States/ Countries we covered:

• Florida

• Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Favorite Spots:

• Loly Pop Cafe - killer breakfast spot

• Que Huevos -fun spot with breakfast and coffee

• Poblano de Corazon - small pop up restaurant with the best tacos

• El Fogon - local favorite mexican restaurant, very busy

• Don Chilaquil - local favorite with amazing fruit juices

• Belleville Panaderia - cute french coffee shop, yummy pastries

• Florida- Cove Inn Coffee Shoppe - insanely fast

Tours:

• Used Viator to book our Chichen Itza, Cenote with buffet and Valladolid tour. It was an awesome experience.

Key Takeaways:

• Booking a month at a time through airbnb saved us a lot of money.

• Cooking meals in our airbnb saved us money.

• Eating and shopping outside of downtown is way better and cheaper.

• Florida- using credit card rewards for rental car through Alamo was way cheaper then paying regularly (pickup and dropoff different airports)

• Busing from the airport to Playa Del Carmen was way cheaper than an uber or renting a car the whole time.

Summary:

• This was our first time trying airbnb stays for longer term. Yes, it did save us money, Playa Del Carmen overall is cheaper than most vacation destinations. But by booking for 28 days we received an extra 22% discount on our stay (the discount percentage is different at every airbnb). Bringing our nightly rate down to just $60. The negatives to this is location and staying in one place. We were not downtown by the big resorts. But we honestly preferred it that way. Our condo we rented was a 3 bed 2 bath and came with a pool, gym and 24-hr security. When we did decide to go downtown we would walk the 3 km or grab a taxi for about $3-4 one way. For us the place was great but I could see how it’s not perfect for everyone. The other negative is being in one place for such a long time. We had some visitors week two which brought lots of touring around and good conversations. But by week three of the trip we started to get antsy. We had some rainy days which made us feel a bit stuck. Part way through our trip we discovered an amazing taco stand just down the road. Now we think about these tacos all the time. If we were to do it again, I think we would need some more company or be closer to the beach:)