Unique Places in Cancún

It is not a "must see", but the capital of Yucatan desserves a visit. Futhermore, Merida is a good place to stay while visiting Uxmal or Dzibilchaltun

This is the closest we got to really experiencing Mexican culture while in Cancun. Parque Las Palapas is located near La Habichuela. It's a traditional plaza where locals gather to play music, relax, eat and converse. There is a small ferris wheel and carousel for children to ride. Local vendors sell churros and fried bananas. And the best thing is there's rarely a tourist in sight. To get away from it all even if just for a moment take the time to visit this little gem in the heart of downtown Cancun.

Soon to be converted into another 5 star resort unfortunatly...Mahaual beach is just beyond far of your expectations.... calm water you feel like you are in a pool ,,,hardly no waves at all.. pristine water you can see your feet as well as that turquose color characteric of the region... powder like sand, and what it´s best no big hotels to distroy the view,,, this little village seems to be hold in time as not a lot of people lives there,, if you walk a little bit from the main beach you´ll find yourself and no one elses around, however still massages ,seafood and beer can be found.

If you enjoy biking as much as I do, and if there's one day that you really want to take it easy and relax and not take one of those day trips around Cancun, I highly recommend that you bike along the hotel zone....

My friend and I borrowed our bikes and helmets from the hotel (Royal Sunset) since we purchased the all inclusive program. The staff organizes bike tours departing from the hotel, but you can borrow the bike on your own just as long as you take it back to the hotel in 1 piece and before 5 PM. This was my friend's idea, and it was a great one.

There is a bike track starting at the Royal Sunset hotel and all the way to the end of Kukulcan Boulevard (going towards downtown). We rode along this bike track - which I hadn't heard about till now - quite in peace, with a few obstacles in the way, but I must say it's pretty well preserved and you have wonderful sights while riding, such as the lagoon, a few green areas, big luxury houses, magnificent hotels, etc.

If you don't want to lose your breath half way before the end of the Boulevard, you better have a better physical condition than myself, or just take it very easy and ride slowly, there's no rush!! Enjoy the road.... The distance we rode was of about 11 KM one-way (so it was 22 KM. in total). We rode for about 2-2:30 hours.

Important TIP!!! Make sure you take with you a bottle of water (you can always stop and buy one but there aren't that many shops on the way), perhaps a towel (because you will sweat a lot) and rub a good amount of sun block on your skin.... it was a bit cloudy when we made this journey but I was hot and got burnt anyway, so it might be even tougher if you choose to bike-ride on a very hot and sunny day.... Put your sunglasses on, and don't forget to wear your helmet! ;-)

NOW YOU'RE READY TO GO!!! Have Fun

La Casita is Children's home for Girls (there is a Boys one near by as well) and if you have kids with you while on vacation IMHO you should take them there with gifts of toys, clothes, school supplies or just cold hard cash and donate to the home. They will give you a tour of the facility and where the children learn and sleep. Not only will you be helping the kids at the home, but you will show your kids about goodwill and how good they have it. It's a humble way of making a point to your kids.

As an author of a travel book, What's Cheap and Free In Cancun" I get to visit many, many locations throughout the Cancun area. My absolute favorite is a little place called Paradise Beach in Tulum. This area is off the beaten path and very, very cool.

Located just south of the Tulum ruins, right on the beach, there is a wide, white sandy beach lined with palm trees. A local "bar" whose electricity is provided by a generator and is open from about 10:00 am to 9:00 pm, will rent you a lounge chair for $2.50 a day. Under a beautiful palm tree I find myself looking at the view of the tourquise water and dosing a lot. Bar service is offered by two waiters or you just walk the 10 yards to place your order.

During February of 2006 while visiting Paradise Beach, we saw a famous Argentine model posing for photos. WHAT A VIEW! Certainly this little beach has been a backdrop for many a photo shoot.

By pure coincidence, one of our sons-in-law had been in Cozumel a few days before our arrival, taking part in a diver refresher course with his other buddies in Canada's air force Search & Rescue teams. We were fortunate enough to have a visit from Kevin and his buddy Dan on our second day in Cancun - staying up late to pontificate on life in general. Because they had booked a rental car to drive up from Cozumel, we had a very interesting tour of the 'outback' sections of Cancun. It is a far cry from what you see in the tourist part of town! Row after row of streets with no signs and only the most basic of shelters - it reminded us of some scenes from Africa that we had experienced many years before. There are almost 1 million people living near Cancun because, as one of our guides said, they know they can make a lot more money off the tourists than they can by fishing or farming!

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Since we left early from Playa del Carmen on our trip to Tulum, we thought we would stop somewhere enroute for breakfast. As luck would have it, this place wasn't open for breakfast, but was open for lunch. We carried on to Tulum and hade breakfast there, but returned that afternoon.
As well as a restaurant, they had kayaks and snorkeling gear to rent, so we made a day out of it.

It is a little tricky to find this place, drive south from Playa del Carmen, and look for the sign (it is small, and hard to miss).
Carretera 307 north of Tankah, Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico