Cancun is a resort on the east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. It is considered to be one of the best resorts in the world. The most interesting diving here is that the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef with the richest animal world passes very close by. In the vicinity of Cancun, there are interesting natural attractions: wild areas of the jungle, lagoons overgrown with mangrove forests, sandy shores - places for laying sea turtles.
In the city itself and around it, the remains of the ancient buildings of the Mayan civilization have been preserved. And besides all this, there are a lot of resort entertainment in and around Cancun: attractions, water parks, dolphinariums, nightclubs and places for good shopping.
Top 10 attractions in Cancun
San Megelito and Mayan Culture Museum
The entire history of Yucatan and this coast is associated with the culture and history of the Maya Indians. This is a mysterious civilization that has been known since 2000 BC. NS. Approximately in the VIII-X centuries. n. NS. followed by its highest prosperity, but by the time of the arrival of the Europeans, for mysterious reasons, it fell into decay, and most of the Mayan cities were abandoned. There are several Mayan cities around Cancun, and in the city itself there are two excavation areas where you can see the ruins of this time.
Near one of these places, in the San Migelito area, is the Museum of Mayan Culture. It is divided into two levels. The first is the area of the excavations themselves. The foundations of about 40 buildings have been preserved, including a small temple in the form of a stepped pyramid. The second level is a closed exposition where you can see the finds. Most of the most famous Mayan center in the Yucatan is Chichen Itza, but there are also finds from Kankur itself.
Ruins of El Rey
The second open archaeological museum of Mayan culture, located right on the territory of Cancun. The settlement itself here dates back to the 9th century BC, but the remains of the surviving buildings - and there are more than 47 of them here, refer to a later period - to the 12th-14th centuries. After the 16th century, these ruins served as a refuge for numerous pirates.
The best preserved remains of pyramidal temples and public buildings, in some places even traces of paintings are still visible. They are called "Royal": one of the main finds here is a ceremonial skull and mask, which most likely belonged to the local ruler. But in general, there are only foundations here, so this is a quiet and calm place, which rather evokes reflections on the eternal than serves informational purposes.
The main local attraction is a colony of large iguanas that bask on these stones, are not too afraid of tourists and are always ready to come closer if they are treated with some delicious fresh fruit.
Tequila museum
The Herradura company (Herradura) is the leading Mexican manufacturer of tequila. It was founded in 1870 when a blue agave plantation was found on the slopes of the Sierra Madre.
The very word "Herradura" means "horseshoe", and the bottles with their products are decorated with this sign. They say that the founder of the production, Feliciano Romo, wandering around Mexico in search of a place for a new plantation, saw a horseshoe shining brightly in the sun and decided that it was a good sign. He named his plantation and the brand of the drink itself.
In 2010, a museum dedicated to tequila appeared in Cancun, it is called "sensory", because here you can taste and smell tequila at different stages of production, from just agave juice to a noble strong drink. Here they talk about both modern production and old technologies, show white oak barrels in which the most expensive types of tequila are kept, and, of course, there is a shop at the museum where you can buy the company's products.
Island of Women
The island is located near the city of Cancun - you can reach it by sea, and if you live in Cancun itself, then by ferry that runs every half hour. It was named so not because only women are allowed here, but because the Spaniards found here many Mayan figurines depicting a female deity - Ish-Chel, whose cult flourished along the entire coast.
There is an old Mexican cemetery here that is well worth a visit. On the one hand, it's creepy, and on the other hand, Mexico is a country with a very special aesthetics of death, so the cemetery can be considered a tourist attraction.
The island has excellent beaches, several diving clubs, a maritime museum, and several sites with mangroves and birds nesting there.
Museum of Mexican Folk Art
Bright colors, unthinkable ornaments, spontaneity and cheerfulness, Catholicism and voodoo beliefs - all this is intertwined in the art of the Mexicans, and all this can be seen in this museum.
