watch and one red nose.  

 Mango shorts (old but similar here)and Undrest bikini

Caught in the act! 

New friend we adopted for the day

Casa Blanca at La Luna

Delicious cocktails at Posada Margherita

Insane seafood linguine at Hemingways 

So from the beautiful Casa Violeta, we moved slightly north up the coast to the equally stunning but very different Cabanas La Luna. Brightly-painted cabanas with multi-coloured hammocks and wooden decks nestled amongst palm trees meant the simple act of eating breakfast every morning on our private deck was a treat. 

We missed the food and restaurant from Casa Violeta (La Luna's felt a bit more resort-y and the menu was a bit tired) but the set-up of La Luna couldn't be beaten. You can probably tell an abundance of hammocks went down well too! 

So as promised,I've compiled a list of our favourite places we discovered while out there. I loved stumbling across people's personal hints and tips for Tulum before I went so hopefully this will help others in the future. I'd love to hear any of your Tulum suggestions too if anyone has any to add.

Sleeping

Casa Violeta - Mellow, beautiful, cool. Ticks all the boxes

Cabanas La Luna - Multi-coloured, castaway dream

Hemingway - We went for dinner here (see eating below) and the cabanas looked really nice. The stretch of beach isn't quite as dreamy as other places but a good option. 

Uno - Really sweet eco huts and camping right on the beach. Lit by candlelight at night and heard good things about the food, juices and yoga.

Eating

Hartwood - You might have to wait over an hour for a table at this ridiculosuly popular haunt but who cares when you have a freshly-made fruit cocktail in hand. And the delicious food definitely lives up to the hype. Make sure to check out the buzzing open-plan kitchen at the back laden with fresh ingredients too. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Posada Margherita - Who knew Italian food in Mexico would be so good. Balmy beach setting, fresh pasta and great cocktails.

El Tabano - Mexican home cooking with a menu written entirely on two enormous blackboards and a fun bar for before and after dinner. 

Casa Jaguar - Asian-inspired food in intimate, romantic jungle setting. Experimental cocktails come in massive stone tumblers too which is always fun. Apparently good for breakfast too. 

Hemingway - a bit of a secret gem. There's only 4 or 5 tables in this super sweet restaurant on the beach. Really small, fresh Italian menu that they can basically adapt to suit you.

All the Rest

The ruins- get there early to avoid the bus loads of tourists from Cancun that descend around 9.30. A.M which turns the whole experience into a bit of a theme park. We got there at 9 but 8 would have been better. 

Cenotes - We didn't end up doing one as we loved hanging on the beach so much with our books but next time I'll be sure to check one out. 

Shopping - Tulum town has lots of little shops with all the usual suspects; dream-catchers, pottery, embroidered dresses and textiles. Haggling is o.k and expected so definitely don't just go with the first price offered but equally bear in mind that Tulum isn't super cheap. There are also some smaller shops around Mateo's on the beach road.

Papaya Playa or Zamas for late nights drinks, live music and beach parties.

Tulum, you were great, already looking forward to our next rendez-vous....

All photos by myself and James Wright

Tulum Holiday Photo Diary #1

Isabel Marant shorts, Theysken's Theory t-shirt, Ray Ban wayfarers, Hammamas towel.

Steps down to the beach at the Tulum ruins.

Backless playsuit by The Reformation.

 Zara shirt / Larson & Jennings Resurgence watch / Noemi Klein ring

 Topshop Bikini. Similar here and here.

Vintage cut-offs from Urban Outfitters / Topshop silk camisole / vintage embroidered bed jacket bought in L.A

Gap jeans (bought 2 sizes too big for a baggy fit) / Charlotte Taylor bikini

Our room at the dreamy Casa Violeta

Fish tacos became something of a staple for lunch.

American Apparel bikini bottoms / Topshop T-shirt / vintage crochet beach bag / Astley Clarke, Esotic X Not Another Bill and Kabiri friendship bracelets, Natalie Marie jewellery and Vera Meat rings.

Cocktails caveman-style at Casa Jaguar.

 I've almost been back a week from this little slice of paradise in the Yucatan, and the post-holiday blues have yet to subside. Turquoise water, white sand, fresh coconuts on a daily basis, swaying palms and shady afternoon siestas in hammocks; Tulum really is the castaway dream incarnate. 

The majority of these shots are from Casa Violeta, our first stop on our 10-day Mexican holiday. Small and perfectly formed, each individual room is subtle and perfectly suited to beach life with breezy white mosquito nets, stone floors and sunken showers. Every room has a designated sunlounger and umbrella which is a real bonus - no towel reservations needed! We loved their smoothies and juices, so much so that by the end of our 5 days there they pretty much had out order down pat (spinach, pineapple and raspberry for me, coconut, blackberry and peach for Jamie). Delicious, fresh food (the best guacamole we had in Tulum), daily yoga and a cool, relaxed restaurant on stilts above the sand completed the picture-perfect set up. 

I'll be covering where to stay/eat/visit in full in the second installment so I thought I'd use part one to cover the basics, the kind of things I wish I'd know before I went and some helpful tips I picked up from people along the way.  I hope this helps any of you lucky people considering a trip to Tulum.

Tulum: The Essentials

• Tulum is HOT. I tan eaisly and quickly in Europe but I fried on my first few days in Tulum which meant I had to spend the next few days sore and in the shade (not pretty or fun). And that was in factor 30 so be warned! Next time I'll be taking factor 50 or P20 to guard from the super strong rays. On the 2nd day, I caught the sun while in the shade through the umbrella at the hottest part of the day and just 20 minutes in the sea can burn centre-partings so be extra careful between 11 and 3 o'clock. Take lots of good quality suncream with you to save form being caught short; Hawaiian Tropic is the only readily available brand once out there.
• A torch is useful for walking down the jungle road or beach to restaurants at night and mosquito repellent is a must if you're prone to getting bitten. 
• Despite looking and feeling like a rustic desert island paradise, Tulum is expensive. Eating out is often the equivalent of average-priced meal in London so go with this knowledge to save from getting a shock once out there. We took advantage of our free breakfasts and often shared a main course at lunch so we could have nice meals in the evening.
• You get a better exchange rate for Mexican pesos but U.S dollars are accepted most places too. We took a mixture to get us going and then got Mexican pesos from the ATMs in town while there. Take out more than you think you need to save from endless visits to town (most of the ATMS along the beach road don't work and lots of the restaurants don't accept cards).
• Coming from the U.K, we found we were waking up at around 7 A.M every morning but it actually turned out to be really nice once you get into the swing of things. Make the most of it with a long walk down the beach, sunrise swim or yoga to wake you up.
• The beach gets better looking the further south you stay with less seaweed and calmer, clearer waters. 
• You need very little in terms of packing; I get cold very easily but only needed an extra layer a couple of times at night when the sea wind picked up. We barely wore shoes the entire time and my makeup bag was pretty much made redundant!
• Get a direct flight to Cancun. It might initially seem that you need to fly via the states but we managed to get a very reasonably priced Virgin flight direct to Cancun. It makes all the difference and allows you to make the most of your holiday time.  
• If you can, pay the extra for a room/hut right on the beach. Go for a smaller, more basic option if needs be as waking up to that bright blue sea and sky and falling asleep to the sound of the waves is 100% worth it and what being in Tulum is all about.

Part two on its way later this week. 

All photos by myself and James Wright