This was our resort for the first six nights, Dreams Playa Mujeres, about 10 miles north of Cancún. We stayed here three years ago and it kind of set the bar for me, so I was keen to hit it up again.

Jade wasted no time getting stuck into her favorite vacation drink: a strawberry daiquiri haha!

Nice pools (several of them), large kids' pool, water slides, lazy river, great restaurants and bars, random nightly entertainment, this place kinda has it all! I didn't bother running around taking photos of it all since I did that last time, so more photos here.

Jade especially wanted a room with a hot tub on the balcony, because, who knows, but she got her wish.

Happy birthday to me ;)

The resort is plonked on a great section of beach with the usual fine white sand and turquoise water etc. Nice!

The view from our balcony / hot tub looking across to Isla Mujeres (Spanish for "Woman Island"). It's a 20-minute ferry ride across the water and a popular and easy day-trip from Cancún, which we also did last time and had great fun exploring the island on a golf cart that kept crapping out.

The island has many stunning beaches that are worth checking out, but one I really wanted to revisit is Playa Norte (North Beach) on the northern tip of the island and just a ten-minute walk from the ferry terminal (no shoddy golf cart necessary).

We only had about 15 minutes to spend here last time before we had to head back to the mainland, but today we spent a good few hours swimming around, feeding (and 'hydrating') our face, and lathering on the sunscreen (it was hot!). I always try to avoid as many tourists as possible in my photos (and/or Photoshop them out), and there were plenty to avoid. The word is certainly out about this beach. It was lined with no less than about 50 boats of various shapes and sizes (and states; one looked like it had caught fire at some point), all to bring the tourists. I can't say I'm surprised about the protests that have been kicking off over in Europe lately regarding overtourism.

For the remainder of the trip we rented a car (something I like to do as often as possible). Our first little journey was to explore the mostly deserted peninsular north of the resort.

It's not an island but it's called Isla Blanca (White Island), and this here is the rugged and wind-swept Playa Isla Blanca (White Island Beach).

Our little car could only make it so far before it was going to get bogged down in the sand, so we explored further on foot. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before more beach-side resorts start to pop up along here. Bit of a shame really.

Opposite the beach is a large shallow lagoon. Not much going on over here unless you enjoy bird watching, slimy sand, and weird smells.

After six days of luxuriating we left the resort, left Cancún, and hit the road. Our first stop was Temazcal Cancún, somewhere in the jungle just outside of Cancún. A temazcal is a traditional steam bath or sweat lodge (seen behind the fire) which originated with indigenous peoples way back when. We had the place to ourselves for a few hours and partook in a "temazcalli", an ancestral ceremony and therapeutic ritual with "multiple benefits for wellness and health" which invites "introspection and reflection for a healing of the body, soul and spirit". Lovely.

Kristina and I joined the lady that performs the temazcalli inside the temazcal. Some poor old geezer who didn't speak a word of English had the back-breaking job of shoveling in hot rocks from the fire and dumping them into a large pit in the middle of the floor. Water was then poured over the rocks to produce masses of hot steam, and the entrance to the temazcal was closed off with thick rugs. In other words, a temazcal is basically a big indigenous sauna, and fuck me it was hot in there! I like to sweat as much as the next guy but this was something else!

Our new friend (herself sweating like a fountain) proceeded to talk us through four so-called "doors". Each door celebrated a specific theme, starting with our personal relationships, followed by our mothers, our fathers, and something else I didn't make it too. After 30 minutes and two doors I was done and had to excuse myself haha! If I stayed in there any longer I was going to pass out. Six days of copious alcohol consumption probably didn't help. Kristina the trooper lasted in there for all four doors, and said afterwards that although the final two doors were shorter in duration, it felt even hotter in there, so I'm glad I got the hell out when I did and cooled off in a cenote flowing through the property. After that ritualistic punishment, we were each treated to an hour-long full-body massage, which was much more enjoyable!

After leaving our jungle ceremony we got back on the road for a couple hours of driving through little towns and villages, doing my best to avoid potholes. We eventually made it to the little town of Chiquilá (basically one big pothole) on the Yucatán Peninsula's northeast coast. Here we parked up the car and jumped on a ferry.

30 minutes and a short ATV taxi ride later, we arrived at our next destination on Isla Holbox.

Holbox (pronounced "HOL-bosh") is a rugged and sparsely-developed island about 26 miles (42km) long and barely a mile wide. The roads are completely unpaved and there are virtually no cars. Instead, the primary modes of transportation are ATVs, golf carts, motorbikes, bicycles, and your own two feet. During hurricane season (June through November) the island is often evacuated as it can get pretty beat up. Apparently the island wasn't electrified until 1987, and has a permanent population of about 3,000 people.

There a several great beaches dotted around the island (many of them empty), kitesurfing is especially popular (conditions are ideal for beginners), as is swimming with whale sharks if that's your thing. Flamingos are a common sight during most of the year, and we did see a large flock offshore but I didn't have my big zoom lens on this trip (and crappy zoomed-in iPhone photos don't cut the mustard).

Our hotel was right on the beach in the island's main town. Lots of white sand, lots of bars and restaurants, and for Jade lots of daiquiris.

As the tourists do, we rented a golf cart and went exploring as much of the island as the 'roads' and our spines would allow.

The island's main industry is fishing (primarily lobster), but in recent years the island has developed a growing (I'd say burgeoning) tourist industry, and it shows. Lots of modern yet rustic accommodations line the beach and beyond, interspersed with locals' homes. During peak season the number of tourists can equal the number of locals. The overtourism theme is again evident here, and the charm of remote island living has taken a back seat.

One of many cool murals throughout the town.

And one of many cool beaches. This is Punta Cocos on the western tip of the island and a short but bumpy drive from town. Compared to the beaches back in town, we almost had this one to ourselves.

In the other direction and northeast of town, you can walk from the beach across the shallow water to his huge sand bar that stretches for a couple miles along the island's northern coastline.

We wandered out to the sand bar at low tide, but even at high tide the water is no more than knee deep, so it's a fun spot laze around before wandering back to town again.

Modern hotels aside, there's no shortage of modern and open-air restaurants dotted about the place too. Lobster and other seafood caught locally are common menu items, but all the food came out amazing, especially given the pain in the ass it must be to source it all and finding people to cook it! We got talking to a few of the restaurant staff and they all seemed to be from Argentina, and all seemed to have been living here for about a year. Interesting.

Overall, Holbox really wasn't what I had expected at all when Kristina first suggested it. I was expecting a very quiet and frankly underdeveloped remote island. The kind of place where a stiff breeze might topple a power pole and that would be it for the electricity for the next month. Instead, it's a bustling hive of activity with plenty to see and do, and definitely worth the effort to get there. That remote island feel isn't hard to find just a short distance outside of town if that's more your speed, but I do wonder how long that's going to last with tourism seemingly taking over fast.