Valladolid has been designated one of Mexico’s Pueblos Mágicos so it was calling me, “Come, visit Valladolid.” We bused from Izamal to Valladolid,

Valladolid was founded in 1543 by the nephew of the Spanish Conquistador Francisco de Montejo some distance from where the city is today. It was named after Valladolid, Spain.

Valladolid is derived from the Arabic expression Ballad Al-Walid بلد الوليد, which means “city of Al-Walid” referring to Al-Walid I.

Early Spanish settlers complained about the mosquitos and humidity at the original location, and petitioned to have the city moved further inland. On March 24, 1545, Valladolid was relocated to its current location, built atop a Maya town called Zací or Zací-Val, whose buildings were dismantled to reuse the stones to build the Spanish colonial town.

Wikipedia

As of the 2010 census the population of the city of Valladolid was 45,868 inhabitants. It is a good city in which to base oneself for visiting nearby major Mayan ruins such as Chichén Itzá and Ekʼ Balam or to Rio Logartos on the coast.

A stop in Valladolid (and a swim at one of the nearby cenotes) is included on most of the Chichen Itza excursions. Large tour buses arrive daily in the main square to dropping off hundreds of tourists.

Valladolid was uncomfortably hot and humid. Walking out to get our morning coffee would cause us to sweat profusely. With very few places to get out of the heat, we found ourselves spending most of the day in our small hotel room where we could strip off sweaty clothes to lie on the bed with the air conditioning blowing over our bodies,

Realizing we pretty much had our fill of colonial cities, we were ready for a break from travel and pounding the sidewalks looking where to eat. Cooler ocean breezes, beaches, and living in a swimsuit was calling. One final decision was required. Where to pass the seven days until our final 11-night reservation in Mexico?

We left town for Playa del Carmen on a ADO bus for 2-hour ride and then lost an hour when we crossed the border to the state of Quintana Roo and a new time zone. At Playa del Carmen we transferred to a taxi for the 12-mile trip to Playa Aventuras for a vacation at an all-inclusive beach resort.

Catch up with you soon from Playa del Carmen. I plan to share the Cost of Travel for two months in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula soon.