If there was any hope, it was because of the bad news: the train had already made headlines due to worker injuries, rushed construction and damage to fragile jungle of the Yucatán Peninsula and archaeological sites, despite promises from the Mexican government to avoid any damage.
The new train opened its first section in December 2023 and was due to be fully completed in February, but this has since been pushed back to June. When completed, it will stretch approximately 970 miles and connect five states around the world. southeastern Mexico in a Q-shaped loop – Campeche, Yucatán, Quintana Roo, Chiapas and Tabasco. Construction is still underway on tracks covering most of that distance, including a line extending about 26 miles south from the Cancun airport to the popular beach town of Playa del Carmen. The inaugural train passed through this section on Thursday.
When I visited the region in early February, only one segment of the total route was actually completed: a line connecting the busy tourist hub of Cancun to Campeche via the bustling, medium-sized city of Mérida. At the time, the train only made a few trips per day, which was a fraction of the promised frequency. It is ostensibly aimed at visitors, so being a lover of train travel, I eagerly incorporated it into my travel plans. It turned out that this would be easier said than done.
Here's what it was like to book and take the train from Mérida to Valladolid.
The beauty of taking a train is that booking a ticket and boarding the train is a much simpler process than flying. This is not the case with Tren Maya, which is complex.
I first tried to book a ticket from home in Canada in the weeks before my trip. There is only one official site to book tickets — the service's X account warns against scams – but the site is far from user-friendly. Tickets are only available a week before and are often sold out. (This week, no tickets were available, for any segment of the itinerary that I checked.)
A week before I arrived in Mexico, I managed to get what I thought was a reservation. Alas, that was not the case: booking a ticket is actually a two-part process, and I had only completed the first part. Once booked, you have to make an online payment within half an hour, but the site's automatic redirection to the payment page didn't work no matter how many times I tried from Canada . I gave up and decided to book while I was in Mexico for another leg of my trip.
A week later, I was in my hotel in Mérida, determined to make this trip happen. When I found two empty seats, I jumped on them, and voilà! — was redirected to the payment page. Payment was made and I received a receipt moments later. But still no tickets. These would take another 13 agonizing hours (did I just get scammed?) to arrive in my email inbox.
Lessons I learned from this experience: Booking in Mexico seems to be the easiest, if not the only, way to complete a reservation. The website do in fact, possibly provide tickets, but planning a week in advance helps. The same goes for fluency in Spanish; There is no English website or support, but you can use your browser's translate function. I also didn't see any ticket counters in the downtown areas of Cancun, Mérida, or Valladolid, where I spent time throughout my trip.
Prices for different travel lengths vary depending on cabin choice (tourist or premier) and are higher for international visitors than for Mexican nationals.
When I booked my tickets, a three-and-a-half-hour one-way trip from Mérida to Cancun Airport cost about $90 in first class, or just under $60 in tourist class, for an international visitor. Tickets are 25 percent cheaper for a Mexican national. With all the uncertainty and wanting to limit my chances of getting stuck, I decided to book a premier ticket on the shortest route possible – between Mérida and Valladolid – for around $50.
With my PDF ticket on my phone, I took a $15 Uber from central Mérida to the brand new Teya station on the outskirts of town. My Uber driver, Gabriel, mentioned that he was taking the train to visit family in Cancun in July. Upon arriving at the station, it appeared that the majority of the train riders were in fact Mexican families. The lack of international visitors has raised concerns, local media reported.
Construction work on the station was still in progress. Crews were putting the finishing touches on everything from landscaping to docks, while security screening machines were set up next to the boarding area, ready to be plugged in. The station is gleaming and airy, with a few small shops selling snacks, but there's no air conditioning, phone charging stations or WiFi.
As we neared departure, a Spanish announcement echoed through the station and we were taken smoothly and efficiently to one of the station's six platforms, the only one that seemed operational at the time. There is no elevator in sight, but rather numerous stairs and escalators. Combined with a large gap between the platform and the train, it's safe to say that accessibility is not yet a consideration.
Departure time came and went, with no sign of the train, and I was afraid the train wouldn't arrive. But then, 20 minutes later, security guards fanned out onto the platform and fixed their eyes into the distance, where the train was snaking.
The train is divided into two classes: tourist and first, which are distinguished mainly by the amount of room to maneuver. Premier compartments have three seats in a row, while Tourist compartments have four or more seating options that can face each other, which is ideal for small groups. (A third class, sleeping cars, will eventually operate on longer journeys.) The cars are spotless, comfortable and quiet; the train works so well that it is almost imperceptible when it moves.
The cars were equipped with air conditioning and the seats have USB sockets for your devices; and the temperature is kept at a pleasant and cool level. There is WiFi, but it doesn't seem to work at a sufficient level to do much.
After one or two stops, at semi-functional stations near archaeological sites between Mérida and Valladolid, a trolley came through the first cabin with free (but unappetizing) sandwiches. Fortunately, other snack and drink options, including alcoholic drinks, were available in the bar car. A full menu of dining options is expected to be offered at a later date, but was not yet available. When I declined the sandwich, I was instead offered a cup of fresh papaya, watermelon and pineapple, which I happily accepted.
The atmosphere on the train was almost festive: families took selfies as the train pulled away from its various stops, and those who had just disembarked greeted everyone on board. The feeling was that this train opened up new possibilities for the region, much of which is served by poorly maintained or non-existent roads.
A friendly Pomeranian wandered down the center aisle – a reminder that the train allows small dogs – as the train passed small villages and henequen plantations, and close enough to archaeological sites for quick access – but unfortunately not for a view.
Stop at the station located near the most famous archaeological site in the region and new wonder of the world, Chichén Itzá, I felt like the kids locked in their Jurassic Park jeeps, craning their necks to spot the ride attraction. However, there was no sign of the imposing Kukulcan Pyramid on the horizon, and I had to remind myself that this was not a theme park, but a public transport – intended to lead you to places where you can experience the area, not to be the experience. himself.
The train arrived at a station north of Valladolid just late, as the sun was about to disappear below the horizon. A bus was waiting to take us downtown for about $2 per person, completing the short trip.
In retrospect, it was difficult to reconcile the comfort and confidence of the rail experience itself with the labyrinthine booking process – and the ecological destruction its construction wrought. As I sat on the train, I felt as if I had tumbled into the waves, certain to drown, only to be deposited gently on a pristine shore, drink in hand.
If I were to return to the Yucatán Peninsula, I would avoid including the train in my plans for the moment. The reservation system is too unreliable and support is too sparse for this to be a predictable or enjoyable part of the vacation. I also have a nagging feeling that my uneventful, mostly on-time trip was somehow an exception.
But if I were to return sometime after the dust had settled over the next few months – and I hope to – I would happily hop on another ride. Once the reservation system bugs and construction chaos are ironed out, the Tren Maya feels destined to become a must-see for any traveler, foreign and domestic, eager to explore beyond the resort towns of Cancun.
Jimmy Thomson is a journalist based on Vancouver Island.
