Whale sharks are around 30 feet long, on average. | Photo courtesy of www.dsc.discovery.com

During the Summer, when kids are out of school, tourists flock to Cancun & the Riviera Maya for some family fun, in the sun. Summer is one of the best times to visit Cancun, because some very special visitors show up during that time.

Each year, around the end of May or the first part of June, our first notable guests, the whale sharks, begin to arrive. They migrate to the warm waters, off the shores of Isla Mujeres and Isla Holbox (two small islands near Cancun) for their own little Summer vacation. These gigantic fish are, on average, around 30 feet long and weigh roughly 20,000 pounds. They are docile creatures and, despite the fact that the word “shark” is in their name, they do not eat meat and are no threat to humans. Since they are not predators and are not harmful to humans, tours that allow people to swim with whale sharks, in the open sea, are incredibly popular. It’s certainly an experience you won’t soon forget.

To celebrate the return of the whale sharks, and to raise awareness about conservation efforts being made to protect the huge fish, the island of Isla Mujeres has their annual Whale Shark Festival every Summer. This year, the 5th Annual Whale Shark Festival will be held June 21-24, 2012.

The other very special guests that visit Cancun each year are sea turtles. Every Summer, green sea turtles and loggerhead sea turtles come on shore in Cancun and Riviera Maya, to lay their eggs in the sand. Many area hotels protect the eggs until they hatch and then, at that time, they release the baby turtles into the Caribbean Sea. Often, the hotels ask their guests if they would like to help the tiny turtles get to the sea. These events are called turtle releases and you should ask your hotel staff if there will be any releases while you are on your vacation.

Or, to get an up-close look at baby turtles, you can visit the Tortugranja (turtle farm), on Isla Mujeres. Admission is only around $3 USD, per person, and you get to see tanks of sea turtles, and other marine life. In the water, behind the turtle farm’s main building, there is a shark and a fully grown sea turtle.  The turtle farm is a small place and you can easily see the entire place in about an hour, but it is a fun and interesting place to visit. And, aside from seeing adorable little turtles and learning about the amazing creatures, you will be doing a good deed by visiting the place, because your admission fee goes towards protecting sea turtles.

These signs point the way to Spiral Island II. | Photo by Steven Miller

As the saying goes, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Rishi Sowa, of Isla Mujeres, found his treasure to be in the form of used plastic bottles. He took 250,000 used plastic bottles and turned them into something pretty incredible…an island. Yes, that’s right, this man created an entire island paradise out of plastic bottles.

Spiral Island II is made from recycled materials and used plastic bottles keep it afloat. | Photo by Joshua Garber

Sowa’s island, called Spiral Island, was in Puerto Aventuras (south of Playa del Carmen) until hurricane Emily destroyed it, in the Summer of 2005.  He has since rebuilt the island (this one is called Spiral Island II) just off of Isla Mujeres and currently has approximately 100,000 plastic bottles keeping the island afloat.

Spiral Island II is Rishi Sowa’s home and, on the island, you will find his house, several beaches, a yard, a pond, and lush, tropical plants. The house has everything you’d expect to find in a home, only Sowa’s sinks and shower use solar-heated, recycled, rain water and he puts leaves in his toilet, to make compost that is used in his garden. The island is anchored in the center, but it can spin around. And, if the wind is strong, it does exactly that.

Rishi Sowa, the creator of Spiral Island II, singing for some friends that stopped by for a visit. | Photo by Joshua Garber

The completely sustainable island is an ongoing project, with mesh fruit bags filled with used plastic bottles, constantly being added to the island, to increase it’s bouyancy and size. Living on a private island in the Caribbean is a dream many of us have, but Mr. Sowa achieved that dream in a creative, innovative, and incredibly eco-friendly way.

Spiral Island II was featured on MTV’s Cribs, in 2011. You can see the show, by clicking the link below and tuning in to episode 13.

http://www.mtv.com/videos/extreme-cribs-ep-14/1670945/playlist.jhtml

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun

In 2009, MTV aired the 22nd season of  their series, The Real World; the show that started the reality television craze. Season 22, The Real World: Cancun, was filmed at one of Cancun’s hippest hotels, ME by Melia. While filming the show, the cast lived in an outrageous, “9,757 square foot, bi-level suite”. The cast and crew pulled up stakes and left town, once they finished filming the show, but the suite is still as they left it, and you can book The Real World suite (now called SuiteME) for your next Cancun vacation.

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun

The suite has a full kitchen, a breakfast bar with seating for eight, and a dining area, but you won’t have to cook, because dining in the hotel’s restaurants and 24-hour room service are both included in the price of this luxurious suite.

