For over 3,000 years, the Mayan culture has left its mark along the legendary turquoise waters and white-sand beaches of the Caribbean. It still holds true in Cancun today. From our historic temples and ancient Mayan spa ritual to world-class Mayan-inspired resorts, restaurants, shopping, attractions and entertainment. Discover the sol of a civilization in Cancun.

More than 3 million visitors a year come to Cancun to enjoy its beautiful shores and myriad attractions. "Built" by the Mexican Government in the 1970's, Cancun was created to be a top Mexican Resort destination, and more than 25 years later, it is, in fact, all that and more.
Cancun is beyond a resort area with fantastic beaches; it's also the gateway to the Mayan World. Many of Mexico's most well-known and popular archaeoligical sites are within a two-to-three hour drive of the locale. It is also close to the Yucatan's fabulous natural parks, including the home of the second-largest coral reef ecosystem in the world. Cancun is a shopper's paradise, and dining choices and nightlife abound. It is a destination that is made for almost any type of traveler, including families, romance-seekers, adventurers and ecotourists.
Kukulcan Boulevard is the main street in the Hotel Zone, where you'll find a choice of beachfront resorts. Many of these spectacular resorts are home to world-class spas and golf courses. Visitors are able to find the type of accomodations that is a match for them based on budget and interests.

A NEW CANCUN
Hurricane Wilma, which hit Cancun in 2005, helped spur a new and better Cancun. A beach-recovery project totalling more than $20 million was completed in April 2006, creating miles of renewed coastline. Many of the properties have undergone major renovations, additions and enhancements. More than 5,000 palm trees, 165,000 plants and 2,500 trees were planted in the Hotel Zone. It is now all grown back and is lush as ever. Thirty-seven Mayan statues have been placed along Kukulcan Boulevard.

Shopping & Fashion

If you're planning your vacations in the beautiful Mexican Caribbean, don't forget to include many days for shopping. Besides lovely beaches and excellent hotels, Cancun offers its visitors more than 2,000 shops distributed throughout the hotel zone and the city in huge, world-class shopping malls or quaint marketplaces. Handicraft Stands, high-class boutiques, haute couture clothing, fine jewelry, perfumes . . . . you're sure to find the most original gifts and souvenirs to take home with you. Shopping days in Cancun are sure to be fun and full of variety when complemented with the multitude of attractions, activities and entertainment found around every corner.

Cuisine & Entertainment

Cancun's restaurants offer the flavors, aromas and traditional quality to satisfy the most demanding gourmet, plus excellent service, great music, fine decor and amazing shows. From every land--Italian, French, Asian, International to the ever-popular traditional Mexican. You're sure to find your favorite cuisine in Cancun's more than 100 world-class restaurants. And at the end of a fine dinner or even with it, It's Party Time! From quaint, quiet retreats to clubs and discos with bands and live entertainment featuring an endless variety of music genres and atmospheres, in Cancun the clock ticks to the beat of a very different drummer.

You can choose from the following cuisines:

Main Discos and Night Clubs:

Cancun Spas

In a world of sensory experiences, where the brilliant turquoise Caribbean is the Ideal framework to relax and leave your cares behind you, take a quick look at the world-class exclusive, luxurious, origianl, comfortable spas of Cancun, from Playa Maroma to Puerto Cancun, Isla Mujeres and Puerto Morelos. There are an endless variety of styles and treatments available in these havens of beauty and health.
Immerse yourself in the splendid, crystal-clear waters of Cancun, a city where your worries disappear like footsteps on the white sandy beaches. Discover the best spas and find not only cutting-edge technology found in the world's leading spas, but also ancient rituals dedicated to the purification of both body and mind, like the famous Mayan Temazcal.
No matter what you choose--Thalassotherapy, mud wraps, digitopressure, acupressure, lomi lomi or Ayurveda--both your body and your spirit will thank you.

Eco-Tourism & Adventure

Eco-tourism is mankind's return to the natural world and Cancun is the gateway to the Mexican Caribbean, a world of amazing experiences for those seeking something different and off the beaten path. Kayaking at night under the stars in the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve; watching a jut-jut bird, pink flamingos, toucans and other exotically hued birds; snorkeling the great MesoAmerican Reef and watching awestruck as a whale shark drifts by . . . and this is only the beginning of the adventure! Open the door to fantastic experiences and let's learn how to strike a balance between our enjoyment of nature and its conservation for future generations.

