Exploring Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula

Cancun is a popular holiday destination due to its abundance of sunshine, long sandy beaches, and all-inclusive resorts. But if you venture beyond the resorts and beaches, you’ll find a whole host of exciting activities and fascinating places to explore.

Downtown Cancun

Just outside of the beachside Hotel Zone lies Downtown Cancun. Here is where you’ll find the best social events as well as authentic food and local shops. Parque Las Palapas, the city’s main plaza, is filled with food stalls and handicrafts. The main stage comes alive in the evenings with local musicians and performers, making the plaza a great place to grab some food and drinks and hang out as the sun goes down.

The best place to shop for souvenirs is at Market 28, where you’ll find a winding maze of craft and clothing stalls. If you prefer to shop at department stores, pay a visit to the open-air mall of Malecon Americas Shopping Centre.

Temple Ruins

Chichen Itza is the most famous archaeological site in Mexico, and one of the most well-known Mayan ruins in the world. Covering at least five square kilometres, the site is what remains of a pre-Colombian Mayan city. It contains an array of structures, including ball courts, temples, and stepped pyramids, the most well-known of which is El Castillo. This instantly recognisable pyramid was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.

Chichen Itza lies 120 kilometres from Cancun, and it’s possible to visit the site on a day trip from the city. It’s a very popular tourist destination, so be prepared for crowds.

If you haven’t gotten your fill of ancient ruins, head to Tulum for more Mayan temple sites. The ruins here are similarly the remains of Mayan city, containing temples and other structures. But what sets it apart from other Central American sites is the location. The ruins are situated on a cliff side overlooking a beach, making for an impressive backdrop. The area can be explored on foot, or you can rent a bike to explore further afield.

Cenotes

Another reason to visit Tulum is to swim in the Gran Cenote, a massive underwater cave filled with icy-cold, clear water. Here, you can don a snorkel and dip into the deep blue water, swimming through jagged caves underneath giant stalactites.

This is far from the only cenote around, in fact, the Yucatan peninsula contains at least 6,000 of these formations. Cenotes are formed when underground sinkholes result in caves that fill with water.  You could combine a trip to Chichen Itza with a visit to the nearby Cenote Ik-Il, or head to the lesser-known Cenote Oxmal to avoid the crowds.

If you’re heading further from Cancun towards Merida, you could pay a visit to the Hacienda Mucuyche, where the Empress of Mexico once swam. Or explore the Seven Cenotes of San Geronimo, where you’ll also learn about Mayan history.

Snorkelling and Diving

As well as being home to many stunning sights on land, the Yucatan peninsula has many beautiful locations underneath the water. It is a popular destination for snorkelling and scuba diving, thanks to its clear warm waters, picturesque coral reefs, and interesting sea life.

There are countless dive sites and operators around the peninsula, with experiences available for all skill levels, including complete novices. It’s also possible to dive in many of the cenotes, though bear in mind this is a much colder experience than diving in the sea.

Cozumel is the jumping-off point for many dive trips. From here, popular destinations include the Santa Rosa Wall, a reef edged by a steep wall, and Paradise Reef, a coral reef littered with sea creatures.

A one-of-a-kind diving experience is at MUSA, or Museo Subacuatico de Arte. This is an ambitious underwater museum, with over 500 permanent submerged sculptures. Divers can swim among the artworks scattered among the sea floor, including a miniature house and life-sized figures. It’s also possible to snorkel above the sculptures instead, though you won’t see as much.

For an utterly unforgettable experience, take a day trip to snorkel with whale sharks. These gigantic beasts are 40 feet long, with mouths 3 feet wide. These beautiful animals pose no threat to humans, and instead feed on the fish eggs that float on the water’s surface between May and September.

Swimming alongside the world’s largest fish is truly the experience of a lifetime. Be sure to keep a respectful distance, and you’ll be treated to the incredible sight of whale sharks calmly swimming all around you.

The best time to visit is in July or August, where several hundred sharks gather in one place, and offer the best snorkelling experience. Tours depart from Cancun, or from the nearby islands of Isla Mujeres and Isla Holbox.

The Yucatan peninsula offers so much more than just the resorts of Cancun. So whatever your interest – history, wildlife, cuisine, landscapes or sea adventures, be sure to get out and explore!