Cancun is the place where Mexico’s tourism industry really began. Nowadays Cancun is where you will find the very best shopping, dining, sports, wellness, entertainment and nightlife in all of Mexico. It’s a destination for everyone, from family groups to couples and from beach fanatics to active soft-adventurers. Cancun is also the perfect launch pad for wonders such as the UNESCO World Heritage Mayan site of Chichen Itza.
It’s the diversity of experiences on offer in Cancun that makes it so special. If you can climb it, swim in it, zipline across it, fly above it, sail on it … you can do it in Cancun! There are watersports and beach activities to keep you busy all day long. There’s also a huge range of and soft adventures from ATV trips to ziplining, and eco activities like snorkeling with whale sharks or swimming in underground cenotes, the local sinkholes.
Cancun is a mature destination with a choice of all kinds of accommodation from urban high-rise hotels right on the strip to tranquil luxury hideaways just outside the city. Because it is a large, prosperous and established city, you also have access to urban attractions such as top-class restaurants, high end spas, world class shopping and endless nightlife. Cancun is a premium destination for golfing or a spa vacation with world class facilities.
Cancun rose to fame thanks to its fabulous beach, and that remains a major attraction. Enjoy long walks down the nearly 20 kilometers of beach, get up early to watch the sunrise over the Caribbean Sea, or rent a jet ski for some fast and furious fun in the waves.
Basing yourself in Cancun gives you access to a world of possibilities. The urban chic of Cancun is near to the beach paradise of the Mayan Riviera and the diving mecca of Cozumel Island. It is also the closest Mexican holiday destination to the amazing Mayan archeological ruins at Chichen Itza. The Mayan culture had one of the most developed writing systems of any ancient civilization as well as sophisticated art, architecture, mathematics and astronomy. It’s a culture that began in 1800 B.C. and you can still discover it today, as there are 7 million Maya people still living in and around the Yucatan Peninsula.
All this is really easy to get to - Cancun's international airport is located just 8 kms from the hotel zone, so you can be on the beach almost as soon you have landed! Cancun is the closest resort in Mexico for Canadians. Flying time is only 3 hours 50 mins from Toronto and 4 hours 30 mins from Montreal and Transat flies to Cancun 7 days a week from both cities, with other flight options from across Canada as well.
Cancun is a really chic, urban beach destination. By day there are endless watersports, exciting soft adventure and unique opportunities to explore the stunning nature of the Yucatan Peninsula. This sophisticated city has all the amenities you could wish for – so night owls can enjoy world class restaurants and entertainment, bars, night clubs and more.
Cancun is blessed with a coral reef and so it is a fabulous destination for snorkeling and scuba diving. The Great Maya Reef is second only to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Snorkeling excursions to the nearby reef are a must, and there are some incredible sites for discovering coral formations and sea life. There is even an underwater Art Museum. MUSA is a collection of over 500 submerged sculptures. The purpose of the project was to promote reef restoration through art, thus connecting fine art with the science of conservation. MUSA can be enjoyed by both scuba and snorkeling, and you will likely see schools of fish, turtles, and rays.
In Cancun you will find every kind of watersport imaginable! The list is endless – flyboarding, catamaran cruises, snorkeling, windsurfing, parasailing, fast motor boat tours through the mangroves, kitesurfing, water-bikes, wave-runners, jet boarding and paddle-boarding to name but a few. Cancun is also well known for its fabulous fishing. Shallow, fly and deep-water sports fishing are all available and experienced fishing charters are easily available.
Cancun also has spectacular golf options with professionally designed courses by names like Isao Aoki, Jack Nicklaus, Robert Trent Jones Jr., Tom Weiskopf and more. The Playa Mujeres Golf Course is already recognized as one of the best courses in Mexico. At 7218 yds it was designed by Greg Norman and it is just 20 mins north of the Cancun Hotels. Whatever course you choose to play you will be rewarded by spectacular scenery - turquoise sea, deep-green lagoons, living jungle and placid cenotes share pride of place among greens and fairways.
On the subject of sport, there is a special sporting event coming up soon in the Riviera Maya region. May 23 – 1 June, 2018 will see the 5th running of The Maya Rally. It is a major vintage and classic car event with the chance to see beautiful cars from the 1930’s to the1970’s such as a 1930’s Model T Fords or a 1974 Mustang. The rally follows an amazing route through some of the most beautiful parts of the region as it visits Cozumel, Tulum, Chichen Itzá, Mérida and Cancún to name a few.
