The city of Valladolid in the Yucatan of Mexico is a great place to visit and also take day trips. It is a great hub for exploring within the city and a variety of things outside as well. Valladolid is about 2.5 hours from the Cancun airport, and there are a multitude of day trips, from things nearby, to an hour or two away.

We have rented from Avante Car rental several times now without any issues. Check out my Tips for Driving a Rental Car in Mexico! Once we got our car from the rental place, we drove to Valladolid and settled into our hotel. There are so many things to do in town and beyond, and we really enjoyed the variety of activities.

Hacienda Cenote Oxman

Cenotes

There are quite a few cenotes nearby, including Cenote X’Keken (a little crowded when we went).

We also visited Cenote Samula. So picturesque!

Our favorite was Hacienda Cenote Oxman! There was a rope swing, and the kids had a blast. There are nice facilities here, and we enjoyed a delicious lunch.

Mayan Ruins

There are several Mayan ruins in this area. The Ek Balam archaeological site is just over a 30 minute drive, and Chichen-Itza is also not too far.

A little further of a drive, there are the Coba ruins. If you go to Coba on a hot day, especially with kids, splurge on a bike taxi!

Izamal

Izamal is such an interesting little town, as it is painted yellow throughout! It is a little ways out, about 1.5-2 hours from Valladolid.

There are also the Kinich Kakmó Mayan Ruins in Izamal. We took a carriage ride to the ruins, which was a fun experience as well.

Xkopek Beekeeping Park

We enjoyed checking out the Xkopek Beekeeping Park right on the edge of town. We enjoyed their tour, from the jungle to learning about bees of the Yucatan, and sampling bee products.

Visit other cities

There are so many cities sprinkled in the Yucatan. If you have a rental car, you may want to just check out some local cities. There are often good photo opps in the town centers, including historic buildings and churches.