Cost of living in Cancun

Hola:

Trying to get an idea of the cost of living in Cancun.

Want to rent/lease 1 bedroom or studio in a condo/hotel on the beach.

If not included in the rent/lease, what would utilities run?
Electricity inluding AC=
Water (Can you drink Cancun water from the tap?)=
Gas/propane for cooking/heating (hot water)=
Cable/satelite with high speed internet (5-6 mbps)- wired or wifi=
Transportation (bus/taxi)=
Petro (for vehicle)=
entertainment costs i.e movies/sporting events=
dining out costs( looks like you can still get a good steak, what about BBQ? Best BBQ in the world available in Kansa City! gonna miss that a great deal...But brining my "smoker"
groceries (especilly fresh sea food)=
sight seeing tours =
charter fishing =
health care =

Is there a senior discount card for Cancun?

What is the best way to find a place to live, have found a couple in my price range on the net, e.g. Solymar, Salvia...

Any and all information about living in Cancun will be greatly appreiated.

Gracias
Senor James

Hola,

   A lot depends on where you are moving here from.   I moved here from Southern California so I think it is cheap as could be, but some of my friends from the mid west say it is not that cheap.   It is known to be one of the most expensive parts of Mexico to live.

   The other thing you want to find out is where in Cancun do you want to live.  if you want to live by the beach then it is going to cost you more than living downtown or what we call Centro.  I chose to live in Centro, because being close to the beach means you are across town from everything else, like shopping, schools, services and etc.

your questions:

If not included in the rent/lease, what would utilities run?
Electricity inluding AC=

depends again on what part of town you live in.  Electricity depends on the neighborhood.  I dont use AC and pay about 75 bucks a month.  My neighbors spend about 200 per month in the summer for their AC.  Could be more or less depends on where you live.   I live in nice area of downtown where I pay more than some folks but not as much as others.

Cable for all the channels run about 65 dollars a month

Internet varies from company to company.  I pay about 70 dollars for internet and unlimited phone calls to the US

Water (Can you drink Cancun water from the tap?)= NO

Gas/propane for cooking/heating (hot water)= $40 dollars a month

Cable/satelite with high speed internet (5-6 mbps)- wired or wifi= 4-5 megs is the best you can get here.  I have been with every provider in Cancun.  But it is enough to run by business and an IP voice over phone

Transportation (bus/taxi)= 70 cents each way per person.  tax is are about 1.75 for downtown and about 7 dollars by the beach in what we call the hotel zone.

Petro (for vehicle)= have no idea as I dont feel a car is necessary here.

entertainment costs i.e movies/sporting events= movies are like 3.50 per person for the same movies you get in the states in English.  Sporting events range from 5- 10 dollars a person based on seating.  Concerts run anywhere from 20 to 75 dollars depending on who it is.

dining out costs( looks like you can still get a good steak, what about BBQ? Best BBQ in the world available in Kansa City!

Depends.  If you go to the hotel zone it is like 25-40 dollars per person, but there are some local yocal places that is less than half of that.  I think the hotel zone is to commercial, but if you got a hankering for a good usda steak there is a Ruth Chris or a Outback here.  BBQ not so ure about that.  I am somewhat of a BBQ fanatic.   Never been to KC so I dont know about that but in my never to be humble opinion you can find the best rack a ribs at my house.   Sausage here but nothing like hot links or anything like that.  Costco is the place for the best quality meats.   The local steak here is kind of gamy to me

gonna miss that a great deal...But brining my "smoker"

groceries (especilly fresh sea food)=groceries to me are about the same as they were in the US.   You have to remember that there is no industry here.  We are like the Hawaii of Mexico.  Everything here is shipped in from out of state, so the shipping cost is built in.   Sea food here is great if you know where to shop.  It is cheap compared to the US.  There are local markets where you can get the fresh catch of the day.  Shark, Octopus, Gruper, REd Snapper are really big here.

sight seeing tours = not sure
charter fishing = not sure
health care = again it depends.  Great quality doctors would run you about 50 dollars for a physical.   Half as much for scrips as you would pay in the us. Dentist is about half as much and the quality of service here is great, but it is on a cash system.

Hopefully that is helpful and if you have any other questions, let me know.

Craig