DK Travel : Cancún and the Yucatán : Outdoor

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Bocas de Dzilam

Much more remote, this giant expanse of uninhabited mangrove lagoons extends west of San Felipe and also contains flamingo colonies and a variety of birds and other undisturbed wildlife. Getting there, with a boat trip over open sea, is a real adventure.
Calcehtok

These little-known caves near the Mayan ruins at Oxkintok are some of the region’s most extraordinary. The roofless main chamber is big enough to contain whole trees, and is full of birds.
Calle 39, Valladolid

Valladolid’s main street has everything a country town should: shoe stores, electrical shops, barbers, and stalls selling fruit and herbal medicines.
Campeche Petenes

The north of Campeche State behind the coast consists of mangrove lagoons and petenes – “islands” of solid land within the swamp, which have special microclimates all of their own. Within the area are flamingos, deer, and even pumas. Visitor facilities are very limited.
Cancún

The big one – with the longest stretch of beach, backed by the biggest hotels and malls, and with the most attractions, from parasailing to water parks. The beaches on the north side of the island are the best for swimming and beach-life, but can get rather crowded. On the surf beaches along the east it’s always possible to find a spot to yourself (but check safety conditions, (see Personal Safety).
Cancún

For easy-access, fun fishing, with trips available from watersports centers like Aqua World.
Cancún Beach

Every one of the Riviera’s beaches has the same wonderful fine white sand, which stays deliciously cool to the touch, but Cancún’s is unquestionably the finest, stretching the whole 23 km (14 miles) of Cancún Island. Along it, in the Hotel Zone, are resort hotels, shopping and entertainment centers, snorkeling and fun parks, plus the Mayan ruins of El Rey (see Cancún).

Señor Frog, Cancún
Cancún Town

On the mainland at the north end of Cancún Island, Ciudad Cancún, also known as “Downtown,” was created at the same time as the Hotel Zone in the 1970s. It’s developed an atmosphere of its own, though, and the main drag of Avenida Tulum and the nearby squares and avenues are enjoyable places to explore, with plenty of shopping and great restaurants offering traditional Mexican cooking at low prices (see Cancún).
Celestún

The most famous flamingo colonies in the Yucatán are in the lagoon beside this little town on the west coast. Launches run from a visitor center toward the pink streaks of flamingos on the horizon, passing fishermen’s huts, ibises, and many other birds – an ornithologist’s delight (see also Celestún, Celestún.
Celestún

Most tourists go toCelestún only to see its flamingos, but it’s also a tranquil village with an endless white-sand beach lined by fishing boats. There are some very enjoyable beach restaurants (seeLa Palapa, Celestún) and often wonderful sunsets over the Gulf of Mexico.