The Long Hot Walk Into Tulum's Ruins Just Became a 20 Peso Ride

Electric carts began carrying visitors from the traditional entrance to the Tulum Archaeological Zone on Monday, restoring a service suspended for nearly three years and putting the first Tulum Renace commitment into daily operation.

The ride is optional and priced to stay that way: 20 pesos for adults and 10 pesos for children, aboard vehicles that belong to Parque del Jaguar and take over the route once covered by the Trenecito, the small train that disappeared when the park's reordering sealed the old access.

The timing is the story. The archaeological zone received 257,978 visitors in the first quarter of 2026, a drop of 33.1 percent from the same period a year earlier, and the merchants who sell at its gates have spent the slow months asking for exactly this kind of fix. The federal plan presented on July 17 promised cheaper, simpler access to the site. Monday was the first day a visitor could climb aboard that promise.

A 20 peso ride where the Trenecito used to run

Since the traditional gate closed, reaching the walled city from that side meant a long walk under open sun, while the park's own transport departed only from the main lobby on the federal highway, a paid detour away from the stalls that once lived off arriving foot traffic. Complaints from artisans and tour operators piled up through 2024 and 2025, including reports of National Guard personnel posted at the sealed access.

President Claudia Sheinbaum invoked the old train herself when she presented the plan, recalling that it once moved people for 20 pesos. The new fare matches it in pesos.

Among the first passengers were members of the Escobar family, traveling from Mexico City, Acapulco, and Australia. Returning visitors all, they said the carts spare the walk that greeted them on earlier trips and described the day as "beautiful, wonderful, and unforgettable."

The Tulum Archaeological Zone gets its ticket window back

The carts started rolling the same day an INAH ticket window opened at the traditional north entrance, so travelers arriving the old way, by colectivo or bicycle at the ruins junction, can now pay and board in one place. Merchants had pushed for a booth at that access since at least December 2024, when a closed-door meeting between artisans, municipal officials, Conanp, and the park's operator first agreed to propose one.

Under the tariff decree published on July 17, Mexican visitors enter Parque del Jaguar free of charge and pay 80 pesos to visit the archaeological zone from Monday through Saturday, with free entry on Sundays. International visitors pay 165 pesos for the site plus 100 pesos for the park. A year ago, the combined ticket ran 255 pesos for nationals and more than 400 for foreigners.

Ticket sales themselves now run through the windows of Grupo Mundo Maya, the Sedena-linked operator of the park, a change that INAH union members publicly contested in late July.

Relief at the artisan stalls

Rufino Hernández Jiménez, treasurer of the Centro Artesanal at the entrance, called the return of the service good news for merchants and service providers, who expect it to gradually rebuild the flow of visitors and, with it, their sales. He confirmed that the new carts belong to Parque del Jaguar and stand in for the old Trenecito.

The math at the stalls is short: more people rolling past means more people stopping.

South parking and a Maya arch still on paper

Tulum Renace runs to 10 actions coordinated by the federal Tourism Secretariat, led by Josefina Rodríguez Zamora. The fee cuts, the free park entry, and 10 public beach accesses are already in force, alongside a National Guard tourist assistance model, a certification program for service providers, a price monitoring scheme, and commitments on promotion, new air routes, and a modern public transport system for the town.

Two of the most visible pieces remain construction sites or drawings: the parking lot at the south access, meant to keep private cars out of the park, and the replacement of the wall at the traditional entrance with a Maya-style arch and a walk-through gate.

Hernández and the stall keepers around him will measure the plan in smaller units: whether the carts passing their tables come back full, and whether the winter season arrives with buyers on board.

Would a 20 peso cart and an 80 peso ticket bring you back to the Tulum ruins, and which Tulum Renace promise should be delivered next? Join the conversation and share your perspective with us on Instagram and Facebook at @thetulumtimes.