Any suggestions for things to do and places to eat in Cancun and vicinity?

Question

Reasonable prices...

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Answer 1

Isla Mujeres and Cozumel are popular.  Swimming and snorkeling are great and you can't beat the price.  I think the tours are kind of a c**p shoot.  They're fun if you like hanging out with other tourista's.  I stay away from all the really nice touristy restaurants as well.  I like to head back at least a few blocks off the strip and eat with the locals, you save a ton of money, it's more laid back, and I don't feel like a gringo.  It's the only way to go, especially if you know spanish.  If you don't , then  aprende espanol ahora, before you go.  It's probably the easiest language on the face of the earth to learn.  My problem is when I get down anywhere in the tropics I don't want to leave until summer.  I turn into a lazy bum.

Answer 2

There is so much to do and a few hundred restaurants to eat in Cancun's Hotel Zone and Centro (Downtown). Depending on how long you plan to stay in Cancun, I would recommend perhaps 1-2 tours for a week long stay.

A tour I would highly recommend, if you are interested in history and culture, is to visit the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza. It takes about 2 hours and a half to get there, but it is the most spectacular Mayan ruin site. The other very famous Mayan ruins are at Tulum, overlooking the Caribbean Sea. If you choose Chichen Itza, take along an umbrella or wear a hat to shield yourself from the hot sun. If you decide to visit Tulum, this site is smaller and often coupled with a visit to one of the areas two eco parks, either Xel-Ha or Xcaret. While I like Xcaret, it is very large and they do not offer an all inclusive meals option. Therefore, when visiting Tulum, I often recommend that people choose Xel-Ha and go All Inclusive, it's not that much more money but it's well worth it.

I loved swimming with dolphins at Dolphin Discovery on Isla Mujeres. I recommend that if you do the swim with this company on Isla, you spend the rest of your day on this beautiful island. I can go into it but there is so much info available online about what Isla has to offer. What I want to do now is encourage you to see the island on your own self guided day trip. There is no need to pay for a tour to visit this beautiful island.

Downtown Cancun is known as Centro and should not be missed. I highly recommend you visit Avenida Yaxchilan for a great local experience. The street is lined with fun restaurants and cantinas, especially on the blocks closest to Av. Uxmal. There is also the area known as Palapas Park, a couple of blocks east of Av. Yaxchilan. The park is surrounded by restaurants and a pedestrian walkway area called Tulipanes, also with great restaurants and cantinas.

Cancun's Hotel Zone has several incredible restaurants. I highly recommend you pick up a Cancun travel guide before you go so you can be familiar with what's out there. There are literally hundreds of restaurants, so choose a book that has lots of choices, and not just 10-20 of the ones that a few writers think are worth mentioning. One such restaurant that will not find its way into most of the guide books is El Fish Fritanga, located on the lagoon at approximately Km 12.3 near another great place known as La Destileria. Both are Mexican restaurants, but El Fish Fritanga is frequented by locals, very inexpensive, outdoors and with the best fried nurse shark tacos in Cancun! Other great places include:

Cenacolo-high end Italian fare, visit their authentic wine cellar

La Casa de las Margaritas-this indoor restaurant's decor makes you feel as though you are dining in a Mexico City courtyard, amazing Mexican cuisine.

Limoncelo-haute Italian food, yes I love Italian and Cancun has some of the best believe it or not.

Paloma Bonita-great Mexican food, fancy restaurant with a cheerful interior and fantastic views of the ocean.

Azure-high end fare served in a minimalist setting, this is a hidden gem in the southern area of Cancun's Hotel Zone at the Bel Air Collection hotel.

Mitachi-probably Cancun's best kept secret for romantic sea-side dining, located at the Hilton.

Lorito Joe's Lobster Shack-great deals available here with special coupons, for more details visit:

http://www.cancuntop100.com/cgi-bin/in.c...

http://www.cancunareasavings.com

Have fun planning your trip,

212eric

Answer 3

not specifically, just don't forget to ask for a hepatitis A and salmonella vaccines before heading off.

But not to miss the Mexican cuisine. Try the tacos: bistec is beef, chorizo is sausage, pastor is grilled meat. The toppings can be avocado paste which bright green, very healty, also lime and chopped silantro, which is a tastier variety of parsly. These go very well with the Mexican style soups.

The ocean is one of the clearest in the world, especially for scubadiving or snorkling. The land is also very fertil, if you drop a seed it will just grow. Don't forget about the pyramids in the Mayan Riviera, very close to Cancun.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Mex...