Cancun

A purpose-built resort paradise at the tip of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsular lapped by the warm waters that link the Gulf with the Caribbean and smothered in every luxury that a North American holidaymaker desires, Cancun deserves its reputation as one hottest resorts on the planet.

Cancun is Mexico’s top holiday destination, attracting visitors both domestic and international – especially from the United States, drawn by its seductive combination of tropical sun, extensive beaches and clear Caribbean Sea. Not only does the resort offer all the characteristic natural beauty associated with its nearby Caribbean island neighbours, it also has the advantage of being on the Mexican mainland, making it easier for visitors to explore the magical attractions of the Yucatan Peninsular and beyond. Not that a visit to Cancun will make you itchy to leave – all you could wish for to satisfy almost every taste in sunshine holiday is here, with luxurious hotels, vibrant night life and exhilarating water sports all available in typically American abundance.

The high season in Cancun runs from around December to April, culminating in the North American ‘spring break’ vacation, when college students fly south to take advantage of the sunshine and lower drinking age for a week of raucous partying – great if you want to join in, not so great if you don’t. Prices drop off dramatically into the summer months and autumn – but be prepared for heat if you bag an off-season bargain, especially in late June to early July when temperatures can soar.

Unlike most beach holiday resorts that evolved over the years to cater for tourists, Cancun was purpose built from the outset as a perfect holiday destination. Its position was carefully selected to take advantage of the very best resources that the country had to offer – at the tip of a peninsular and characterised by a thin archipelago of white sand dunes jutting out into the warm waters of Caribbean, forming a striking giant ‘number 7’ shape. What nature provided, forward thinking Mexicans improved, linking the dunes into a continuous strip and filling this thin ribbon of land with everything the holiday maker could wish for.

With over 20 kilometres of nothing but sand and sea, the ‘hotel zone’ offers a wide choice of accommodation never more than a couple of minutes’ walk from the water. Beaches to the east of the ‘vertical’ part of the ‘7’ shape are a little more exposed to the open waters of Caribbean and have some currents to match, while beaches to the north on the ‘horizontal’ part of the ‘7’ are more sheltered from the open sea. Expect hotel prices near each to reflect this difference.

The sheer length of the sea frontage and the variety of conditions across it means that you can choose the beach that suits you. Some five kilometres along from the northwest starting point of the hotel zone strip, the Playa Langosta faces more sheltered northern waters and is one of the most popular. Numerous tour boats operate from its pier, a great way to visit the nearby Isla Mujeres.

A little further east along the strip, the Playa Tortugas offers shallow, calm sea, making it ideal for visitors with a young family to splash about in. There’s plenty in the way of activities, from gently gliding about on rental rafts to braving the rigors of a bungee jump. A popular choice for the locals (which can only be read as a good sign!) Tortugas can get a little crowded at times, but it’s easy to escape to one of its numerous cafes and bars.

Round the tip of the ‘7’, at around ten kilometres along the hotel zone, the Playa Chac-Mool is washed by more energetic waves rolling in off the open Caribbean. With a moderate level of surf, it’s a good choice for practicing recently acquired board skills, or to just sit back and enjoy the view out into the sea.

Another three kilometres south brings you to Playa Marlin, known for its secluded nature and ideal sunbathing conditions. Keep an eye on the warning flag system before going for a dip, as localised currents can become strong.

The hotel zone of Cancun is essentially one giant beach and these are just some of the zones along its 20-kilometre sweep, with plenty of others for you to sample and find your own particular definition of ‘just right’.

If you ever tire of watching the Hollywood movie perfection of tropical waters lap playfully along the platinum-blonde sands (which could take a while) Cancun offers a host of opportunities for admiring the waves from a different perspective – beneath them. Clear, warm waters and a living rainbow of marine flora and fauna make the diving excellent, whether simply snorkelling about in the shallows or getting to grips with scuba gear. Many travel packages will include an opportunity to dip beneath the waves around Cancun – if not, your hotel should be able to advise on choosing a reputable company to dive with.

For more adventurous divers (though not necessarily experienced) try a visit to one of the many islands close to the resort, such as Isla Contoy, an almost uninhabited island to the northeast of Cancun and home to several colourful coral reefs in less than five metres of water. An excellent way to see the best the island has to offer is with a snorkelling tour around the ecological reserve at Parque Nacional Islache.

Back on dry land there’s plenty to keep you entertained and take a break from those perfect beaches. The Interactive Aquarium on the Plaza La Isla at 12 kilometres along the hotel zone is an opportunity to get close to the sea life without getting your feet wet. For the more adventurous there’s the chance to get very wet and very interactive, including swimming with dolphins and even getting into the shark tank at feeding time (albeit from the relative safety of a diving cage!).

Possibly even more scary than sharing the water with hungry sharks, the water slides and rides of the Wet ‘n’ Wild water park should get the pulse racing. For the brave there’s plenty to test your nerve, with challenges such as the daunting ‘Kamikaze’, while the not so brave can cruise lazily along the river that borders the park.