The Natural World----Eco-adventures from Cancun

Cancun is surrounded by jungle and sea, both of which are home to fascinating flora, fauna and natural beauty. Beyond Cancun's Hotel Zone of world-class properties lie parts of Mexico undeveloped, protected and begging to be explored by those who enjoy ecotourism adventures. They include:

Aktun Chen: This 988-acre park set in a rainforest just 66 miles from Cancun is home to an incredible cave system thought to be 5 million years old. A walking tour of the 663-yard main cave is available for visitors and offers insight into its use by the ancient Mayans. Here you can view thousands of stalactities, stalagmites and natural sculptures. At the end you can see a cenote (underground river) that is approximately 40 feet deep. There are also paths through the jungle where you can spot different species of tropical flora.

Garrafon Natural Reef Park: This eco-park on Isla Mujeres is only four miles from Cancun. Enjoy North Beach, and its wondrous natural reef only a few meters off the shore, for snorkeling and diving. Other attractions include a climbing tower, climbing wall, Caribbean bungee, kayaking and the Dolphin Discovery program.

Xcaret: This eco-archaeological park, 45 minutes from Cancun, is filled with many natural and cultural delights. A visit to Xcaret offers the chance to swim through underground rivers as well as with dolphins, and explore its coral reef aquarium, bat cave, manatees' lagoon and archaeological sites. Go at night to enjoy the "Xcaret Mexico Espectacular" and learn more about the traditions and history of the region. Other attractions include beaches and a butterfly sanctuary.

Xel-Ha: It's all about the water at this subaquatic park devoted to ecology and preservation. Inlets, lagoons, cenotes and caves are waiting to be explored. You can also take a nature walk, ride a bicycle or tour by jungle train. There's a turtle park, a swim with dolphins program and an aviary as well. It is 76 miles south of Cancun, or a little more than an hour's drive.

Cancun has high tech boats, with four-stroke engines and highly professional staff, totally committed to provide safe tourist services. Cancun has all new equipment for watersports.
In Cancun, there are over 500 tourist boats, operated by our local specialists in water activities.

The Favorite Services offered are:

• Snorkeling Tours
• Tours to Isla Mujertes and Contoy
• Jungle and Mangrove Tours
• Wave Runners
• Scuba-Diving/Cave Diving
• Sailboats
• Sport Fishing
• Semi-Submarines
• Canoeing and Kayaking
• windsurfing/Parasailing
• Dinner Cuises, Party Cruises, Lobster Cruises and Cruises with Dinner Show
  

Nautical Water Activities

Experience Cancun in all its splendor, dive into its turquoise-blue water on the world's second largest barrier reef, with its incredible coral and multicolored fish. You'll be delighted to note the care taken to preserve the natural wonders of our underwater world for both ourselves and for future generations.

Dive day or night in the deep blue sea of the crystal-clear water of cenotes or underwater caves; snorkel, fish, sail away on boats or catamarans, or through the mangroves on a jungle Tour . . . these are only some of the many nautical activities awaiting you on your trip to Cancun. Come and Experience the Mexican Caribbean!

Going Underwater in Cancun

Do not miss the chance to see the beauty that lies beneath Cancun's waters. Coral formations with marine life can be found only a little more than 100 yards from shore. Rent snorkeling equipment and get out there and see it all. Glass-bottom boats or mini-submarines sail from many of the Hotel Zone's piers if you don't want to get wet while exploring. For those true divers, there are 22 marinas and dive centers.
A visit to Cancun for divers means open-water reef dives, wrecks, cenotes, caverns and caves to explore. Those just beginning the sport can take a resort course and/or be certified in four or five days. Water temperatures averages 68 degrees Fahrenheit.
Quintana Roo's coral reef ecosystem, the MesoAmerican Reef, is considered the longest in North America and the second longest in the world. The Reef reaches 311 miles long and between 109 yards and 273 yards wide at the northern end and 1.9 miles wide at the southern end. The Reef extends from Punta Nizuc in Cancun to Bay of Honduras. Protected jewels along the reef include the Isla Mujeres West Coast, Punta Cancun and Punta Nizuc Underwater Park at the northern end of the reef; slightly south is Puerto Morelos Reef Park and the Solidaridad District and Southern Underwater Ecological Reserve; in the center is the Sian Ka'an Reefs Biosphere Resrve; and south is the Xcalak Reefs National Park.
Quintana Roo's unique cenotes are interconnected fresh water wells. The cenotes and the caves, entarnces to cenotes, can be found along the coast and in the jungle.