Cancun’s entertainment and the city’s nightlife are legendary. The line-up includes intimate bars with a staggering range of drinks and the latest trends in music to top clubs with impressive floor shows, light shows, acrobatics and the best DJs in the world. The visually stunning magic of Cirque Du Soleil is an hour away in its permanent home in Playa del Carmen.
For a family friendly evening, you can set sail from Cancun aboard the Jolly Roger pirate ship for dining, dancing on deck, and swashbuckling shows. A crew of talented buccaneers bring the Caribbean’s pirate past to life, as they fire cannons, swing from the yard arms and battle it out with cutlasses and flint locks. You will enjoy dinner and unlimited drinks from an international menu of seafood, hearty mains and vegetarian entrees, then see an unforgettable firework display over the sea.
Cancun has many authentic Mexican restaurants. The city proudly hosts a range of restaurants that may be cutting edge or charmingly traditional, highly innovative and elegant or laid-back and casual. Visitors will enjoy an infinite list of dishes running from Mexican Cuisine in all its glorious regional manifestations to sophisticated international specialties.
If shopping is a big part of your vacation experience you won’t be disappointed in Cancun. You will find the most sought-after domestic and international brands for fashion, perfume and jewelry as well as traditional Mexican crafts from every state in the country. There are several modern shopping malls with international brand name stores such as La Isla Shopping Village, Luxury Avenue and Kukulcan Plaza. For affordable handicraft markets and gift shops, head to Mercado 28.
Mexico has a reputation for safe and exhilarating soft adventure – and no one does it better than Cancun. There are also two unique theme parks that make great day trips.
Xcaret is a unique ecological theme park with water activities, an archaeological site, a re-created Mayan village and jungle trails. You can swim in underground rivers, go snorkeling, see a re-enactment of the Mayan pre-Hispanic ball game, visit ancient Mayan ruins and end an exciting day by watching the spectacular cultural show.
Xel-Ha is a water theme park where interconnected freshwater lagoons merge with salt water streams to produce a unique ecosystem that is teeming with tropical fish. This is a great spot for kids and beginners to practice snorkeling. Other activities include floating along the river on inner tubes, swinging over cenotes and swimming with dolphins. On dry land you can go on an ecological walking tour through the surrounding jungle.
Cancun is also one of the few places in the world where you can swim with whale sharks. These 30 feet long fish are not whales but they are sharks! However, they are gentle animals and fortunately their favourite food is the tiny plants and animals that make up plankton.
One of the largest protected areas in Mexico, Sian Ka'an Ecological reserve is a less commercial eco adventure. It has approximately 1.3 million acres of unspoiled natural beauty with unexcavated Mayan ruins, freshwater canals, mangroves, lagoons, and inlets. Yet another way to enjoy nature in this part of Mexico is to swim in a cenote. Cenotes are natural swimming holes formed by the collapse of porous limestone bedrock. The roof of a cavern falls in to reveal a cenote - a secret subterranean world of groundwater pools.
A real “must see” when you visit Cancun is the Mayan archeological site of Chichen Itza. Chichen Itza is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and was named as one of the 7 New World Wonders. This pre-Hispanic city was the political, religious and military centre of the Yucatan Peninsula for centuries and covers more than 740 acres. The site requires a full day visit to give you time to admire the amazing Mayan art and architecture of this ancient city. A second Mayan site near Cancun is Tulum. The ruins are in a spectacular setting, on a cliff overlooking the turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea – and Tulum's beach is arguably the most beautiful in Mexico. The Tulum archaeological site is much smaller than Chichen Itza, consisting of some 60 buildings and can be toured in about two hours.
If you don’t want to take a longer excursion you can still learn about the Mayan culture without leaving Cancun. The excellent Maya Museum and adjacent San Miguelito archaeological site are conveniently located right in the hotel zone. This is also a great place to visit as an introduction before you explore other Mayan sites.
Transat offer 19 different excursions that make it easy for you to take advantage of all the activities, adventure and cultural experiences open to you in Cancun. These include snorkeling trips, visits to discover the Mayan culture at places like Chichen Itza and adventures from exploring the jungle to underground rivers. In addition, your Transat representative is available to help you arrange other activities you might want to include in your vacation such as fishing charters or Cirque du Soleil tickets.
