Cancun

[Elvis 2008]

Today 3 PM Cancun time, Maps shows buses departing downtown Cancun every 30 minutes, taking 1 hour 20 minutes to P the see, 2 hours 30 minutes to Tulum. There was no mention of traffic problems.

If you leave at 5 AM when there is no traffic, PDC is like a 30 or 40 minute drive from the Cancun airport. It is only 35 miles away. Tulum is 74 miles away. I have done it in a little over an hour when there was no traffic and up to four when there was.

Public transportation should aim at serving local people who need to ride everyday, not drunk tourists who only come once every few years. And then rail lines will still operate at step losses for decades.

Well, the Mexican people are going to being pay much less for the train than the tourists. Maybe you are right, and the train is a big flop. All I know is that if the train allows for easier transportation and faster transit, I will be using it.

[Dolphun]

My buddy and I hit the Plaza district the other night. First we checked out some of the nightclubs, which didn't look that interesting. Then we started getting hit up by these strip club promoters while walking along. You also have guys running up to you "Hey! You want to see a real *house? I take you there!" We declined and kept walking. But the strip club promoters keep following you wherever you walk. They were acting pretty desperate for business, and after passing on 3 clubs we finally gave in and agreed to enter Baby's. The doormen wanted $200 pesos from each of us. We negotiated for $300 for both.

When we entered, I noticed we were the first customers of the night and it was already 10:30 PM or so. The way it works in Cancun. The girls all line up together in front of your chair and you pick one you like. They were all 8, 9, 10's, so the quality was there. I just couldn't figure out why these clubs are starving for patrons?

One busty, natural blonde girl was escorted over to our seats by the manager and she asked me if she could sit with me. She requested a whiskey. I ordered one and the waiter said "That will be $45 USD. " . . . HUH?! $45 for a small drink? Then the girl explained that she and the lap dance come with the drink. She wound up dancing for 3 to 4 songs for that $ amount, so it was a quite reasonable deal. There are spaces along the side of the main room with small crude wooden benches and curtains that can be drawn. To have a 30 minute session in one of those spaces (I wouldn't call them rooms) is $1500 pesos. My dancer did suggest sex, but those benches looked pretty uncomfortable. I asked the blonde for her phone number and suggest we get together the following night, but she said she wanted $400 USD. No way am I paying that in Cancun!! So we ended the conversation there.

[Captain Solo]

Seasoned travelers said bus traffic along the coast, also Eastbound to Merida and Chitchen Itza, have been smooth for years.

Recently Cancun has been doing a $350 Mil project, building more access roads around the airport, also adding a 5-mile bridge across Nichupte lagoon to bring workers directly from downtown to Hotel Zone. Those are good moves to make life easier for workers, but will cause temporary disruptions for now.

Today 3 PM Cancun time, Maps shows buses departing downtown Cancun every 30 minutes, taking 1 hour 20 minutes to P the see, 2 hours 30 minutes to Tulum. There was no mention of traffic problems. The Army-operated Tren Maya that will run twice a day at higher prices will have very hard time competing against nimble, low-cost private operators. Army chiefs will pilfer everything out of that train system to spend on their mistresses, prostitutes, fine dining, expensive liquors, drugs and luxuries. Screw the tourists, Mayans and AMLO.

Public transportation should aim at serving local people who need to ride everyday, not drunk tourists who only come once every few years. And then rail lines will still operate at step losses for decades. China is losing billions every month with its High Speed Rail system.

I think you are romanticizing the bus trips and conditions. You just answered your own question. It is not just that you are going to be traveling on hot buses. It is that you will not have to deal with as much traffic and I assume you will be in a cool train. It is usually an hour from Cancun to Tulum. I have been stuck in traffic and it has taken three hours. It was so bad that until they fixed the roads, I was not going to Playa del Carmen or Tulum. It is fixed but there still can be horrible traffic.

That is Cancun. When you go to Tulum and PDC, you see the thrill seekers. That is where the Xcaret parks are and IMO where all the real fun is, but I do not think you get what a pain in the ass it is getting there. The public bus dumps you in town and there was no Uber before to take you from your stop to the hotel you were in. Getting a cab to PDC or Tulum was either so expensive or such a pain in the ass that I routinely just rented a car. Now I might not have to.

Still, I prefer a car to a bus and in Europe, I preferred a train to a car.

As for it being a flop, I do not see it. The lines the last time I was in Cancun were insane. Anything that can lighten the congestion IMO is going to be a hit.

[Elvis 2008]

Back in 1990 when Mexico was building the 2-lane highway from Cancun to Chetumal, capital of Quintana Roo, I drove a rental car all the way down South through verdant jungle, stopping at some of the most beautiful beaches along the way. The highway was mostly fresh ground still being leveled by bull dozers, had no problem.