Golf in Cancun

Golf has become one of the greatest attractions in Cancun and the Riviera Maya. The number and quality of the existing courses and those under construction has attracted an ever increasing influx of the world's golfers to the Mexican Caribbean.
The area's golf courses combine the magnificent natural scenery of tropical jungles with lagoons, cenotes or mangroves, all surrounded by the typical turquoise-colored Caribbean Sea and impressive Mayan Ruins. Courses dot the land from Cancun southward along the coast, including a course on Cozumel Island, all designed by renowned architects such as Jack Nicklaus, Robert Trent Jones Jr., Robert Von Hagge and Isao Aoki. Just like other courses throughout the world, Cancun's golf courses offer promotional packages and a variety of services, like rental of clubs, carts, shoes, or tips from the club pro and a pro shop.

Cancun Area Golf Courses

Cancun Area Executive Golf Courses

Cancun Area Golf Courses Under Construction

Weddings & Romance

Close your eyes and imagine the wedding of your dreams . . . Cancun is the only place in the world where you can make that dream come true with the backdrop of the turquoise-blue Caribbean Sea and the most amazing archaeological sites of the Mayan Culture. Eco-tourism parks, mystic sacred wells, theme ships, world-class resorts and charming boutique hotels, not to mention a modern Convention Center, are only some of the sites that are perfect for a celebration, whether an intimate wedding or the most sumptuous and elegant reception.

Mayan Culture

Over 3,000 years ago the ancient Maya left the remains of their marvelous culture for prosperity in the middle of the jungles and/or on the shores of the sparkling turquoise-blue sea of the Mexican Caribbean. Today many of these cities have been explored by archaeologists and have revealed the architectural, artistic and astronomical achievements and feats of engineering of this great civilization, one of the most enigmatic to have populated the Earth.

Cancun is the gateway to the Mayan world. It is ideally located for easy access to the region's main ceremonial centers: Tulum-81 miles, Chichen Itza-128 miles, Ek' Balam-108.5 miles, Coba-84 miles. You can also visit the archaeoligical zones of Ixchel on Isla Mujeres, San Gervasio on Cozumel or El Meco and El Rey in Cancun. There are regular tours to all these sites combining different styles and destinations almost every day of the year.

An Archaeological Exploration . . . Cancun as a base for a historical journey

Mayan history is very much a part of any Cancun stay, with archaeological sites located within the city, some in surprising spots and many of the famed ones all within a two-to-three hour drive.

Archaeological Excursions Within Cancun:

Only four miles north of Cancun on Punta Sam Highway lies the archaeological site El Meco, a one-time commercial enclave. Its 14 structures include a main temple, plus a pyramid that offers an incredible view of one of Cancun's lagoons. There are also vestiges of temples, columns and stucco covered walls surrounding the large central plaza.
El Rey, located right in the Hotel Zone between the ocean and the lagoon, was an ancient Mayan City developed during the Post-Classic period dating from 1200 to 1521. Its 47 structures include a pyramid with a vault containing paintings on stucco.
Smaller archaeological sites include Yamil Lu'um in the gardens of the Sheraton Hotel and Pok-ta-Pok, a temple set in the Cancun Golf Club.

Archaeological Excursions Outside Cancun:

Cancun as the port of entry to the Mayan World makes it a good base to explore some of Mexico's most important archaeological sights.

Chichen Itza, a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Cancun, is an awe-inspiring site. There is so much to see, and you'll need to dedicate at least 2 hours or more to make it to the main structures, including the central pyramid, El Castillo del Serpiente Emplumado (Castle of the Plumed Serpent). At dusk, a sound-and-light show takes place.

