A sleepy island area in the 1970s, Cancun has been transformed into a mega tourist destination. Located on the Caribbean side of Mexico, this resort area has something for everyone.

Cancun

Make no mistake, Cancun is a very tourist friendly destination. Located on the Yucatan peninsula, Cancun is populated with mega resorts and over 20,000 hotel rooms. The economy is based on tourism and the people go out of their way to show tourists a good time.

Cancun proper is actually two distinct areas. Cancun City is located on the mainland and Cancun Island is just off the coast. The island is the stuff of legend.

Cancun Island the classic example of Caribbean beach paradise. Incredibly blue water laps slowly onto insanely white beaches. Light breezes roll in off the water as you lounge on a beach chair and contemplate important things like what you will eat for lunch.

One of the slight downsides of Cancun involves beachfront hotels. They tend to be a bit possessive about the sand in front of them. Put another way, you better be staying at the hotel if you intend to plop down in front of it. Hey, it can?t all be great!

Getting To Cancun

As with any mega resort area, getting to Cancun is very easy. Most major airlines fly into Cancun City and the airport is very modern. You are required to have a passport and must fill out a tourist card at customs. The customs agents are easy going and I?ve never heard of anyone having any problems with them.

If you want to experience a beach vacation in Mexico, you can do worse than Cancun. You will not get much feel for the local culture, but you will definitely enjoy yourself.

Rick Chapo is with NomadJournals.com – makers of travel journals. Visit NomadJournalTrips.com to read more articles about travel Mexico and Adventure Travel.

MORE PLACES TO STAY IN CANCUN:

If you?re still checking out digs in Cancun, here are more inexpensive hotels you can add to your list. No Bunky, you?re still not going to be staying on the beach, but there IS air conditioning and sometimes even a nice pool.

Hotel Novotel
Avenida Tulum No. 75 (near the bus terminal)
884 ? 2999
Fax: 884 ? 3162

Rooms here are a tad pricier than on the Avenida Uxmal but all rooms are air conditioned and comfortable although rooms fronting the street can be noisy at times. The location is good and transportation conveniently available on the Avenida Tulum for zipping all around town. Expect to pay $300 pesos to $360 pesos during the slow periods from May to June and from October to mid December, which is hurricane season in this part of the Caribbean. The Summer months of June and July are slow enough that you can haggle a pretty good deal for an extended stay of a few days to a couple of weeks or so. Prices will sky-rocket during the peak Winter season.

Hotel Best Western Plaza Caribe
Avenida Uxmal (directly across the street from the bus terminal)
884 ? 1377
Fax: 884 ? 6352

This is the priciest of the accommodations mentioned in our listings. If you arrive very late into the city and speak little (or no) Spanish, don?t get yourself into a dither or risk any danger tromping around the area late at night. You don?t want to run into any of the ?late-night? people who frequent the vicinity. You can just pop right across the street and book a room for the night here (staff speaks English) and do your search in earnest for a more moderately-priced room the next day. Don?t run the gauntlet of undesirables (including taxi drivers) late at night here ? especially without a solid command of Spanish. The $40 USD you?ll pay is well worth your health and safety if it comes to that.

Casa de Huespedes Punta Allen
Punta Allen No. 8 (half a block off the Avenida Uxmal)
Cancun
884 ? 0225, 884 ? 1001

A small place with economical, but rather Spartan, unattractive rooms. Quality of the rooms varies somewhat, although most I saw were fairly tight quarters and not too well lit. All have at least a fan and many are air conditioned. Their singles are priced at $170 pesos, while doubles go for $230 pesos. And these are the LOW season prices. Negotiate the rate if you?re going to be around more than a few days. Peak season prices fluctuate based on what the traffic will bear and the economy at the moment.

Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an ELT Teacher Trainer, English language learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. He has published more than 350 articles and academic papers and presented at numerous EFL teacher training and TEFL conferences throughout North America, South America and Europe. For comments, questions, requests, to receive more information or to be added to his free TESOL articles and teaching materials mailing list, e-mail: lynchlarrym@gmail.com

A sleepy island area in the 1970s, Cancun has been transformed into a mega tourist destination. Located on the Caribbean side of Mexico, this resort area has something for everyone.

Cancun

Make no mistake, Cancun is a very tourist friendly destination. Located on the Yucatan peninsula, Cancun is populated with mega resorts and over 20,000 hotel rooms. The economy is based on tourism and the people go out of their way to show tourists a good time.

Cancun proper is actually two distinct areas. Cancun City is located on the mainland and Cancun Island is just off the coast. The island is the stuff of legend.

Cancun Island the classic example of Caribbean beach paradise. Incredibly blue water laps slowly onto insanely white beaches. Light breezes roll in off the water as you lounge on a beach chair and contemplate important things like what you will eat for lunch.

One of the slight downsides of Cancun involves beachfront hotels. They tend to be a bit possessive about the sand in front of them. Put another way, you better be staying at the hotel if you intend to plop down in front of it. Hey, it can?t all be great!

Getting To Cancun

As with any mega resort area, getting to Cancun is very easy. Most major airlines fly into Cancun City and the airport is very modern. You are required to have a passport and must fill out a tourist card at customs. The customs agents are easy going and I?ve never heard of anyone having any problems with them.

If you want to experience a beach vacation in Mexico, you can do worse than Cancun. You will not get much feel for the local culture, but you will definitely enjoy yourself.

Rick Chapo is with NomadJournals.com – makers of travel journals. Visit NomadJournalTrips.com to read more articles about travel Mexico and Adventure Travel.

