June 9, 2007

It was the best of hotels on Isla Mujeres. It was the worst of hotels on Isla Mujeres.

Isla Mujeres - named for the hundreds of small female statuettes left by the Mayans on its beaches - is equally popular with daytrippers looking for short-term change of scenery from Cancun and backpackers looking for a longer stay.

At least two ferries service the island - including one that takes vehicles - but it would have cost us $50 round trip to take the van. So we instead opted to leave it at a campsite that was relatively nearby - Trailer Park Mecoloco, Cancun's only campsite - and walked-on the boat.

It is quick 20-minute ferry ride from Cancun to the island and we liked it immediately, as the narrow streets that run north to the main swimming beach, Playa Norte, are packed with lively bars, restaurants and shops.

We checked into the the budget Hotel Rocha, but after a sleepless night in a suffocatingly hot room on blood-stained sheets that didn't stay on the mattress and that left us feeling itchy, we decided to upgrade on the second night.

We highly recommend the Hotel Belmar. For only about $20 more than our coffin the previous night, it came with a king-size bed, bedside tables with reading lamps, a TV, thick white towels, a lock box, a little balcony overlooking one of the main streets and, most importantly, A/C.

With a place like that to crash at night, it was easy to wile away the days in the bathwater-warm waters of the Caribbean.

Key Facts & Figures:

-Ferry Ride (round trip): $7/person
-Hotel Rocha: $15/night
-Hotel Belmar: $38/night
-Parking, Trailer Park Mecoloco: $2.50/day