Moving Day – Our Second Airbnb in Mérida Mexico
We really like Mérida, Mexico. There is so much to do to keep you entertained! But the safe cultural vibes of Mérida make me worry that expats and tourists might take over the place once the new Mayan Train system is completed.
We’d hate for this city to turn into the next Cancun or Tulum.
Mérida is still a bit hot for our tastes. But as the weeks progress the temperatures are getting gradually cooler, moving into the mid 80-degree F range. So although it is getting more pleasant temperature-wise during the day, we know that there is no way we could survive here in the late Spring, Summer, and early Fall.
That said, now that twenty-eight nights have come and gone, it is time for us to move onward and move into our new Airbnb…across town!
Remember that we are staying in Mérida for 2 months total. We still have some maintenance medical stuff to attend to. And we also have more cool day trips to take that we have been putting off for cooler weather.
So as we have gotten into the habit of doing, let us show you our new Airbnb in Mérida!
Why Get a Second Airbnb? Why Not Stay In The First One?
Good question.
The reason we didn’t stay for a second month in our first Airbnb in Mérida is that the price increased by 3-fold in December! And there was no way we were going to pay $2,400 USD for 28 more nights. We just booked a two-bedroom Airbnb in Madrid, Spain for less than that, and it has far more amenities.
There is no question that our first Airbnb had its perks. The kitchen was well outfitted and the location was good for enjoying the Centro Historico region of Mérida.
But it did have its downsides.
Specifically, the bedroom could only be enjoyed by people under 5 feet 10 inches tall. I am 6 feet 5 inches tall and Rhonda is 5 feet 10 inches tall. But even still we can sleep in shorter beds with no problem, presuming there is no footboard. And we always check Airbnb listing photos for beds with footboards so we can avoid them.
So it was a pretty big surprise when we arrived at our last Airbnb and found out that the owner had upgraded the bedroom and, you guessed it, a bed with a footboard was waiting for us.
28 nights of sleeping in the fetal position got really old really fast.
So although we liked our Airbnb overall, we were eager to move on to a new place.
Welcome to Our (Second) Airbnb in Mérida, Mexico!
As usual, we found our long-stay Airbnb in Mérida using the detailed methods we describe in our post: A TTT Guide to Long-Term Airbnb Stays – How to Get a Cheap Apartment that Doesn’t Drive You Crazy.
Our new Airbnb is in the Reparto Dolores Patrón neighborhood, and looks to be a pretty upscale part of Mérida!
We had no idea when we booked the place. We only knew that it was safe and a really easy walk to Paseo de Montejo, an area of Mérida we’ve mentioned before. And since we are now more experienced with Mérida in general, we already know where the best local shopping is for our day-to-day needs.
It’s nice not to have to spend 3 days figuring out a neighborhood!
The one downside of living in Reparto Dolores Patrón is that we are a significantly longer walk from Plaza Grande and Centro Historico. But now that we have figured out the Va-y-Ven bus system and have strategic bus routes that stop in our new neighborhood, getting back there won’t be a problem.
When it was time to move into our new Airbnb, all we had to do was hire an Uber with enough room for our luggage ($4.33 USD), and we got there in about 10 minutes.
It was the easiest Two Travel Turtles moving day on record!
Looking through our front door is our living room with a small sectional couch, a dining table for two, and a sitting area with a coffee table. You can also see the full-sized refrigerator off to the side.
The kitchen is small but functional. It has 2 portable electric double burners (not shown), a microwave, blenders, a sink, a cabinet, and the usual pots, pans, plates, and other kitchen stuff. It is actually pretty well-appointed!
And we even have our own washer and dryer (yay!).
Our bedroom features a KING-SIZED BED, a floor-to-ceiling wardrobe, a nightstand, a ceiling fan, AC, and a TV with Netflix and other digital content.
Rhonda is so happy about the bed! Even though she is shorter than me, she got far worse sleep than I did in our last Airbnb.
Our bathroom is nothing too special. Just a normal sink/shower arrangement, although the shower head will hit me square in the face if I don’t duck! This is pretty common for me in Latin America, believe it or not. Its a normal part of tall person life, so its not a problem.
And the sink installation, although functional, has seen better days. Whoever installed it didn’t cut the pedestal opening properly, so the sink is half falling through! The back base appears to be anchored to the wall though.
I pointed this out to the landlord when she checked us in and she assured us it was OK. But I am not going to put any weight on the sink!
So for all of this, including utilities and high-speed internet, we are paying $26.89 USD/night (including a 50% long-stay discount that offsets the 19% Mexican government Airbnb tax add-on).
Like with our last Airbnb, it’s not the best deal compared to other Latin American countries we’ve visited. But it is solid for Merida, Mexico.
So overall we are pleased. This is a smaller place than our last one. But the Airbnb setup is much more efficient so the size difference is a wash.
And did I mention the king-sized bed? 😉
Until next time…
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2 thoughts on “Moving Day – Our Second Airbnb in Mérida Mexico”
Oh man, yeah short beds. I feel you.
I’m amazed it hasn’t been a problem before now! So happy for our current bed situation.