Sceney and a bit controversial, if you’re going to Tulum, you kind of just have to accept it for what it is. It went from a sleepy little beach town to an oversaturated influencer playground in a less than a decade, and that’s going to come with some growing pains. It maintains a semblance of a bohemian vibe, with great DJ sets pretty much everywhere and phenomenal food with an emphasis on local, healthy and organic. Regardless of its expedited evolution, it’s undeniably a fun and unique party vibe and still one the best places to go for a group trip with friends or bachelor/bachelorette party. For a day trip to get away from the scene, visit a cenote or the Tulum ruins. Make sure to visit Tulum town as well for a less curated, more authentic experience in terms of food and energy. I’ve included my favorites below, though there are more spots popping up with each and every day. Another bonus of a quickly evolving place—there’s always somewhere new to check out.
RESTAURANTS
Real Coconut: Vegan, gluten free, beautiful restaurant with an insane view, a must for lunch
La Eufemia: Best tacos on the beach side, cute kitschy casual spot
Matcha Mama: The Instagrammy spot for açaí bowls, nice cream, photos and of course matcha, pretty good.
Raw Love: Cute hippie spot that’s all raw/vegan, the pizza was delicious
Rosa Negra: Super fun, slightly cheesy restaurant with great food, think loud music and sparklers, perfect for a weekend party night
Casa Banana: Meat heavy (one of the only restaurants we went to that was!), beautiful setting
Posada Margherita: low key Italian on the beach
Saikuk: A new Moroccan restaurant, J said it was one of his best meals when he visited more recently
Tunich: Adorable little breakfast spot with a garden in the back
Zamas: Serene restaurant with its own little beach, best guacamole we had after taste tasting pretty much every guac in Tulum
In town:
La Malquerida: One of the best meals we had, yummy tacos and enchiladas
El ñero: Do not miss!! (as long as you’re a bit adventurous). Incredible, authentic tacos for like 30 cents each
Kay nah: Great dinner spot
Batey: Live music and best mojitos ever, get the passionfruit
NIGHTLIFE
Thursday: Casa Jaguar
Friday: Gitano is the OG nightlife spot on the jungle side, don’t miss. The line gets super long, we made a 1030 dinner res, ate a light meal and got to skip the line this way, highly recommend that if you don’t have a table reservation. There’s a cool, low key lounge in the back if it’s too crowded.
Saturday: Papaya Playa, club on the beach with face painting
After hours any night: Klandestino, super cool bar with a cenote right in the middle
HOTELS
I stayed in Hotelito Azul, a collection of very cute bungalows right on the beach. They dropped off coffee in front of the door each morning which was one of those nice thoughtful touches I really appreciated. Casa Malca is at the end of the stretch and a former home of Pablo Escobar. Nomade is close by and also has a great vibe. Azulik is the OG eco-friendly hotel on the beginning part of the stretch. Keep in mind the narrow road down the beach gets very congested on the weekend and its nice to be walkable to much of where you plan to go.