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun

The suite has a fully-stocked bar and mini-bar, but all beverages in the hotel’s restaurants and bars are also included, as part of the hotel’s all-inclusive program. Afternoon tea and espresso service is available in The Living Room Lounge, and guests staying in SuiteME get one dinner on the beach, during their stay, as well as invitations to wine and tequila tastings with resort’s sommelier.

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun.

The bathroom is just as over-the-top as the rest of the suite. There are six toilets and rain showers.

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun

…but the showers are see-through so you can’t be modest, if you stay in this suite.

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun

There are five uniquely decorated bedrooms and each has a view of the powder-white beach and the turquoise water of the Caribbean Sea.

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun

Eight flat-screen, plasma televisions are in the suite, along with video games, iPod docking stations and a computer with free wireless internet. The fun doesn’t stop there.  The suite also has a pool table, massage chairs, and an aquarium filled with tropical fish.

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun

There are even two jacuzzis, where you can relax after a hard day of sightseeing, or lounging by the pool.

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun

The phone room is even a beautiful, relaxing space. The confessional, where cast members of The Real World go to rant, rave, and to complain about their roommates, is still in the suite, too.

Photo courtesy of ME by Melia Cancun

If all 9,000+ square feet of indoor space isn’t enough for you, there are three private terraces where you can kick back and relax, during your decadent vacation in ME by Melia’s SuiteME.

Stay at one of Cancun's many incredible resorts while recovering from medical or dental treatments. | Photo by Susan R. Vincil

For years, people have been traveling to foreign countries to have dental work, cosmetic surgery, or other medical procedures done. Some of the reasons for doing this are for privacy (for those that do not want anyone to know they’ve “had work done”), or because the price is often a fraction of the cost of what you would pay at home.

In the past decade, medial tourism has gained popularity. In fact, the growing trend is to schedule your medical procedures in fantastic vacation spot, like Cancun, so you can combine your recovery with a relaxing vacation. With its near-perfect weather, magnificent beaches, luxurious hotels, state-of-the-art hospitals offering high-quality care, inexpensive medical costs (compared to the United States), and its close proximity to the United States, it’s no surprise that Cancun has become a hot-spot for travelers wanting to save a bundle on medical and dental procedures. In addition to dental work and cosmetic surgery, people also travel to other countries for procedures such as in-vitro fertilization, weight-loss surgery, joint replacement surgery, or even for organ transplants.

According to International Living, a website aimed at expatriates and people that plan to move to, or retire in, a foreign country, nearly 500,000 Americans travel to other countries, each year, to take advantage of low-priced health care. On International Living’s list of the top ten countries in the world, for medical tourism, Mexico ranks at number six.

To give you an idea of how vastly different prices for treatments/procedures are in the US and Mexico, in-vitro fertilization is approximately $12,000 USD, in the United States, but only around $4,500 USD, in Cancun. A porcelain crown is nearly $2,000 USD, in the US, but only around $500 USD, in Cancun.  Breast implants or a tummy tuck will run you around $10,000 USD, in the US, but the prices for those same procedures, in Cancun, are about 50% less. (Price estimates were obtained from PassportMedical.com.)

Cancun hospitals offer excellent medical care in clean, modern facilities and many doctors, surgeons, and dentists are multi-lingual, so communication will not be an issue for patients that don’t speak Spanish. The best hospitals in Cancun are Hospiten, Galenia, and Amerimed.

Before under-going any medical procedures or dental work, in a foreign land, do your homework.  You wouldn’t go to a doctor or dentist, in your hometown, without first doing some research, so get as much information about each doctor, dentist, and medical facility as you can, before scheduling any appointments, or sending in any payments.

One of Cancun's many tranquil, and safe, beaches | Photo by Susan R. Vincil

On February 8, 2012, the US State Department updated its travel advisory for Mexico and it clears up some doubts that many people have had about safety in some areas of the country, including Cancun & Riviera Maya.

Up until now, the media has made it seem as though all of Mexico is a battleground and that, if you dare to visit the country, you’ll be instantly killed or, at the very least, kidnapped. Residents of Cancun and the rest of the Yucatan Peninsula have taken offense to these outlandish statements, over the past few years, because we have all known better. Sure, Mexico has more than its fair share of problems right now, regarding violence from drug cartels, but the vast majority of those problems are in areas near the Mexico-US border and NOT in the Yucatan Peninsula, which is roughly 1,500 miles from the border.

The most recent travel advisory for Mexico simply states, in no uncertain terms, what Cancunenses have known all along…that the area is safe. Three states make up the Yucatan Peninsula; Campeche, Quintana Roo, and Yucatan.  As you will see below, in the excerpts from the latest Mexico Travel Advisory, there are no threats in the entire region.

