Cancun is the ideal place to enjoy sun and beach, and offers extensive shopping opportunities and a world famous nightlife. Cancun also is the optimal start point for you to explore tropical coral reefs and jungles and archaeological sites of the old Mayan world.
Cancun History
If you are searching for calm, peaceful days to enjoy the sun and the sand, the crystal indigo seas, romantic Caribbean nights, world class hotels, restaurants and nightlife; you are thinking about Cancun vacations !
Little more than twenty years ago, Cancun was just a Mayan name, a deserted sun drenched piece of land of the northeast tip of the Yucatan peninsula. Now is a resort where you could keep busy 24 hours a day just participating in the many activities and tours available, and yet it remains a tranquil retreat where you could relax to your hearts content.
In your Cancun vacations you can literally choose a pace and lifestyle to suit any frame of mind, from ultra chic to funky laidback beach bum. Cancun is a resort for everybody, from college students on a strict budget to the rich and famous from all over the world. Cancun caters to all who visit and everyone should experience Cancun at least once.
Cancun is definitely Mexico’s showcase resort. Few resorts in the world have the infrastructure and amenities that were built into Cancun from the beginning. This is one of the reasons that Cancun is Mexico’s most popular resort.
Cancun’s Beaches
The beaches are probably one of the main reasons for your visit. The powdery, incredibly white sand of the Caribbean blesses all of the beaches in Cancun. The Caribbean Sea is unusually warm with incredibly blue water and at most times is very calm. Look down any beach, at almost any time, and you will see people enjoying the calming effects that seem to instantly relieve the tensions of everyday life.
Topless bathing is an activity that is quietly accepted in Cancun and many of the surrounding areas along the Mayan Rivera. Total nudity is rare (as well as illegal), especially on the major beaches
Hotel Zone
The Hotel Zone is the area of Cancun where it all comes together for most visitors. Hotels and beachfront condominiums line the beaches and serve as the nearly uninterrupted backdrop along this stretch of incredible Caribbean coastline. Kukulcan Blvd. is the main thoroughfare and is a name that you will become familiar with in your travels around Cancun. On the inland side of Cancun is Laguna Nichupte, a vast lagoon that serves as home to numerous marinas, water front restaurants, shopping malls, a couple of golf courses, a few islands and inlets and some fantastic sunsets. There is an area near the center of all this which is known as the Party Zone which is home to many of the areas nightclubs and discos. The very same area is also home to some of Cancun’s better restaurants and one of the nicer shopping malls.
Downtown Cancun
Cancun Downtown is a pleasant zone with some great restaurants, modern shopping facilities and is a semi peaceful diversion to all of glitz and hype that surrounds the tourist zone. Your wallet will appreciate your visit to Downtown, as the money contained there in will certainly go farther, as prices for almost everything are more reasonable in the city.
Shopping in Cancun
There is no better option for shopping than where you find everything for everyone. Cancun is the place. Cancun shopping offers both outdoor plazas that provide shoppers with pleasant places to stroll and dine and indoor ultramodern malls with stores from international brands such as the artistic and sophisticated Plaza Kukulcan, the young Plaza Flamingos, the centric and eccentric Plaza Forum or the modern and familiar Plaza Las Americas. La Isla Shopping Village is on the Nichupte Lagoon under a giant canopy. A series of canals and small bridges are designed to give the place a Venetian look. You can not miss it!
Downtown is a picturesque site where you may be able to bargain, take your chance. There are many shopping centers, market places and Cancun shopss. Because of the rich cultural diversity of the region you can find all kinds of unique stuff.
You will find high-quality woodcrafts, colorful Mexican handcrafts, jewelry, pottery, and typical fresh clothes from the Yucatan Peninsula. A good spot to check out souvenirs is Mercado Veintiocho (Market 28). Numerous beach wear and aquatic sports stores are available around the city, get a brand new swimming suit and spread sun tan lotion on your skin.
Cancun shopping can be one of your favorite activities on your next vacation.
La Isla
La Isla Shopping Village is on the Nichupte Lagoon under a giant canopy. It is a shopping center with more than 150 national and international stores, therefore it is the most important commercial center in Cancun ’s Hotel Zone. This amazing shopping and entertainment center states the transition from one millennium to another. Primarily, due to its untraditional mall infrastructure which preserves the natural beauty and attractions which Mexico’s main touristic pole has to offer.
Yet, this open-air architecture counts with the most advanced technology and optimized comfort, the finest stores and entertainment facilities at international level in this region. A series of canals and small bridges are designed to give the place a Venetian look. You can not miss it!
Plaza Kukulkán
The cultural and consumer hub of Cancun´s Hotel Zone, this extraordinary shopping center offers a wide variety of services: from shopping, fine dining and bowling, to contemporary art exhibits and international film festivals. Open daily from 10:00 am to 10:00 pm. Handicapped assistance provided upon request. Blvd. Kukulcan, km 13, Hotel Zone.
 
Plaza Flamingo
Located next to the lagoon, with more than 90 stores, this shopping mall features the best fast-food area with McDonalds, Subway, Checandole Mexican food and the Market Station Bakery among others. Sporting gear, clothing, jewelries, tobacco shops and a number of world-renowned restaurants such as Planet Hollywood, Outback Steakhouse, Pat O’ Brien’s, Jimmy Buffett’s, Margarita Ville and Sanborns 24 hours open coffee shop.
Open: 365 days of the year from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Blvd. Kukulcan km 11.5, Hotel Zone.
Plaza Caracol
With two hundred stores featuring everything from world renown designer labels, to traditional Mexican arts and crafts, this spacious and air-conditioned mall offers plenty of entertainment for both children and adults. Its fast food eatery among very good restaurants is very popular, however, those who want first class meal can find it here also. Italian, international, seafood and Mexican are among the excellent restaurant choices. Other services such as automated bank machines, public telephones, money exchange, travel agencies and drugstores are present.
Open from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm.
Handicapped assistance provided upon request.
Plaza Las Americas
Plaza Las Americas is the biggest and most important shopping mall in downtown Cancun. Its varied stores and restaurants, small boutiques, movie theaters, books stores, fast-food outlets, large department stores, and the Mambo Cafe salsa club make this place a favorite for both locals and tourists. Ask any taxi driver to take you there!
Market 28
A good spot to check out souvenirs is Market 28, the huge open air flea market located in downtown Cancun. It’s a maze of stalls and vendors selling everything from silver jewelry to art work, postcards to leather. Each stall features something different. Take your time to shop around. Market 28 also houses several restaurants if you’re in the mood for something to eat or a cold beer.
It’s by far the largest of the marketplaces in Cancun so if you can’t find that souvenir here, you probably won’t find it elsewhere. This popular market is filled with Cancun shops selling many of the same souvenir items found in the Hotel Zone, but at half the price.
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