Itinerary
- Day 1
Mexico City
You'll arrive at the airport and get transferred to your hotel, which sits in a restored 1890s building right next to the Zocalo Plaza and National Cathedral. At 6 pm you'll meet your group and local leader, then head out for dinner to sample local dishes. The evening wraps up with treats at the city's oldest churreria.
- Meals
- Dinner (Welcome dinner with local dishes and churros at the city's oldest churreria)
Included Activities
- Airport transfer
- Welcome dinner with local dishes
- Visit to city's oldest churreria
Landmarks/POIs Zocalo Plaza National Cathedral - Day 2
Mexico City
After an early start with your local leader, you'll check out the National Museum of Anthropology to learn about the country's ancient history. From there, head to the Zocalo Plaza and National Cathedral. You'll stop by Diego Rivera's murals and visit Gastromotiva, an Intrepid Foundation partner working against hunger in Latin America. The evening is yours to explore the city's dining scene with your leader's help.
- Meals
- Breakfast
Included Activities
- National Museum of Anthropology entrance and guided highlights
- Zocalo Plaza visit
- National Cathedral visit
- Diego Rivera Murals in the Mural Museum entrance
- Gastromotiva visit
Landmarks/POIs National Museum of Anthropology Zocalo Plaza National Cathedral Diego Rivera Murals in the Mural Museum Gastromotiva - Day 3
Mexico City to Puebla
You'll travel from Mexico City to Teotihuacan with an expert local guide to walk around the Pyramid of the Sun and Pyramid of the Moon. After exploring the Avenue of the Dead, you'll visit a local family workshop to see obsidian stonework. Then it's on to Puebla where you can check out Candy Street and the handicraft market, see the Rosary Chapel and Town Hall Palace, and have dinner at a well-known restaurant specializing in mole.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (Award-winning restaurant with local specialties and recommended mole)
Included Activities
- Teotihuacan archaeological site with expert local guide
- Avenue of the Dead walk
- Obsidian workshop visit with local family
- Calle de los Dulces walk
- El Parian handicraft market
- Rosary Chapel visit
- Town Hall Palace visit
- Award-winning dinner restaurant
Landmarks/POIs Pyramid of the Sun Pyramid of the Moon Avenue of the Dead Rosary Chapel Town Hall Palace - Day 4
Cholula
After breakfast, your leader will take you on an orientation walk through Cholula to see several of the city's many churches, including the Santuario de la Virgen de los Remedios sitting atop the Great Pyramid of Cholula. You'll walk to the church for panoramic views of the excavated pyramid and learn about this massive structure built to honor the Popocatépetl volcano. Lunch is at a restaurant serving organic, locally sourced food, and the rest of the day is open for you to explore.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch (Organic dishes with locally sourced produce)
Included Activities
- Cholula orientation walk with leader
- Santuario de la Virgen de los Remedios visit
- Great Pyramid of Cholula views
- Organic lunch with locally sourced produce
Landmarks/POIs Great Pyramid of Cholula Santuario de la Virgen de los Remedios Popocatépetl - Day 5
Puebla to Oaxaca
You'll travel to Oaxaca, a colorful city full of history and culture. After arriving in the late afternoon, you'll settle into your hotel for three nights in a converted 19th-century mansion with ivy-clad courtyards, original frescoes, and stone fountains. Your leader will take you on an orientation walk through local markets where you'll have a classic Oaxacan lunch, then you'll have a free evening with dinner recommendations from your leader.
- Meals
- Lunch (Classic Oaxacan lunch at local markets)
Included Activities
- Orientation walk with leader
- Benito Juarez market visit
- 20 de Noviembre market visit
- Classic Oaxacan lunch
Landmarks/POIs Zocalo Benito Juarez Market 20 de Noviembre Market - Day 6
Oaxaca Region
You'll head out to explore the Oaxaca region, visiting the Mitla ruins and the Tule Tree, which is over 11 meters in diameter and over 1500 years old. Along the way you'll sample hand-churned Mexican ice cream with flavors like Beso Oaxaqueno or chili varieties. You'll participate in a beeswax candle-making workshop and watch a Zapotec weaving demonstration. After a mostly plant-based lunch of regional specialties, you'll visit an agave mezcal factory for a tasting before heading back to Oaxaca in the late afternoon.
- Meals
- Lunch (Mostly plant-based lunch of regional specialities)
Included Activities
- Mitla archaeological site visit
- Tule Tree visit
- Mexican ice cream tasting
- Beeswax candle-making workshop
- Zapotec weaving demonstration
- Mostly plant-based regional lunch
- Agave mezcal factory tasting
Landmarks/POIs Mitla Tule Tree - Day 7
Oaxaca
This day is free for you to explore Oaxaca at your own pace. Your leader can help arrange activities like visiting the Monte Alban archaeological site, taking a local cooking class, or going on a street art cycling tour, whatever suits your interests. This evening you'll have a special dining experience with a multi-course menu of traditional Oaxacan dishes prepared by an award-winning restaurant owner, inspired by her mother and grandmother's recipes.