Quintana Roo: Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya and Tulum are the major cities/travel destinations in Quintana Roo: No advisory is in effect.

Yucatan: Merida and Chichen Itza are the major cities/travel destinations in Yucatan: No advisory is in effect.

Campeche: No advisory is in effect.

 

If you would like to read the entire travel advisory, you can find it here: http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_5665.html

Chocolate was originally created nearly 4,000 years ago. | Photo by flickr user Kirti Poddar

Chocolate, the sweet treat that millions of us crave and can’t live without, has actually been around for thousands of years, but few people know its origin. It all started in the Amazon region, when cocao beans, from which chocolate is made, were discovered approximately 4,000 years ago.  Evidence of cocao beans being used as far back as 1,900BC has been found throughout the areas that are known as Mexico and Central America, today.

The Mayans and Aztecs ground the cocao beans into a powder and made a bitter beverage from the powder. There was no milk or sugar in the region so spices and even chili peppers were used to enhance the flavor of the beverage. This drink, known to the Mayans and Aztecs as xocoatl, was consumed during sacred ceremonies and for special occasions. And, even way back then chocolate was believed to be an aphrodisiac.

The Mayans had the first known cocao plantations, around 600AD. The cocao pods were used as offerings to gods and were even referred to as “god’s food”. When the Spaniards arrived to the Yucatan region, they too became enamored with chocolate and took cocao plants back to Spain. In Europe, sugar and milk were added to the powdered cocao beans, to cut the bitter flavor of chocolate.

Even though Mexico and the United States are so close, chocolate didn’t make its way to what is now the USA until the mid-1700s. European settlers introduced chocolate to the region and, today, the US and Canada are the largest consumers of chocolate. In fact, in the United States, we love chocolate so much that we invented National Chocolate Day and, each year, on October 28th, chocolate is celebrated. Of course, many of us choose to “celebrate” chocolate much more than just one day of the year.

If a chocolate craving hits you while you are in Cancun, give in to it and visit Chocolate City Cancun, a family-friendly restaurant that serves international cuisine and the dessert selection is chocolate lover’s dream come true. The restaurant has nearly a dozen decadent, chocolate desserts to choose from, as well as chocolate milkshakes, hot chocolate, chocolate-flavored coffee drinks, and even chocolate martinis. The Aphrodisiac Chocolate Fountain; an actual chocolate fountain delivered right to your table, is the house specialty and it’s served with fresh fruits, like strawberries and bananas, as well as waffles and mini-donuts. Who could ever resist that? With all of that chocolate goodness on the menu, you’ll definitely be able to feed your sweet tooth at Chocolate City Cancun.

While walking along the shores of the Caribbean Sea, there are no bad views. | Photo by Susan R. Vincil

Surrounded by water and filled with beautiful, white-sand beaches, Cancun’s hotel zone has no shortage of romantic views. Many hotels have rooms with and ocean view or rooms that are oceanfront. From those accommodations, you are guaranteed to have stunning views of the Caribbean Sea (or Mujeres Bay, if your hotel is on the northern strip of the hotel zone). Some hotels even set up the furniture in their rooms so guests can gaze out at the turquoise sea, while laying in bed.

Guest rooms at Iberostar Cancun have spectacular views of the Caribbean Sea. | Photo provided by Iberostar Cancun

Exceptional views can also be found from restaurants and lounges, inside area hotels.

Outdoor lounge at Le Meridien | Photo provided by Le Meridien Cancun

The terrace at The Ritz-Carlton, Cancun's beach club | Photo provided by The Ritz-Carlton, Cancun

While Cancun has roughly 14 miles of incredible beaches, the beach at Presidente Inter-Continental is arguably the city’s best beach. Filled with palm trees, this wide, flat beach has white sand that is fine and soft, like baby powder, and the crystal-clear water is very calm. One of Cancun’s most romantic views can be seen while laying in a beach chair on this perfect beach, under the palm trees, with Isla Mujeres visible off in the distance.

The beach at Presidente Inter-Continental Cancun is arguably the best beach in Cancun. Photo by Susan R. Vincil

There aren’t many things that are more romantic than watching a sunset with your sweetheart. To watch the sunset, in Cancun, visit one of the many restaurants that are located on Nichupte Lagoon. The sun sets over the lagoon and the outdoor terraces of the lagoon-front restaurants are fantastic places for having a meal, or cocktails, while enjoying a beautiful sunset.

Sunset over Nichupte Lagoon | Photo by Susan R. Vincil

Guest rooms at Park Royal Cancun are decorated with vibrant the colors of the Caribbean Sea.

