We flew into Merida from Cuba and were immediately blasted by the heat. Wow it is incredibly hot in Merida.  We were staying at a fantastic backpackers there called Hostel Nomadas. They have a pool that we pretty much lived in and offer free cooking classes, which we attended the both nights that we were there.

Merida has recently been named the fourth best city to visit in the world by lonely planet, and it was easy to see why. It is a beautiful place with stunning architecture everywhere you look.  And did I mention the food? Oh wow.  We found fantastic markets with really cheap food options everywhere.  The Sopa de Lima (Lime Soup) is the signature dish in Merida and I highly recommend you try it, we thought it was delicious. There are also places that you can go where you order drinks and they keep bringing you free food the more drinks you order.  Needless to say we had a pretty fun afternoon.

The main square is pretty touristy but also very pretty. There are lots of delicious desert spots here and I would lie if I said we didn’t frequent these stalls.  It is also an excellent place to get your shoes shined for basically nothing.

We really enjoyed our brief yet relaxing time in Merida. However, it was time to head into the interior and visit the jungle!

Here is a breakdown of our costs for 3 days:

Budget = US$214 (NZ$300)

Accommodation – US$42

Activities – US$5

Food/Drink – US$65

Travel (incl. Taxis) – US$36

Miscellaneous – US$13

Total spent – US$161 (NZ$226)

So we were US$53 (NZ$74) under budget.  Merida is a very cheap destination.