Soft white sands, palm trees, glittering ocean – nope, not an ad for shampoo but the tropical beauty of Cancun!
First developed in the early seventies, Cancun has become one of the most popular holiday destinations in the world, with millions of visitors each year, but don’t worry if that sounds a bit crowded — a major restoration project was completed in 2010 adding several miles of beach to the coastline so that more of us can enjoy all it has to offer!
With winter approaching, anyone booking late holidays to this dream destination for some last-minute rays will not be disappointed.
You may be expecting the paradise-island experience, and it will deliver all that and more; what you may not expect are the abundance of surprise elements that will make it a truly memorable holiday.
Top tips are to slap on the sun cream, drink plenty and stick to bottled water. The tap water is fine if you’ve had a few weeks to acclimatize, but most of us aren’t lucky enough to be staying there that long!
Taking a stroll along sun-baked pavements strewn with coconuts isn’t something you do every day, but if you can get your head round that, the submerged watery forests of mangroves running parallel to the boulevard is quite alien and very evocative!
If you’re after sun, sea and shopping, the the Hotel Zone provides all you need, with an overwhelming variety of stores, bars and eating places to tempt your senses and your wallet. Hotels in Cancun number over 140 and over with over 20,000 rooms available for visitors, finding a place to stay in Cancun will be no biggie, definitely.
There are a number of all-inclusive resorts catering to families as well as guests looking for a more relaxing break, and wherever you are, it’s worth getting on a tour or two to discover some of Mexico’s fascinating history.
Evidence of the Mayan culture is everywhere and there are plenty of trips running from Cancun to bring you closer to the turbulent past of a lost people. The temple sites at Chichen Itza and Tulum are a must-see and worth the travelling, but you can always catch a short flight in a ten-seater plane if turbulence doesn’t bother you!
For a taste of real life, downtown Cancun is where the locals will welcome you and offer a more personal experience with colourful markets, good bargains and far less of the commercialism naturally arising from tourism.
Wildlife lovers should check with a guide before venturing ‘off road’, as rattlesnakes may not take kindly to intrepid explorers, and sheltering from the heat under a tree may induce a close encounter of the giant ant kind, but as well as the occasional gecko in your apartment, Cancun boasts the second-largest coral reef in the world; only the Great Barrier Reef in Australia dwarfs it.
If diving isn’t your thing, at least pop on a face-mask and snorkel your way to enlightenment. The opportunity to swim among parrot fish, barracuda (honestly!), and a myriad of brightly coloured shoals and corals is indescribable.
Cancun has a whole lot more to offer than the what the travel brochures say!