Particularly striking are the numerous figurines-dolls made specifically for the Day of the Dead, widely celebrated in Mexico and incorporating many representations of the pre-Columbian period: these are skeletons dressed in women's dresses. Such dolls are called "Katrina", and sometimes simply and directly - "Santa Muerte", Holy Death.
Another type of traditional Mexican art is the clay "Trees of Life". These are large clay panels, usually brightly colored, with many figures. Initially, these "trees" were created on classical biblical subjects, but now you can see any theme.
Underwater museum
The most interesting diving site around Cancun opened in 2010. There are many underwater sculptures: mostly human figures, but there are also cars and pets. Technically, these statues made of special "sea" concrete are the basis for a future colony of corals, many of them have holes inside where fish can freely swim. The project aims to promote the idea of coral conservation. But in reality it is wider.
The author of the figures was Jason Taylor, and his surreal project also has a philosophical meaning, chilling the viewer to ancient Atlantis and recalling the many civilizations of the past forgotten and absorbed by the waters of history. Isn't this the future waiting for us too? There is a fat man with a beer at the TV, a girl with flower pots, several portrait sculptures - and all this is gradually overgrown with corals. You can visit the museum both by immersion in the water and by boat with a transparent bottom.
Aktun Chen National Park
The large national park is located south of Cancun. There is a roller cable car that leads along the slope of the rainforest, the duration of the journey on it is more than an hour. From above, you can observe the life of the park's abodes: birds, monkeys, wild boars and deer grazing below.
But the most important thing for which many tourists come here is travel through the numerous cenote caves. Cenotes usually accumulated whole lakes of fresh water - which is why they were so important to the inhabitants of the dry Yucatan and were revered by the Mayans as sacred places. The cenote karst caves of this park, filled with water, are accessible for inspection - you can dive in them with mask and scuba diving. The cave system stretches along the entire coastline and is considered one of the longest in the world.
Ventura Park Cancun
Ventura Park Cancun is Cancun's premier amusement and adventure park. Entertainment for every taste, and such a large area that there is enough space for everyone. There is a large Wet'n Wild water park with an extreme speed racing area and a large children's area with shallow pools, a slow river, a wave pool and small slides. There is a whole climbing area, an excellent multi-level rope park with crossings and suspension bridges. There is an amusement area with traditional roller coasters of various types, a slot machine area, go-karting for children, the opportunity to play laser tag and much more. As the main highlight, they offer an expensive, but the most unique entertainment - flying over the coast in a hot air balloon. Food and drinks in the park are included in the ticket price.
Dolphinarium at Ventura Park Cancun
This is one of the largest dolphinariums in Mexico. It hosts several versions of show programs, in short, so that the smallest viewers do not get tired, and longer, for adults. There are several huge pools where you can swim with dolphins after the show and take unique pictures. The guides provide detailed information on how to behave with the animals so that they can perform tricks according to your instructions - it is for the sake of swimming with dolphins that visitors flock here, and not for the sake of the performances themselves. In addition to dolphins, there is also a shark feeding show, as well as seals and sea lions, you can also chat with them.
Next to the dolphinarium there is a large oceanarium, which displays the marine abodes of this coast - mainly, of course, the colorful population of coral reefs.
Mercado Market 28
The most exciting place to shop in Cancun is the huge market that sells everything that can be sold in Mexico. One of its parts is a flea market where they sell various vintages and antiques. The other part is a place of quite traditional souvenirs (sometimes Chinese, but still mostly of local origin), and the third is a food market with exotic products and fruits. The place is largely designed for tourists: cards are almost never accepted anywhere, but paying in dollars is not a problem.
The most important souvenirs from Mexico, which are abundant here, are obsidian products, obsidian knives and obsidian massage stones. You can buy traditional men's guayabero shirts and women's terno dresses, ponchos capes, as well as silverware - there is a lot of this metal in the country and jewelry made from it is relatively inexpensive.
