Visit Cancún

Between the hotel-zone sandbar, the more local downtown and the cenotes of the interior, Cancun mostly works as a base. Plan 2 days on the spot, then 2 or 3 more for Isla Mujeres, Chichen Itza or a run south to Tulum.

Why visit Cancun?

Cancun lines up some twenty kilometres of Caribbean beach on a sandbar, with water at 26 degrees year-round, and sits less than three hours from the great Maya sites and the cenotes of the Yucatan. High season runs December to April; September and October are wet and hurricane-prone.

Cancun's must-sees

Seven places that give a fair idea of the destination, from the public beach to the downtown market.

Playa Delfines

The only large public, free beach in the hotel zone, with the giant Cancun sign and an open view out to sea.

El Rey Maya site

A small group of platforms and temples right in the hotel zone, home to iguanas, for a first taste before Chichen Itza.

Isla Mujeres

An island 20 minutes away by ferry, toured by golf cart, with white-sand Playa Norte and the calmest water in the area.

MUSA underwater museum

Over 500 submerged concrete statues between Cancun and Isla Mujeres, seen by snorkel, dive or glass-bottom boat.

Mercado 28

The main craft market in El Centro, hammocks, ceramics and silver, where you haggle and eat for three times less than in the hotel zone.

Cenote Ik Kil

A circular 40-metre-deep sinkhole with hanging roots, 3 kilometres from Chichen Itza, very busy at midday.

Museo Maya de Cancun

A modern museum showing pieces from across the Yucatan and giving access to the San Miguelito site, in the hotel zone.

What to see in Cancun?

The hotel zone (Zona Hotelera)

This is a 22-kilometre sandbar shaped like a 7, wedged between the sea and the Nichupte lagoon, run along by the Kukulcan boulevard and the R1 and R2 buses at about a dozen pesos. The big resorts privatise beach access, but Playa Delfines, at kilometre 20, is public and free, with the famous Cancun sign. On the lagoon side you find the jetties, the small El Rey Maya site and the sunsets; on the sea side, the waves and sometimes the sargassum.

El Centro and the real Cancun

About fifteen minutes by bus from the hotel zone, El Centro is where the city's 900,000 residents live: Tulum Avenue, markets 23 and 28 for crafts, and Parque de las Palapas where food stalls set up in the evening. Prices here are two to three times lower than on the boulevard, for a taco or a room. It is also from here, at the ADO bus station, that long-distance coaches leave for Merida, Valladolid or Tulum.

Cenotes and Maya sites as day trips

The Yucatan interior is riddled with cenotes, freshwater sinkholes in the limestone: the Ruta de los Cenotes, starting from Puerto Morelos 40 minutes away, gathers several of them, entry around 10 euros. Chichen Itza is 2.5 hours by road, best done early to beat the heat and the coaches; Cenote Ik Kil is 3 kilometres away. Coba, with pyramids you can still climb, further south, is often combined with Tulum.

The islands and the sea

Isla Mujeres is 20 minutes by ferry from Puerto Juarez: you get around it by golf cart, between Playa Norte and the cliffs of Punta Sur. The MUSA underwater museum, between Cancun and the island, is visited by snorkel or dive. From June to September, guided trips let you swim with whale sharks off Holbox and Isla Contoy. To continue south, Tulum and its clifftop ruins are a little over an hour away.

Cancún in pictures

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Frequently asked questions about Cancun

Does sargassum ruin the beaches in Cancun?
It depends on the time of year and the stretch of coast: the brown seaweed mainly hits the exposed shore from May to October. Isla Mujeres and the north of the hotel zone are often more spared, and updated tracking maps show the state of the beaches day by day.
How do you get from Cancun airport to the hotel zone?
There is no direct public transport: ADO buses link the airport to the El Centro station, from where an R1 bus reaches the Kukulcan boulevard. The simplest option is a private transfer booked ahead, as the airport's official taxis are noticeably more expensive.
Cancun or Playa del Carmen for a first visit?
Cancun has the largest beaches, the airport and the island connections; Playa del Carmen is more compact, more walkable and closer to Tulum and Cozumel. Many combine the two, an hour's drive apart.
Can you swim with whale sharks from Cancun?
Yes, from June to September: guided, numbers-limited trips head to the gathering area off Holbox and Isla Contoy. It is a long day, with two to three hours by boat, and the encounter is by snorkel, with no contact allowed.
Can Chichen Itza be visited in a day from Cancun?
Yes, but it is a full day: 2.5 hours by road each way, arriving at opening time, 8am, to avoid the heat and the groups, then a swim at the nearby Cenote Ik Kil. With a rental car, a stop in Valladolid on the way back balances the day.
Do you need to rent a car in Cancun?
Not for the hotel zone and the islands, where buses and ferries are enough. A car becomes useful from two day trips into the interior, cenotes and Maya sites, or to work down the Riviera Maya at your own pace to Tulum.

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