Transat is the way to get to the wonderful destination of Cancun and it all starts with frequent flights. Air Transat flies 7 days a week to Cancun from both Toronto and Montreal. With so many flights a week that mean that you aren’t just restricted to a one or two-week vacation – you can choose other durations such as 3, 4 or 10 days. There are also Transat flights from across Canada – a big advantage if you are considering a family reunion or a destination wedding that is bringing friends and family from across the country. Cancun is the closest resort in Mexico. Flying time is only 3 hours 50 mins from Toronto and 4 hours 30 mins from Montreal.
There are 35 hotels to choose from in the Transat brochure, offering you a wide choice in different resort areas around Cancun. So it can be hard to know where to begin. As the beach is such an important part of any vacation in Cancun it is important to understand your options and choose the best location for you.
As well as the main hotel strip in Cancun itself you can also consider Playa Mujeres, which is really close to the amenities of the city, but it is much quieter. It is bordered on one side by the Mexican Caribbean and the other by a wetlands wildlife preserve. The vibe in Playa Mujeres is one of laid-back luxury in a natural, untouched landscape. Or, for an island retreat you can escape to Isla Mujeres. The landscape and beaches are stunning - there are sand dunes, lagoons and mangrove forests as well as stretches of medium and low jungle.
The main "hotel zone" in Cancun itself is shaped like a giant number seven, with the top of the seven being the north side facing the Bay of Mujeres and the long part of the seven running down the eastern shore. The hotel zone is close to all the amenities of the city such as restaurants and night clubs and connected by public transport. Local public buses run frequently along Kukulcan Boulevard in the hotel zone and onward to downtown Cancun.
The ocean on the east side of Cancun is what you imagine from travel magazines - blue ocean, endless beach and high rise urban hotels right on the strip that are grand all-inclusive resorts. The surf on the east side can be moderate to heavy.
By contrast, the beaches on the north side of Cancun are quite different. This stretch of the hotel zone is protected from the surf by Isla Mujeres across the Bay. The water is not quite as brilliantly blue, but the surf is usually quite mild compared to the east side. With calm waters and large white sandy beaches, the north side of the island is a great destination for families.
Remember that as part of your all-inclusive package with Transat, your hotel will often have watersports facilities. Non-motorized watersports are included. Many will offer motorized sports like jet skis and waterskiing as extras. If you are a scuba diver – look for hotels like the Dreams Playa Mujeres Golf and Spa Resort that has a Scuba diving centre on site, and which can organize PADI certification.
To help you select the perfect resort, Transat also groups resorts into Collections. There are seven 5-star hotels – and with Transat 5 star really is the best of the best! Three of these are in Transat’s Luxury Collection which means that Transat guests get an upgrade on Air Transat to Option Plus, private transfers, free Wi-Fi in the room, unlimited a la carte gourmet dining, concierge or butler service and much more. An example is the Beloved Playa Mujeres by Excellence Group – a 5-star boutique style romantic island hideaway on Isla Mujeres.
There are also six Family Collection hotels – these hotels have the facilities families are looking for like excellent kid’s clubs as well as great deals such as kids’ stay and eat free and single parent offers. An example is the Grand Oasis Palm – set on the calmer North Side beach.
Lastly there are two Solo Collection Hotels – excellent choices for solo travellers - with no single supplement, communal table and free room service. An example is the Occidental Tucancun on the main East Side hotel strip.
Golfers who book with Transat should look for special promotions and Golf Included packages. Nine hotels in the Cancun area have included golf or golf promotions. Examples are:
Secrets the Vine Cancun – golf included at the Playa Mujeres Golf Course: one round of golf per person per day.
Dreams Sands Cancun Resort and Spa – golf included at the Playa Mujeres Golf Course: one round of golf per person per day.
Paradisus Cancun – golf included at the hotel’s 9-hole golf course
Plus, golfers will appreciate that Air Transat carries your golf clubs for free. There is no charge for one approved sporting item up to 20 kg in addition to your regular baggage allowance.
Don’t forget to check out the Spa experience at your hotel as well. Spas in Cancun can be very sophisticated - definitely more than just a massage on the beach! The more luxurious resort hotels in Cancun have spas that offer both new and time-tested treatments. With Transat you can book the Zoetry Villa Rolandri Isla Mujeres - the Zoetry brand is well respected for its focus on wellness and spas. The hotel’s Thalasso Spa offers thalassotherapy (the use of seawater as a form of therapy), a range of massage, facials, body wraps and exfoliations with the finest products.
Check out www.transat.com for information on the Transat all-inclusive packages available in Cancun. Or speak to your Travel Agent who will be familiar with the wide range of choices available.
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