Planning a Trip

Getting There & Departing

By Plane -- Aviacsa (tel. 983/872-7698) and Click (tel. 983/832-6675) have a direct flight to and from Mexico City. The airport is west of town, just north of the entrance from the highway.

By Car -- Chetumal is a little more than 3 hours from Tulum. If you're heading to Belize, you won't be able to take your rental car because the rental companies won't allow it. To get to the ruins of Tikal in Guatemala, you must go through Belize to the border crossing at Ciudad Melchor de Mencos. To drive into Chetumal, there's a flyover now where the road splits off for Belize.

By Bus -- The main bus station (tel. 983/832-5110) is 20 blocks from the town center on Insurgentes at Niños Héroes. Buses go to Cancún, Tulum, Playa del Carmen, Puerto Morelos, Mérida, Campeche, Villahermosa, and Tikal, Guatemala.

To Belize: Buses depart from the Lázaro Cárdenas market (most often called el mercado nuevo). Ask for Autobuses Novelo. The company has local service every 45 minutes (140 pesos) and four express buses per day (185 pesos).

Visitor Information

The State Tourism Office (tel. 983/835-0860, ext. 1811) is at Calzada del Centenario 622, between Comonfort and Ciricote. It's open Monday to Friday from 9am to 6pm.

Orientation

The telephone area code is 983.

Traffic enters the city from the west and feeds onto Avenida Obregón into town. Stay on Obregón and don't take the exit for Avenida Insurgentes. Eventually, you'll cross Avenida Héroes, which is the main north-south street.