DK Travel : Cancún and the Yucatán

Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula has a special atmosphere and an immense variety of attractions, including some of the world’s best beaches and diving areas. The modern, glittering resorts of the east coast’s “Mayan Riviera” lie alongside charming old Spanish Colonial towns, sleepy Mayan villages, and the awesome remains of ancient civilizations.

Bocas de Dzilam

This vast area of uninhabited mangroves west of San Felipe is remote and wild. There are no regular tours, but boatmen in San Felipe or Dzilam may offer a trip.
Buho’s, Isla Mujeres

Isla’s funkiest beach bar. With a palm roof to give shade, it’s right on the sand, just steps away from the sea, and offers Mexican snacks to go with the cocktails and chilled beers.
Bullfights

Full-scale Spanish-style bull-fights, with the toreros dressed in flashy, sequinned suits, are presented every Wednesday in Cancún’s bullring, preceded by a charro (cowboy) display – and sometimes cock-fighting too. There’s also a bullring in Mérida that’s used less frequently, and bullfights feature in many Yucatán town fiestas(see Village Fiestas).
Cabañas Ana y José, Tulum

The plushest of the Tulum cabañas , colorfully decorated in traditional Mexican style but with hotel comforts.
Cabañas Copal, Tulum

A well-run cabaña cluster with 32 cabins around a palm grove by the beach. A choice of dorms, double, or singles (with or without showers), and family-sized huts. Some have a sea view. Affiliated to the AMAJ hostel federation, it has a small café and a more relaxed feel than some other bottom-price cabañas .
Cabañas La Ruina, Playa del Carmen

A remarkable survivor from Playa’s wild hippy days, gripping on to its great beach location in the face of glossier developments. Inside two garden enclosures you have a choice between simple cabañas , with or without showers, or hammock space under a big, mixed-sex palapa.
Cabañas María del Mar, Isla Mujeres

A little island of mellow comfort just behind Isla’s Playa Norte, with the most popular bar on the beach, Buho’s, attached. There’s a main building with rooms or cabaña- bungalows; some are on the small side, but they’re all attractive. Health treatments and massages are a specialty.
Cabañas Paamul

Deep shade and an ideal view over the beach make the bar in the Paamul cabañas and camping site (see Cabañas María del Mar, Isla Mujeres) a great place to get refreshed after time in the sun. Snacks are also available.
Cabañas Paamul, Playar del Carmen

Spacious beach rooms amid a camp site; some are in a modern building, others in palm-roofed huts. There’s an enjoyable bar-restaurant (see Cabañas Paamul), and the uncrowded beach is exquisite.
Cabañas Puerto Morelos

Very popular, this big, American-owned house four blocks north of the plaza in Puerto Morelos has cabañas for two to three people, and a two-bedroom one for up to five, each with kitchenette. There’s also a pool and a palm-filled garden.

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Restaurant price categories

For a three-course meal for one with half a bottle of wine (or equivalent meal), taxes and extra charges.
- under $5
- $5-$10
- $10-$20
- $20–$35
- over 35
Hotel price categories

For a standard, double room per night (with breakfast if included), taxes and extra charges.
- under US$20
- US$20-$45
- US$45-$80
- US$80-$130
- over US$130