40th Birthday Solo Trip To Tulum

Can y’all believe your sis is 40? I brought in my 40th birthday with a bang on a solo trip to Tulum, Mexico. The purpose of this trip was to relax, recharge, reset and realign my spirit for this new chapter. I also just wanted to spend some quality time alone to love on myself. This was my first time traveling solo. But trust me it won’t be my last as I had so much fun. I decided to document the entire trip as a resource for other women who may be considering taking a solo trip. Watch my Tulum Vlog for a detailed view of my trip and all of the places I visited while in Tulum. But first, a few things to note…

WHERE I STAYED IN TULUM

My solo trip to Tulum was my third time vacationing in Mexico. The first time I visited Cancun with friends. While the second time I took my son to Playa del Carmen. Not only was this my first time traveling out of the country alone, but this was also my first time getting back on a plane and leaving the country post-pandemic. I’m still leery of getting Covid and therefore preferred to stay in a more secluded environment. I also opted not to do an all-inclusive resort this time around to avoid the crowds and keep the trip reasonably affordable. So it took some research and planning in advance to figure out where to stay in Tulum. In the end I decided to stay in the La Veleta area. The neighborhood is up and coming with beautiful boutique hotels, and there are plenty of restaurants within walking distance.

I chose the Amaka Calma Riviera Tulum for my 5 days 4 nights stay. The hotel features 17 condos decorated to give the feel of “la calma de Tulum” or “the peace of Tulum”. I went with a Deck Garden One Bedroom Apartment with a private pool. The apartment featured a full kitchen with a cook top stove, washing machine, living room and a king sized bedroom. But my favorite part of the apartment was hands down the private deck with a personal plunge pool and hammocks. I spent a lot of time here and didn’t go to the main hotel pool not once. Speaking of the main hotel pool, it was absolutely beautiful and surrounded by hammocks as well. I’d gladly stay at Amaka again. The hotel was not only beautiful, but extremely affordable.

GETTING AROUND TULUM

When planning a solo trip to Tulum it’s important to note that there is no airport. The Felipe Carillo Puerto International Airport is currently in the works to be completed by the end of 2023. But as of now the best option is to fly into Cancun International Airport. CUN is 1.5 to 2 hours away from Tulum depending on traffic. So you’ll need to plan in advance how you’re going to get to Tulum from the airport. The cheapest option is to take the Ado bus, followed by a taxi or collectivo (public van) to your resort. I chose to hire round-trip private transportation to and from the airport. It wasn’t cheap. However, I was cozy and had the car all to myself. I also didn’t have to worry about making it back to the airport on time for my flight.

Now the best way to get around while out and about in Tulum is by bike or electric scooter. I opted to use a bike as I wasn’t comfortable with riding an electric scooter on the highway. At first I was nervous about riding a bike since I hadn’t rode one since I was teen. But muscle memory took over once I hopped on and all was good. My hotel provided bikes for free, as does most of the other hotels in the area. I just had to leave my passport as a deposit. It was also pretty easy to walk to a lot of places within a few minutes. Most of the places that I visited were within walking distance.

I only used taxi service for one day of my trip- to go to the hotel zone. But I immediately noticed that the taxis were overly expensive and the drivers will try to beat you in the head. Not literally lol. Meaning they will try to cheat you on the fare. I was able to negotiate down to at least half of the asking fare. Which means the drivers were trying to overcharge from jump. So don’t be afraid to negotiate and make sure you’re clear on the price before hopping in.

IS TULUM SAFE?

I was a little apprehensive about taking a solo trip. Especially to a foreign country. My family wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea either. But all of my fears melted away after my first night in Tulum. Not once did I feel unsafe, or that I was in danger during my solo trip to Tulum. Even walking around by myself late night on dark roads. Or riding my bike to different parts of town (during the day) to explore.

However, La Veleta is a quiet area and didn’t have a real club scene. There were some bars with a laid back chill vibe. No wild parties. And the latest the bars closed was around 1:30 am, and that’s a stretch. Most places was closed by midnight. I did consider attending a party in the Pueblo (town) on my birthday. But decided against it as I didn’t feel secure enough to go out drinking and partying solo, then having to find a taxi back to my hotel. So I stuck to late night dinners and drinks at places close to my hotel as that was within my comfort zone.

Now that we have all of that out of the way, grab some wine & popcorn and watch my Tulum Vlog to see everything that I did on my trip. And y’all know I’m sharing the lewks. Speaking of lewks, I’ll be sharing my Tulum Lookbook next week. Make sure you subscribe to the Glam Gleam Weekly Digest so you don’t miss it!

THIS POST CONTAINS AFFILIATE LINKS. I MAY RECEIVE COMMISSIONS FROM PURCHASES. SEE MY DISCLOSURE POLICY FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.