Tulum is one of Mexico’s hottest spots, so it comes to no surprise that dining options in Tulum are limitless. Tulum has a little bit of everything from taco stands to fine dining restaurants – so there is something for every tastebud. When researching for options, it felt a bit overwhelming so I’m hoping to help others out by putting together a list of places that we enjoyed on our trip and that others would enjoy as well.
Where to Stay:
We stayed in the town of Tulum (not the beach) to save money. Tulum is getting more and more expensive, so hotels in the town are significantly cheaper than hotels on the beach. In my honest opinion, I wish we would have stayed ON the beach as first-timer’s to Tulum. We spent most of our time on the beach and taxi’s getting to the beach ranged from $20-50 depending on what the taxi driver wanted to charge us, so we felt like we made up for the money we saved on our hotel on taxi’s.
All of that aside, we really enjoyed the hotel we stayed in. The staff was helpful and friendly, the hotel/room were beautiful and clean and very “tulum” and the location was near restaurants/bars and a convenience store. I would definitely stay here again. The pro of being in the town of Tulum is experiencing a more local feel of the city and getting to interact with people who actually live in and are from Tulum.
Casa Agape Hotel
Casa Agape is a boutique hotel located in Center City, a 5 minute walk to town. Our room was spacious including bed and shower and overall extremely comfortable. The staff at this hotel is helpful, we booked our car ride from Cancun to Tulum through the front desk at $100 USD per ride. There is a restaurant/bar/pool on the rooftop as well. The drinks are great, but we didn’t get a chance to eat there but we heard great things about the restaurant. The pool on the rooftop is smaller but every time we went, it was just the two of us and it was quiet.
Where to Eat:
sidenote: I’m a terrible blogger and ended up taking more videos than photos so enjoy these Instagram links!Â
Taqueria Honorio
Location: Town
Taqueria Honorio is as close to authentic as you can possibly get in Tulum. Behind the glitz of the beach area, you’ll find tacos made with love and BUCKETS of flavor. Sure, order your favorite type of taco but you shouldn’t leave this place without ordering the Cochinita Pibil (taco or by itself). Another hot item at Taqueria Honorio are their tortillas. I have no idea how their made but they have been the most flavorful tortillas I’ve ever had, maybe I’ve only had trash tortillas up until now… but their tortillas are so on point. I found myself nibbling on the tortilla order we got with the Cochinita Pibil by themselves.
Tacos Vladimir
Location: Town
This is a tiny but mighty taco stand right across from El Asadero, down the street from Mestixa. The tacos are delicious and flavorful, but be mindful of the hot ass salsa. I definitely burned my entire mouth, but I am a wuss when it comes to hot sauces! I’m also not 1000% sure that the name is Tacos Vladimir, but that’s what comes up when you search El Asadero on google maps.
Mestixa
Location: Town
I know, who wants to go to Tulum only to eat at a restaurant that is a fusion of Asian and Mexican food? Hear me out, please go. This was the first dinner we had when we arrived and it set the bar for the remainder of the trip. The service was great, our server Coti was on top of her shit and did a great job recommending dishes. We ordered the:
Birria Beef Ramen
Shrimp Tempura Tacos
Karaage Sando
Cochinita Pibil Dumplings
Food here was a 8/10. The only thing I deduct points for is that the Shrimp Tempura Tacos were lettuce wrapped, instead of being in tortillas but the shrimp was delicious so I forgive. The dishes at Mestixa are fun, inventive and most importantly incredible.
Kitchen Table
Location: Beach
If it weren’t for the unforgiving mosquitos, this would probably be my favorite dining experience in Tulum. A+ for effort as they did pass out mosquito repellant that you could spray on your body. I will be honest, I’m writing this blog post 2 months after my trip and don’t really remember what we ordered. I do remember ordering the special of the day, which was the lobster sausage. That may make you think, mmm what the hell is that? It’s exactly what it is. A sausage link that’s made from lobster. It was absolutely divine. The other thing I remember ordering was the sourdough bread, i wish i knew what spread it came with because I can still taste it. Who doesn’t love carbs? We then ordered the catch of the day and I believe the pork ribs (again, I apologize for my crap memory).
If you’re looking for a good cocktail, this is your place. I am a tequila/mezcal kinda girl so I ordered the Diablito. Diablito didn’t disappoint.
Cocina Selva
Location: Town
If you only do ONE thing on this list, it has to be Cocina Selva. Pablo and Courtney run this airbnb mezcal tasting experience that’s so unique. With each course during dinner, we were paired with a tasting of mezcal from all over the country. Courtney is a mezcal connoisseur and gave us lots of knowledge about each tasting. Pablo is an amazing chef who whipped up a mouth watering dinner. They are a power couple who make you feel right at a friends house when you walk into their jungle set up. Throughout the dinner, we made friends with everyone else who booked the experience. Our new friends were from Toronto and Miami! I would do this experience every time I’m in Tulum.
Fresco’s
Location: Beach
We stopped here for breakfast and it was a cool, hip spot with good service. Prices were great compared to other restaurants on the beach. I ordered the guac and the fish tacos and was throughly pleased. I love the fact that they toasted their tortillas and the seafood had great flavor. As someone who is not huge on guac, they did have pretty good guac that kept me coming back for more.
Ukami
Location: Beach
This was one restaurant I could not make it to, but one of my friend’s who is in the restaurant industry couldn’t recommend this place enough! I wanted to add it in because I trust her judgement. Find some of the best sushi in Tulum at this spot.
Other tips when visiting Tulum:
- To be able to lay out on the beach, you’ll need to go through a beach club. We went to Coco and paid about $50 minimum per person. There is virtually no open beach area that visitors can just go to. So keep this expense in mind.
- Taboo and Papaya Playa are great nightlife options.
- Cenotes I’d recommend: Gran Cenote, Cenote Calavera, Cenote Carwash, Cenote Zachil Ha.
- If you’re going to exchange money at the Cancun airport, make sure to have cash on you as they can’t withdraw from your debit card. We had to wait until we got into Tulum to go to the local banks to exchange money.
- I personally would not rent a car in Tulum unless you’re going to frequently be driving 30+ minutes every day.
- Beware of the “margarita burn.” I came back home from my trip and noticed these dark sun spots on my hand. I freaked out and went to the dermatologist and apparently it was caused by lime juice getting on my skin and having a negative reaction to the sun. It took about two months for the dark spots to fully disappear.
Hope you guys enjoyed this blog post! I hope to make your Tulum planning a little easier with this guide. If you have additional questions, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram.
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