Top tips

Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

First time in Cancún? We recommend the North Hotel Zone or the East Hotel Zone

Visiting Cancún for the beaches? Consider staying in the North Hotel Zone, the East Hotel Zone or La Isla

Want to experience Cancún's party lifestyle? Stay in Punta Cancún

Staying in Cancún to see some of the Yucatán? You might enjoy staying in the North Hotel Zone or Cancún Centro

Bringing your family to Cancún? We recommend the North Hotel Zone

Want to relax by the Caribbean in Cancún? Consider staying in the North Hotel Zone, the East Hotel Zone or Isla Blanca

Planning a romantic trip to Cancún? You might enjoy staying in the East Hotel Zone, Isla Blanca or La Isla

Looking for great value accommodation in Cancún? Try Punta Cancún or Cancún Centro

Cancún is the jewel in the white sandy crown of Quintana Roo’s beach resort majesty.  White sand laps at a Caribbean teaming with life and colour, while the life on land is pretty vibrant and colourful too. From the nightclubs to Yucatán’s jungle.

Cancún Neighbourhood Guide

Cancún has a diverse range of accommodation, spread throughout a range of neighbourhoods, from the incredible beach resorts and honeymoon hotels of the two Hotel Zones, to the boutique hotels and affordable options in Cancún Centro, to the peaceful beach huts on unspoiled Isla Blanca, or the buzzingly hip hotels of Punta Cancún.

North Hotel Zone

Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

North Hotel Zone refers to the area between Playa Las Perlas and Playa Caracol, with some of Cancún’s most swimmable waters and more photogenic beaches. The hotels along this stretch of coastline tend to be family friendly, with some great value options in the mix, and a number of apartment hotels.  Just behind the stretch of hotels is Punta Cancún, where you’ll find plenty of bars and restaurants — if you want to venture out from your hotel — and lively nightlife as well. There are also shops. This is a designated Hotel Zone and it’s as touristy as you'd imagine, but perfect for relaxing in spectacular surroundings. There are a handful of local sights, including the Punta Cancún Lighthouse, the El Rey archaeological site, and the Mayan Museum of Cancún.  And of course, there are plenty of trips you can take to explore the wider area.  

East Hotel Zone

Michelle Pitzel from Pixabay

Like the North Hotel Zone, Cancún’s East Hotel Zone has been planned as a tourist neighbourhood, with hotels and facilities and every convenience for visitors. The East Hotel Zone sits behind a long stretch of beautiful beach, Playa Delfines, so you can walk along the beach without hitting a resort.  The East Hotel Zone has a more grown-up vibe too, with a number of luxurious, all-inclusive hotels. This district is close to the Mayan Museum of Cancún and the archaeological sites of El Rey and San Miguelito. It is also a great place to stay if you’re into watersports — or you’d like to try a new one!  And you’re comfortably close to the restaurants, bars, nightlife and shopping of Punta Cancún.

Punta Cancún

caevans100 from Pixabay

Punta Cancún is just off the ‘sand bar’ from Cancún’s North and East Hotel Zones, and is Cancún’s Hotel Zone town, complete with shopping, bars, restaurants and nightclubs, and practical things too, like supermarkets and pharmacies.  Punta Cancún is the hub of Cancún’s spring break party reputation, where you’ll find the vast clubs and discos, with their pools and bubbles and carnival atmospheres. Punta Cancún has a great range of accommodation, it’s also close to some beautiful sandy beaches, and to a local landmark, the Punta Cancún lighthouse.

Isla Blanca

Math from Pixabay

Isla Blanca peninsula is what Cancún looked like before tourism properly hit the area. It’s not unspoiled (it’s got a very nice crop of hotels, some of them quite luxurious), but it’s much quieter and less built up. Isla Blanca starts about 20 kms to the north of Punta Cancún; it’s a lovely drive, with a spectacular stretch of Caribbean on one side of the road and the Laguna Chacmuchuch on the other, a shallow lagoon well known and loved by kite-surfers, fisherfolk and bird watchers.  There are some rustic-style restaurants and beach bars en route too, with incredible ocean views, and you get the feeling of being in the middle of nowhere. Once you hit one edge of Isla Blanca you’ve got about another 20 kms more of similarly stunning beaches, with the odd beach bar too.  There’s no petrol station along the road, so don’t get caught out!

Cancún Centro

Michelle Pitzel from Pixabay

Cancún Centro is Cancún town, or city, or the ‘real’ Cancún — where the local people actually live.  Because of that, Cancún Centro has a price point in pesos, rather than USD, which is a very useful thing if you’re trying to get as much for your money as you can. Here, the restaurants, markets and street food vendors offer traditional Yucatecan recipes at a fraction of the hotels' prices, and if you head to an urban park or square, you’ll often come across live music to accompany your meal. Visit the Kabah Park, where you can meet a surprising local of Cancún Centro: troops of spider monkeys!

La Isla & Playa Marlin

Michelle Pitzel from Pixabay

La Isla is Cancún’s premium shopping district, home to high-end restaurants, hotels and entertainment facilities like casinos, theatres and cabarets. Playa Marlin is the beach next-door, with no hotels, no nightclubs, no bars, but numerous stingrays.  This is high-end heaven on the Caribbean.