As the tropical sun sinks below the horizon the other face of Cancun comes alive, with its varied nightlife. Many of the hotels will lay on their own evening entertainment, or for variety choose one of the innumerable beachfront bars. Compact as the resort is, a five minute stroll along the front will take you past enough bars and restaurants to make choosing the only real problem.

For a more authentically Mexican experience, take a trip further inland to downtown Cancun, where you can find many nightspots playing live music. Head for the clubs on Yaxchilan Avenue and look out for the ‘Los 4 Elementos’ live music bar inside Hotel Xbalamque, which has a good reputation amongst the locals for its live music.

While you could easily spend weeks enjoying all that the city has to offer a trip beyond Cancun is well worth the effort, surrounded by some fascinating gems of Mexico’s pre-colonial history, as well as the natural wonders of the Yucatan Peninsula’s tropical climate.

The Mayan civilization flourished in the region between around 600 and 900 AD, with cultural accomplishments in mathematics, architecture and astronomy far ahead contemporary Europeans. The preserved ruins of Mayan settlements dot the area – none better than Chichen Itza some three hours from Cancun. The largest of the pre-Spanish archaeological sites on the Yucatan, it’s one of the most popular and well preserved.

The city (whose name translates as ‘at the well mouth of the Itza’) was built on a grand scale, with increasingly large monuments constructed until its decline in the 12th century and conquest by the Spanish in the 16th. Its gradual decay and absorption back into the surrounding jungle was halted in the 1920s, when the site became the focus of a major archaeological project, preserving the magnificent buildings and opening them up for visitors.

The buildings are on an epic scale, with tiered pyramids characteristic of the native architecture towering over visitors. As site of mystical importance for the Mayan, the construction of these great temples and observatories was precisely matched with the movement of the heavens, to produce seemingly miraculous alignments at the equinoxes – so be sure to add a Chichen Itza to your itinerary if your visit coincides.

The best time to visit is in the early morning before the jungle heat becomes too strong, so a visit from Cancun is best done with an overnight stay at one of the nearby hotels. Be prepared for a good deal of walking – the site is large, and don’t forget to take some water with you, as the relative cool of the morning will soon give way to sauna-like jungle heat.

Many of the routes from Birmingham Airport to Cancun are via Mexico City, the nation’s capital. As one of the largest cities in the world with a population exceeding 20 million, it’s well worth planning in a little extra time to get out and see some of the metropolis, a great destination in its own right.

Built on the site of the ancient city of Tenochtitlan, little remains of the pre-Spanish city due to the Conquistadors’ systematic suppression of all indigenous culture. As the capital of the newly conquered territories, Mexico City became the focus of Spanish efforts to stamp their authority on this new land through grand public buildings and churches – often symbolically positioned on the sites of the indigenous structures they replaced. The legacy of this effort is the beautiful ‘Centro Historico’ at the heart of Mexico City, boasting some of the oldest colonial era buildings in the whole of the ‘New World’.

The Plaza de la Constitución is an enormous square at the heart of the city, measuring some 240m along either side it’s one of the largest in the world. With the Metropolitan Cathedral at its northern side and a with an enormous Mexican flag in the centre, the space is a focal point for much of the city’s events, from public performances to demonstrations and a great place to see the city’s Spanish architecture.

The Metropolitan Cathedral is the largest and oldest in the Americas, built on the site of the Aztec Temple Mayor. Started in 1573, it was built in sections over the next 300 years to its current impressive scale. Admission is free, though for a small fee visitors can join a tour of the upper levels, offering a dizzying view over the Plaza below.

To the east side of the square lies the Palacio Nacional, built from 1693 as the Spanish Viceroy’s Palace, then serving as the presidential seat after Mexican Independence. Within the impressive colonial façade the interior walls are dressed with murals dramatising Mexican history, from the pre-colonial age to the Revolution of 1910. English language tours are free.

While the Conquistadors destroyed much of the original Aztec city, some of the indigenous architecture survived, buried beneath the modern city. Rediscovered in 1978, the Templo Mayor site offers visitors a walk through history, layer by layer, from the remnants of the temple razed following the city’s conquest, to six smaller, older temples that the Aztecs themselves built over.

It’s not just history that’s worth soaking up in Mexico City. As a vast metropolis and capital to a nation of 110 million, it’s bursting with energy and variety. A good way to get your bearings is by taking a ride on the Tranvia ‘tourist trolley’ street car, which provides a 45-minute route around some of the city’s key spots.

Head for the Plaza Garibaldi square, famous for its gathering of mariachi bands and lined by traditional Mexican cantinas. Tenampa is one of its most famous establishments, serving a bewildering array of tequila and mescal as well as authentic Mexican food.

If your tastes run to nothing more than absorbing as much of the red hot sunshine as possible while sprawled on platinum sands then Cancun has to be on your ‘must see’ list. If, on the other hand, you like a little more to your beach holiday, don’t be fooled by the resort’s reputation – there’s plenty to see and do away from the beach. All you need to do is tear yourself away (which won’t be easy – it really is that good).