With all that is going on in Mexico, to be safe, take precautions when you rent a car for traveling around Mexico. But then this is the case with any place that you are not familiar with but even more so with some places that may not be safe. The roads out of Cancun are generally well-maintained. A lot of people rent a car to travel to Chichen Itza from Cancun. We did that.

There are two ways to go to Chichen Itza from Cancun. You can take the toll road which is very fast but then you do not see anything of interest. Or, you can take the rural road which has speed bumps which seems like every hundred yards! But it is very interesting. We saw a lot of Mayans on this road — we traveled there five years ago — who are usually shorter than 5 feet. They also wear their traditional costume. It was a great way to see Chichen Itza, to see Cancun, to see Vallidolid (which is a beatiful town on the way) and to see the rich Mayan culture.

We stopped by this small shop that was selling embroidery costumes (which are beautiful, by the way) and the nice lady and her children who ran the shop (really a part of his small house) allowed us to go see their meager living space. Their house consisted of dirt floor, sticks for wall (with air flowing through!), and not much more. They slept in hammocks. Their bathroom consisted of an outhouse — really just a dirt place. And North American would not find his place suitable to live in, but these people seem very very happy and content. More than that, they were very generous.

We also traveled down to Tulum from Cancun. That is an easy highway to travel in and having a rental car allowed us to visit the wonderful Yucatan Cenotes on the way.

So stick to tried and true, also get a good car. Blood venture out in places that may not be safe — ask the locals. You will love your car trip in Cancun, Mexico!