Once known as a raucous go-to for spring-breakers and young partiers, Cancun has transformed itself into a luxury travel destination for beach-loving sophisticates.
Cancun is an exotic tropical beach in the Yucatan Peninsula on the sleepy southern end of Mexico. Yet it is as close to the U.S. as the Caribbean.
Numerous airlines operate nonstops to Cancun. And Cancun International Airport is under a half-hour from most Cancun hotels. A Cancun getaway is so convenient, many visitors fly in for just the weekend.
Cancun occupies a 14-mile-long, crescent-shaped peninsula that juts out into the Mexican Caribbean. A vast coral reef, the worlds second-longest, parallels Cancun a half-mile into the water. It breaks the waves that have rolled softly onto Cancun's beach for eons, smoothing its white sands.
Caribbean tradewinds assure clear skies and a perpetual, gentle breeze. And nature has provided a natural fringe of palm trees. Add a constant water temperature exceeding 80º, and you have a surfside paradise.
Cancun hotels honor their beachfront gifts, keeping the sands clean and inviting. A social vibe enlivens certain stretches of the beach, so visitors can choose whether to schmooze or to snooze.
Travelers who want to explore Cancun's liquid blue expanse have their pick of waterborne activities: swimmming, surfing, snorkeling and scuba-diving the reef, jet-skiing, windsurfing, kayaking, fishing expeditions, and more. Cancun is a wet and wild world.
It is a long sliver of seashore…yet a lot more. The destination known as Cancun takes in the northern part of the Riviera Maya region. Also in Cancun's orbit are two nearby islands: the tranquil Isla Mujeres and the even quieter Isla Holbox, which has no streets, just pathways in the sand.
When the sun sets on Cancun's beaches, the moon comes up on its vibrant nightlife. Cancun is a 24-hour playground of surf, sand, and city life.
Today's Cancun is a mix of midscale, upscale, and elite hotels, from intimate to vast. Some Cancun hotels are American-owned; some are Spanish or Mexican-owned. Some hotels are all-inclusive, some a la carte; some are adults-only, and some are family-focused.
Cancun has become a dining destination. Its delicious ingredients:Cancun's popularity and prosperity; Mexico's bumper crop of gifted young chefs; the wonderful flavors of Mexican cuisine; and the local cornucopia of fresh-caught Caribbean seafood and exotic local produce.
Many of Cancun's resorts are all-inclusive, with a variety of on-premises dining that the guest has already paid for. But for a stay of several nights or more, a visit to a happening Cancun restaurant (or another hotel's eatery) can be exciting and eye-opening.
This destination is more than sand, surf, and sensational hotels. It is also avibrant metropolis with a real downtown, actual sidewalks, and all the lures of a stylish resort town.
It made its name as a party-hearty capital. While Cancun has gone way upscale, its nightlife is stll among the very best nocturnal scenes in Mexico.
The Cancun lifestyle celebrates the body beautiful and worships wellness. Spas take full advantage of Cancun's glorious Caribbean setting, offering beachfront services that combine indigenous ingredients with Mayan traditions like the temescal sweat experience.