Rode AC buses to Chitchen Itza and Merida, 5 to 6 hours on nice clean roads among the greenest jungle with scattered Mayan villages. It was Sept, hot like an oven. Those were exotic and fun trips.

I think you are romanticizing the bus trips and conditions. You just answered your own question. It is not just that you are going to be traveling on hot buses. It is that you will not have to deal with as much traffic and I assume you will be in a cool train. It is usually an hour from Cancun to Tulum. I have been stuck in traffic and it has taken three hours. It was so bad that until they fixed the roads, I was not going to Playa del Carmen or Tulum. It is fixed but there still can be horrible traffic.

They are too busy laying out in the beach, get drunk, get high, stuff their mouths with buffet food, party all night or have sex in the hotels.

That is Cancun. When you go to Tulum and PDC, you see the thrill seekers. That is where the Xcaret parks are and IMO where all the real fun is, but I do not think you get what a pain in the ass it is getting there. The public bus dumps you in town and there was no Uber before to take you from your stop to the hotel you were in. Getting a cab to PDC or Tulum was either so expensive or such a pain in the ass that I routinely just rented a car. Now I might not have to.

Still, I prefer a car to a bus and in Europe, I preferred a train to a car.

As for it being a flop, I do not see it. The lines the last time I was in Cancun were insane. Anything that can lighten the congestion IMO is going to be a hit.

[GreyMan1205]

Hey all,

I will be halting in Cancun only one day (tomorrow), if anyone has some nice contacts or message parlors with FS please share, would be really appreciated.

Cheers.

[Captain Solo]

AMLO rail line will destroy hundreds thousands acres of virgin jungle and wild life in it. It's sad.

Don't know what month and how you can bike through Yucatan. It's hot like an oven with sporadic rain shower. I would not go unless in a AC vehicle.

Trains are usually not popular with tourists. Who would want to go sight seeing on noisy and sweaty trains with limited schedule? Train demand is high primarily for commuting and carrying cargo, but the rail line is not linking the West to East coast. Even if it does the costs and delays will not be competitive with the Panama canal, unless OC runs out of lake water to operate and has to shut down.

How can it generate economic development for locals? What can it improve upon extensive existing bus network? It's likely will incur huge losses every year just like China's High Speed Rail.

[John Clayton]

...No cost / benefit analysis was ever made public. Looks like AMLO's $30-billion train loop will be a big flop, further draining hundreds million $ of loss every year from the people of Mexico. When AMLO fails to make payment for the loan to Chinese banks, China will foreclose and take over Yucatan peninsula.

You forgot that it is an environmental f!cking disaster. I'm hoping the whole thing will sink into a cenote and be swallowed by the jungle. I'm taking my bike through the Yucatan for a farewell tour before the chinese tourists take over. I wish Hamas would paraglide over there for a change of pace and take some of those Morena goofballs hostage.

[Captain Solo]

Back in 1990 when Mexico was building the 2-lane highway from Cancun to Chetumal, capital of Quintana Roo, I drove a rental car all the way down South through verdant jungle, stopping at some of the most beautiful beaches along the way. The highway was mostly fresh ground still being leveled by bull dozers, had no problem.

Rode AC buses to Chitchen Itza and Merida, 5 to 6 hours on nice clean roads among the greenest jungle with scattered Mayan villages. It was Sept, hot like an oven. Those were exotic and fun trips.

Per Google Map, AC buses leave about every hour from Cancun to Chetumal, costing about 600 NMP or $35. Meanwhile AMLO train will leave only twice a day. Buses go on main roads and stop at villages along the way; train will go through mostly jungle with nothing to see and cost more than buses.

Experienced travelers said bus transport work well and cheap all over Yucatan. Tourists are unlikely to take the train with its inconvenient schedule and higher costs. Out of the 100,000 tourists average in Cancun everyday, wonder how many would take the train anywhere. They are too busy laying out in the beach, get drunk, get high, stuff their mouths with buffet food, party all night or have sex in the hotels.

No cost / benefit analysis was ever made public. Looks like AMLO's $30-billion train loop will be a big flop, further draining hundreds million $ of loss every year from the people of Mexico. When AMLO fails to make payment for the loan to Chinese banks, China will foreclose and take over Yucatan peninsula.

[Elvis 2008]

Very nice. By 2024 we can ride the train all around Yucatan in a loop from Cancun to Merida, Chetumal, Campeche, Chiapas and Palengue.

Hope the Mexico's Army can run the train without wrecking it, provide security for tourists down the wild Southern states, prevent the cartels from using it to transport drugs and migrants to ride it nearer to the US border.

https://www.ft.com/content/7c326be0-...e-1da31729dac5

Mexico opens $30 bn military-run 'Maya Train' aimed at Cancand tourists.