The Mayan ruins at Coba are set in the tropical jungle, where the city once extended more than 43 square miles and more than 50,000 inhabitants. The Nohoc Mul pyramid is one of the tallest in the Yucatan, at more than 126 feet, and it's a climb of 120 stairs to the top of the Grand Pyramid. Coba is approximately two and a half hours from Cancun.

The most recently excavated site is Ek-Balam, two hours from Cancun. Inside a walled area lie its principe buildings, temples and palaces. Its main temple is one of the largest structures ever excavated in the Yucatan. Look closely at the intricate frescoes and sculptures throughout the site.

The site of the ancient walled city of Tulum is quite beautiful, overlooking a cliff facing the Caribbean Sea. It is one of the most-visited Mayan ruins in Mexico, located 81 miles south of Cancun; ancient murals among the ruins are fascinating to see.

Just A Day Away---Side trips from Cancun

Activities abound in Cancun, but visitors should also not miss what lies just beyond its environs for a memorable day trip.

Cozumel

One of Mexico's largest inhabited islands, Cozumel is known for its incredible coral reefs and diving. It's also a good spot for marlin fishing and any other type of watersports fun. More than a dive destination, Chankanaab National Park is also the place to go to swim with the dolphins, watch a sea lion show, stroll through the botanical gardens or head for the Maya Zone, a reproduction of a Mayan village. Punta Sur Park Ecological Reserve covers more than 247 acres, and is home to wildlife such as crocodiles, 220 species of birds, iguanas and giant turtles. The old lighthouse and navigation museum is worth a visit. See our Cozumel webpage for more information.

Isla Mujeres

This beautiful and traditional island on the Mexican Caribbean with charming hotels and excellent restaurants can be reached by ferry boat departing from different locations and is only 20 minutes away from Cancun. This island is paradise for those who look for peace and rest. It is possible to go around the island by motorbike or driving golf carts, discovering wonderful landscapes like the ancient Mundaca Hacienda and the Punta Sur Cliffs.

This beautiful island fishing vilage is just across the Bahia de Mujeres from Cancun. Despite its small size of only five miles long and a half mle wide, Isla Mujeres is an active vacationer's dream desitnation witha choice of watersports activities, diving, snorkeling and swimming with the dolphins. You can also rent a bike, moped or golf cart to explore the island. Isla Mujeres also has its share of wondrous beaches. Visit Hacienda Mundaca, which dates back to 1858. Its remaining structures, gardens and pathways are being restored. It also has a small zoo with monkeys, birds, crocodiles, pythins nd a jaguar. Giant sea turtles lay their eggs May through September on the island. At The Turtle Farm, open to the public, the craetures are federally protected, and the eggs are placed in pens to keep them safe from harm. The newly hatched turtles are placed in tanks until they are released into the wild. For more on Isla Mujeres' action-packed Garrafon Natural Reef Park See the Eco-Tourism information above on this page.

Isla Holbox

Holbox, part of the protected area Yum Balam, is a little fishing island mainly visited by ecological tourism aiming at enjoying the nature to the most. Holbox Village has small charming hotel, restaurants and other basic services. It only takes 30 minutes from the mainland to get there by motorboat.

An unspoiled gem, Isla Holbox is Quintana Roo's northermost island, and it lies in the Gulf of Mexico. It is just 26 miles long, and is seperated from the mainland coast by a shallow lagoon that is home to thousands of flamingos, pelicans, and other exotic birds and creatures. Golf buggies and bicycles are the only mode of transportation permitted in this fishing village, which is still home to small thatched hotels, cabanas, cabins and beachfront restaurants. It is part of the Yum Balam Nature Reserve.

Isla Contoy

Isla Contoy National Park is a day-trip recommended to those people willing to visit a dream island in the middle of th turquoise Caribbean Sea. Its viewpoint offers a wonderful and panoramic sight and in the bay, by the quay. It is possible to swim with friendly manta rays.

This special biosphere reserve is one of the mpst important bird sanctauries in Mexico, and it is only two hours north of Cancun via boat. A little more than five miles in length, with a surface area of 793 acres, Isla Contoy is home to more tahn 150 migrating and resident bird species. You can spot the frigate, the brown pelican and the double-crested cormorant while exploring. It is also a nesting place for sea turtles. A limited number of visitors are permitted on the island, which was declared a National Wildlife Reserve in 1961. Opt to go via a tour excursion for ensured entrance.