Snorkeling: Yes, there are many costly tours for snorkeling in and around Cancun. But major expenses are not really necessary. And snorkeling in Cancun’s crystal clear waters will be an experience one will never forget. The different coral and fish put you in another world. REMEMBER: All beaches in Mexico are public. This is federal law. So you can snorkel where you want. I recommend the following places:

Punta Cancun at the Camino Real Hotel; here I have often seen sea turtles as well as squid (which appear to swim backwards) and shrimp and loads of colorful tropical fishes. Some fish appear to be like little monsters. Once I saw a green star fish.

The beach at Punta Nizuc at the Club Med. The folks at Club Med are somewhat closed to outsiders using their facilities, but once again the beaches are public (this is Mexican law) and all business here must respect the law. So take the bus to the Westin Regina Hotel; enter the beach there and walk about a half-mile along the beach until you come to the Club Med beaches. Walk over some slate rock up a few steps and you’re in the snorkeling area. Here you’ll find lots of grunt (yellow and blue stripped fish and nice brain coral)

The best snorkeling is to be had at Cozumel which is reached via ferry at Playa del Carmen or via direct flight from Cancun on a small propeller plane.

Night Life: The heart of the night life centers around Punta Cancun (the area of the Camino Real Hotel; Fiesta Americana Coral Beach; Hotel Krystal; Salvia condo/hotel which we rent . Discos here include the new Coco Bongo as well as Dady-O and Dady Rock; Sr. Frogs and countless others. Just walk around and take in the night scene. In the same complex as Coco Bongo you will find Hard Rock Cafe and the special Rain Forest Cafe for one of the best burgers in Cancun with special jungle effects (worth a visit).

Downtown bars center on Avenida Yaxchilan and a few on Tulum Ave. The bars on Lopez Portillo are not generally frequented by tourists and can be on the sleazy side. (So I’ve heard; can’t say I’ve gone there myself as my wife is watching me write this). Archeological Sites:

Chichen Itza is the most famous site in the Yucatan (about 3 hours from Cancun by car). You can rent a car or take a tour $$$ or a local bus downtown at the bus terminal. A visit here would not be complete without seeing these marvels from the past. Did you know that in the ball court of Chichen Itza there are two small structures about 300 feet distance. If your friend talks in a normal voice standing in one of the structures and you stand in the other you can hear every word perfectly. How did the Maya understand so much about acoustics so long ago? And during the spring equinox the rising of the moon causes a light-form of a serpent to appear on the steps of the great pyramid there. Chichen Itza was founded in 445 AD

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Cancun is a beautiful tourist destination situated in Mexico. Cancun Island is a part of Cancun that is about 15 miles long, and a quarter mile wide, and is known as the Hotel Zone, with dozens of hotels boasting of an incredible variety of architecture. These hotels are landscaped and furnished with so much flair that just touring these hotels can be a vacation activity in itself. Some of the hotels situated here are the Hyatt Cancun Caribe, Presidente Inter-Continental and Sheraton Resort and Towers.

Along with the Hotel Zone, there are hotels situated in the city of Cancun that are accessible with a short bus or taxi ride from the Caribbean Sea. The least expensive rooms are found here, about 25,000 in number. It should be remembered that Cancun hotels fill up quickly during the week before and after Easter and during the Spring Break, which is from late February to late April. So it is advisable to book hotel rooms early during these times, and of course, for Christmas too. There are so many hotels here, with each one trying to stand out in different ways. Some are more secluded, while some are in the heart of everything. The rooms of the hotels are designed with views of the Caribbean and the Nichupte Lagoon. There are spas, restaurants, shopping and nightspots in the Hotel Zone; you can spend your entire Cancun vacation here.

Some of the Cancun hotels are all-inclusive, with meals, activities, entertainment and even drinks included in the price that you pay. Those taking the family along can also find some hotels that cater to families, with many others offering lots of features for children. The best way to choose the best hotel to stay in is to decide where the hotel is situated, and the facilities it offers. The decision also mainly depends on how much you are willing to pay for the Cancun hotel, and what you plan to do for your vacation.

Cancun provides detailed information on Cancun, Cancun Hotels, Cancun Spring Break, Cancun Vacations and more. Cancun is affiliated with Cancun Hotel Maps.

Cancun is a beautiful tourist destination situated in Mexico. Cancun Island is a part of Cancun that is about 15 miles long, and a quarter mile wide, and is known as the Hotel Zone, with dozens of hotels boasting of an incredible variety of architecture. These hotels are landscaped and furnished with so much flair that just touring these hotels can be a vacation activity in itself. Some of the hotels situated here are the Hyatt Cancun Caribe, Presidente Inter-Continental and Sheraton Resort and Towers.

Along with the Hotel Zone, there are hotels situated in the city of Cancun that are accessible with a short bus or taxi ride from the Caribbean Sea. The least expensive rooms are found here, about 25,000 in number. It should be remembered that Cancun hotels fill up quickly during the week before and after Easter and during the Spring Break, which is from late February to late April. So it is advisable to book hotel rooms early during these times, and of course, for Christmas too. There are so many hotels here, with each one trying to stand out in different ways. Some are more secluded, while some are in the heart of everything. The rooms of the hotels are designed with views of the Caribbean and the Nichupte Lagoon. There are spas, restaurants, shopping and nightspots in the Hotel Zone; you can spend your entire Cancun vacation here.

Some of the Cancun hotels are all-inclusive, with meals, activities, entertainment and even drinks included in the price that you pay. Those taking the family along can also find some hotels that cater to families, with many others offering lots of features for children. The best way to choose the best hotel to stay in is to decide where the hotel is situated, and the facilities it offers. The decision also mainly depends on how much you are willing to pay for the Cancun hotel, and what you plan to do for your vacation.

Cancun provides detailed information on Cancun, Cancun Hotels, Cancun Spring Break, Cancun Vacations and more. Cancun is affiliated with Cancun Hotel Maps.