Populist president's signature project has been criticised for environmental damage and soaring costs.

The 1,500 km Maya Train line is one of the largest infrastructure projects under way in the Americas and will run in a loop around the Yucatand peninsula and neighbouring states Jose Luis Gonzalez / Reuters.

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Mexico will on Friday open the first part of a $30 bn train line, a signature project of populist President Andrs Manuel Lpez Obrador built with limited transparency and run by the army.

The 1,500 km Maya Train line is one of the largest infrastructure projects under way in the Americas and will run in a loop around the Yucatand peninsula and neighbouring states.

Thanks for the link Captain. Yeah, Tulum airport just opened up as well. For now, it is just domestic flights so flying to Cancun is more time effective in getting to Tulum.

Here is a map of the train route: https://trenmayaa.com/en/route/.

And here is more news: https://www.trains.com/trn/news-revi...gin-operation/.

The first section of Mexico's Tren Maya, or Maya Train — a tourism project on the country's southeastern tip championed by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador — is slated to open today (Friday, Dec. 15), just five years after it was announced and years ahead of initial projections.

The initial segment, opening today, runs some 298 miles between Cancúand and Campeche, with a trip taking six hours. The entire route is projected to be completed by February.

End of link.

I have always wanted to go South of Tulum to the lake of seven colors, Lake Bacalar. Thing is I was never keen on driving the eight hours round trip from Cancun to get there. Roads in Mexico are better than anywhere I have driven in South America (though I heard Chile is great, have not been there) but still I was not keen on going on roads to far off the beaten path. To be able to hop on a train though, that is fucking awesome.

I am not sure about buying a house but the airport and roads are going to make the area south of Tulum very desirable for housing speculation. The Mexican deserve kudos for getting the train and airport built as quickly as they did.

[Captain Solo]

Back in 1990 when Mexico was building the highway from Cancun to Chetumal, capital of Quintana Roo, I drove a rental car all the way down South through verdant jungle, stopping at some of the most beautiful beaches along the way. The highway was mostly fresh ground still being leveled by bull dozers, had no problem.

Rode AC buses to Chitchen Itza and Merida, 5 to 6 hours on nice clean roads among the greenest jungle with scattered Mayan villages. It was Sept, hot like an oven. Those were exotic and fun trips.

Per Google Map, AC buses leave about every hour from Cancun to Chetumal, costing about 600 NMP or $35. Meanwhile AMLO train will leave only twice a day. Buses go on main roads and stop at villages along the way; train will go through mostly jungle with nothing to see and cost more than buses.

Experienced travelers said bus transport work well and cheap all over Yucatan. Tourists are unlikely to take the train with its inconvenient schedule and higher costs. Out of the 100,000 tourists average in Cancun everyday, wonder how many would take the train anywhere. They are too busy laying out in the beach, get drunk, stuff with buffet food, party all night or have sex in the hotels.

No cost / benefit analysis was ever made public. Looks like AMLO's $30-billion train loop will be a big flop, further draining hundreds million $ of loss every year from the people of Mexico. When AMLO fails to make payment for the loan to Chinese banks, China will foreclose and take over Yucatan peninsula.

[Captain Solo]

Very nice. By 2024 we can ride the train all around Yucatan in a loop from Cancun to Merida, Chetumal, Campeche, Chiapas and Palengue.

Hope the Mexico's Army can run the train without wrecking it, provide security for tourists down the wild Southern states, prevent the cartels from using it to transport drugs and migrants to ride it nearer to the US border.

https://www.ft.com/content/7c326be0-...e-1da31729dac5

Mexico opens $30 bn military-run 'Maya Train' aimed at Cancúand tourists.

Populist president's signature project has been criticised for environmental damage and soaring costs.

The 1,500 km Maya Train line is one of the largest infrastructure projects under way in the Americas and will run in a loop around the Yucatáand peninsula and neighbouring states © Jose Luis Gonzalez / Reuters.

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Mexico will on Friday open the first part of a $30 bn train line, a signature project of populist President Andrés Manuel López Obrador built with limited transparency and run by the army.

The 1,500 km Maya Train line is one of the largest infrastructure projects under way in the Americas and will run in a loop around the Yucatáand peninsula and neighbouring states.

It aims to spur economic development in Mexico's poorer south by connecting Cancúand's beach resorts with other areas but has been criticised for a lack of transparency, environmental damage and soaring costs — the total expenditure of more than 515 bn pesos ($30 bn) is more than three times over the project's initial budget.

On Friday the first part of the route will open from Campeche to Cancúand, with tickets costing 1,166 pesos for a 480 km, six-hour journey, a similar time to making the trip by car.