- Meals
- Dinner (Multi-course farewell dinner with traditional Oaxacan dishes curated by award-winning owner, inspired by mother and grandmother's recipes)
Included Activities
- Farewell dinner with award-winning Oaxacan cuisine
Optional Activities
- Monte Alban archaeological site visit
- Local cooking class
- Street art cycling tour
Landmarks/POIs Monte Alban - Day 8
Oaxaca to Playa del Carmen
You'll catch a flight to Playa del Carmen, a coastal resort town on the Yucatan Peninsula. After arriving at Cancun International Airport, you'll be transferred to your hotel. If you arrive early, you can stroll along the pedestrian avenue browsing handmade hammocks, jewelry, and crafts. You'll attend a group meeting with your new local leader, then head into town for dinner at a local restaurant.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Dinner (Welcome dinner at local restaurant)
Included Activities
- Airport transfer from Cancun
- Welcome dinner at local restaurant
Optional Activities
- Pedestrian avenue browsing for handmade items
Landmarks/POIs Cancun International Airport Playa del Carmen - Day 9
Playa del Carmen to Valladolid
After breakfast, you'll head to the secluded Laguna Chabela to meet a local Maya family who've lived there for generations. You'll walk through the low jungle, learn how they live off the land, and watch the family matriarch make tortillas by hand. A traditional lunch prepared using ancient techniques comes next. Later you'll continue to Valladolid, a city known for its pastel-colored buildings, and check into your hotel on the main square in a converted 16th-century house.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch (Traditional lunch prepared by hand using mortar and pestle from nearby ruins, over 1000 years old)
Included Activities
- Maya family visit at Laguna Chabela
- Jungle walk with medicinal plants
- Tortilla-making demonstration
- Traditional lunch with family
Landmarks/POIs Laguna Chabela Valladolid - Day 10
Valladolid to Merida
In the morning you'll explore the Chichen Itza complex, one of the new Seven Wonders of the World and considered the most important Maya-Toltec archaeological site by UNESCO. Your local guide will show you around, with the Temple of Kukulkan (El Castillo) as the main focus. You'll have a home-cooked lunch with a local family featuring a traditional Pibil feast, Maya-style underground barbecue. Later you'll visit a cenote for a swim, then continue to Merida to check into the historic Hotel Casa Lucia with a courtyard swimming pool.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch (Home-cooked traditional Pibil feast—Maya style underground barbecue perfected by family over generations)
Included Activities
- Chichen Itza archaeological site with local guide
- Temple of Kukulkan exploration
- Home-cooked Pibil feast with local family
- Cenote swim
Landmarks/POIs Chichen Itza Temple of Kukulkan Merida - Day 11
Merida
Your leader will take you on a walking tour of downtown Merida to learn about the city's Maya heritage. You'll visit the local market to see daily life, stop by the city museum, Montejo's House, and the cathedral. Inside the Palacio del Gobierno you'll see murals by Fernando Castro Pacheco showing the city's history and Maya-Spanish interactions. The afternoon is free to relax in Plaza Grande or browse outdoor markets. You'll regroup for dinner at a local restaurant serving Yucatan specialties like sopa de lima.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Dinner (Yucatan specialties at local restaurant, sopa de lima (lime soup) especially delicious)
Included Activities
- Downtown Merida walking tour with leader
- Local market visit
- City museum visit
- Montejo's House visit
- Cathedral visit
- Palacio del Gobierno visit with Fernando Castro Pacheco murals
- Dinner with Yucatan specialties
Optional Activities
- Plaza Grande relaxation
- Outdoor market browsing for Maya replicas
Landmarks/POIs Palacio del Gobierno Plaza Grande - Day 12
Celestun Bird Sanctuary
You'll head out to the Celestun Bird Sanctuary and Biosphere Reserve, one of the first places migratory birds arrive for winter. You'll tour the area by small boat to learn about the local flora and fauna, looking for the Yucatan woodpecker, Mexican sheartail, and tropical mockingbird. Depending on the season, usually December to March, you might see thousands of flamingos. You'll hop off the boat to view bubbling springs, then cruise through mangrove canals. Lunch at a fishing town includes fresh seafood and Gulf of Mexico views before returning to Merida.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch (Fresh seafood lunch in a fishing town)
Included Activities
- Celestun Bird Sanctuary and Biosphere Reserve boat tour
- Flora and fauna guided learning
- Bubbling springs walk
- Mangrove canal cruise
- Fishing town lunch
- Gulf of Mexico swimming
Landmarks/POIs Celestun Bird Sanctuary and Biosphere Reserve Gulf of Mexico - Day 13
Merida to Tulum
You'll depart Merida towards Muyil, stopping for lunch in the village of Coba. Then you'll explore the virtually unknown Muyil Archaeological Site, an ancient Maya trading post with history stretching back to 350 BC. After walking through the ruins with your leader, you'll head to the Maya River to board a small boat for exploring the canals and lagoons of the Sian Ka'an biosphere, one of the largest protected UNESCO World Heritage sites in Mexico. Local community guides will help you experience the area. You'll admire riverbank ruins and float through peaceful mangrove canals for about 45 minutes before continuing on to Tulum.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch
Included Activities
- Muyil archaeological site exploration with leader
- Sian Ka'an biosphere boat tour
- Mangrove canal float experience
- Local community guide experience
Landmarks/POIs Muyil Archaeological Site Sian Ka'an Biosphere Maya River - Day 14
Tulum
In the morning you'll head to the Tulum archaeological site to learn about these ruins and their ocean views overlooking the Caribbean. Your leader will explain life here as you explore the complex against the ocean backdrop. The afternoon is for soaking up the sun at a beach club where you can swim in the Caribbean or relax in a lounge chair. Tonight you'll dine at one of Tulum's best restaurants with laid-back vibes, featuring the freshest local produce and seafood for a final dinner with your friends from the trip.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Dinner (Farewell dinner at one of Tulum's best restaurants with laid-back vibes, inspired by freshest local produce and seafood)
Included Activities
- Tulum archaeological site visit and history with leader
- Beach club visit
- Caribbean Sea swimming
- Farewell dinner at award-winning restaurant
Landmarks/POIs Tulum Archaeological Site Caribbean Sea - Day 15
Tulum
Your adventure ends after breakfast. If you'd like to stay longer in Tulum, just contact your booking agent ahead of time to arrange additional accommodation.
- Meals
- Breakfast
Optional Activities
- Additional accommodation in Tulum (contact booking agent to arrange)