"No study has been presented that justifies spending so much money," said Jesús Carrillo, head of sustainable economics at Mexican think-tank IMCO. He said the country's south had many more urgent infrastructure needs that would garner fewer headlines. "A train is clearly showier than a transmission line .  .  .  It's clearly another effort to leave a legacy. ".

Activists explore a 'cenote' limestone sinkhole discovered during the Maya Train's construction in Solidaridad, Quintana Roo state © Jose Luis Gonzalez / Reuters.

The train is a cornerstone of López Obrador's broader vision to prioritise the poorer south and reassert the state's role in the economy with a series of mega projects. The leftist leader says "neoliberal" policies under former administrations increased corruption and inequality.

"During the entire neoliberal period the whole south-east was abandoned," López Obrador said in October. "The train will help reactivate the economy, bring jobs and wellbeing, and people can live off this for a long time. ".

Named after the largest indigenous group in the region, the Maya Train has met significant resistance from environmental groups over the culling of at least 3 mn trees and fears the line will contaminate water in thousands of cenote limestone sinkholes.

"The only Mayan thing about the train is its name," said Pedro Uc, a Mayan poet and activist. "It's a shot through the heart of the peninsular Mayan culture. ".

José Urbina Bravo, another activist, said: "There is no way to defend this project, it doesn't protect the environment, the environment is an obstacle to them. ".

The president has relied on the military, one of the country's most trusted institutions, to push through his political promises.

A state company under army control called Olmeca-Maya-Mexica will run the train as well as hotels and national parks, a national airline and a dozen airports. Activists have warned the economic and political power given to the military risks corruption and rights abuses.

After the project ran into legal obstacles that forced multiple stoppages and route alterations, López Obrador issued a presidential decree to make it a "national security" priority, allowing the administration to sidestep transparency requirements.

The government has not published a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis for the project.

"The transparency issue is very important and very worrying because .  .  .  we can't identify if the money spent is really going to impact or benefit people," said Leslie Areli Badillo, researcher at the Centre of Economic and Budgetary Investigations think-tank.

López Obrador is working to a tight deadline. He is pushing to finish multiple train lines, airports and an oil refinery before the country's presidential election in June, to show that his party has delivered on pledges to boost economic development. Polls show his chosen successor Claudia Sheinbaum, a former Mexico City mayor and climate scientist, holds a more than 20-point lead.

States that host the broader project have seen a rise in public investment as contractors race to finish work. The track was divided into sections being built by Mexican companies such as billionaire Carlos Slim's Grupo Carso as well as Portuguese group Mota-Engil.

French trainmaker Alstom and Canada's Bombardier led the consortium that won a $1 bn contract to provide the mostly hybrid diesel-electric passenger trains that will run along the route. López Obrador said the train line should be finished by February.

[VW1936]

There's a Casita 3 or 4 blocks from the Ado main bus station downtown called Fraise Spa Cancun. It has It's own Facebook page and you can find it online. The address is Niche Habin Supermanza 24,77509 Cancúand, Quintana Roo. There were only 2 girls and charged 2,100 pesos for 30 minutes. One girl was a 8 and the other a 4. You don't need an appointment. There's also a little strip club two blocks from the same Ado bus station called La Envidia. I didn't get a chance to check it out. It only has 2 reviews online so yeah LOL You can find it online too. It's only open Thursday through Sunday from 9 pm.

[Sol12]

Thank you Sol! Much appreciated for sure. I'll be in Tulum the 5th-15th. What is La Boutique if you don't mind sharing?

Sorry it's just a website for escorts all over Mexico. Most girls are in CDMX but you can find girls working in almost every major city. At this time they only have one girl working in Tulum. Sometimes you can't share other websites here but if you do a search with the name and escorts CDMX it will come up. From there just go to other cities and Tulum will be near the bottom.

Good luck.

[Mike Stud]

Thank you Sol! Much appreciated for sure. I'll be in Tulum the 5th-15th. What is La Boutique if you don't mind sharing?

Tulum isn't over developed like Cancun so no bars that I know of. The only girls that I know usually working in Tulum are girls I follow on X / Twitter and girls on La Boutique. Lots of the Colombian girls will go to Tulum to work for a short time because they need to go to Belize to update their passport without having to fly out of the country.

[Sol12]

I know someone on here has to have some info on Tulum. Any good options there? What's the move? Massage places? Spas? Websites? Anything? Thanks in advance!

Tulum isn't over developed like Cancun so no bars that I know of. The only girls that I know usually working in Tulum are girls I follow on X / Twitter and girls on La Boutique. Lots of the Colombian girls will go to Tulum to work for a short time because they need to go to Belize to update their passport without having to fly out of the country.