In recent years, Cancun has transformed from a budget-friendly resort town to a city filled with pricey, luxury resorts. While the luxury resorts are absolutely phenomenal, they aren’t exactly easy on the wallet. And, even if you can afford to splurge on a vacation at five-star property, it doesn’t mean you always want to go that route. For a vacation on a tight budget, here are some affordable beach hotel, in Cancun:

Aquamarina Beach Hotel Cancun: A small, family-friendly resort on the northern portion of Cancun’s hotel zone, facing Mujeres Bay. This resort has an all-inclusive option, if you’d like to have all meals included in the price of your room. There is a marina at this hotel, but the beach and view are still nice. The hotel is right on the bus route, which makes it easy to get to the nightclubs, restaurants, or shopping malls.

Bellevue Beach Paradise: This high-rise hotel is located at the southern end of Cancun’s hotel zone, only about 15 minutes from the airport. Bellevue Beach Paradise is beachfront, all-inclusive resort that faces the Caribbean Sea.

Flamingo Cancun Resort: An older resort in the heart of Cancun’s hotel zone. This all-inclusive resort is located right across the street from Flamingo Mall, where several popular restaurants, like Outback Steakhouse and Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville, are located. Flamingo Cancun is right on the beach, facing the Caribbean Sea.

Ocean Spa Hotel: Located right next door to Aquamarina Beach Hotel Cancun. This small hotel was recently remodeled and now has lovely room as well as a very nice spa, for a moderately priced hotel. The resort offers an all-inclusive option, for guests that wish to have meals and drinks included in the cost of their room.

Park Royal Cancun: This all-inclusive resort is a short walk from La Isla Shopping Village and there is a small site of Mayan ruins on the hotel grounds. For many years, the Park Royal Cancun has had one of Cancun’s best beaches. That is still the case, today. The hotel has two towers, whose shapes were inspired by Mayan pyramids. From each guest room, there is a view of the Caribbean Sea and Nichupte Lagoon.  There are suites on either end of each tower and those rooms have either a view of the sea or the lagoon.

The incredibly popular Jungle Tour is offered by a number of Cancun tour operators, including Aquatours. | Photo provided by Aquatours

Cancun has more to offer than just miles of white-sand beaches. There are ancient Mayan ruins to see, eco-parks to visit, and an entire undersea world for scuba divers and snorkelers to explore. Once you begin doing research on the variety of sightseeing tours that are offered in Cancun, you’ll find that there are an overwhelming number of tour operators.  Trying to figure out which company is the best for you and your needs can be a daunting task.

Of course, you’ll want to select a reliable tour operator, that has an excellent reputation. Some of Cancun’s most reputable tour operators are Aquaworld Cancun, Dolphin Discovery and their sister company, Aquatours, Delphinus, and Entertainment-Plus.net. It should come as no surprise that these companies have also become some of the most popular tour operators in Cancun.

Check the cancellation policy of each tour operator, prior to making a reservation. Some companies, like Entertainment-Plus, have very liberal change/cancellation policies, while others may be more restrictive. It’s good to know the company’s policy, in case you get sick and have to cancel your tour, or re-book it for another day.

When selecting a tour operator, you should determine whether they offer private tours or group tours (bus tours) to the attraction you wish to visit. Private tours can be more expensive, but they offer you more flexibility in your itinerary. However, taking a group tour is not a bad option, by any means.

In Cancun, there are many time-share properties and they each have sales staff all over town, trying to entice tourists to visit their property and sit through a time-share sales presentation. They often lure people to their resorts by offering free tours or even cold, hard cash, in some cases.

The time-share sales presentations are supposed to last only about 90 minutes, according to the sales people you speak with on the street. If you do end up going to a sales presentation, but are not interested in purchasing a time-share, or vacation club membership, then high-pressure sales tactics come into play. This will essentially end with you either spending your hard-earned money on a time-share, or wasting hours of your valuable vacation time. (It’s not uncommon for a “90-minute sales presentation” to turn into a 5-hour ordeal.) So, when choosing a tour operator in Cancun, it’s best to pay full price for a tour with a reputable operator than to fall prey to the dreaded time-share sales people. Remember, you get what you pay for.

Sea Adventure Resort & Waterpark is a seaside resort that also has its own waterpark and miniature golf course on the premises. | Photo provided by Sea Adventure Resort & Waterpark

Club Med Cancun Yucatan: Located at the southern tip of Cancun’s hotel zone, this upscale resort allows you to get away from the hustle and bustle of the hotel zone, while still being close to shopping, restaurants, and nightlife. Club Med offers an array of services and activities for families traveling with children of all ages. The Baby Corner, in the main restaurant, has special food and utensils for babies and the hotel provides strollers, changing tables, baby beds, bottle warmers, and high chairs, for guests traveling with infants up to 23 months old. Not only is there a kids club, for keeping children entertained during the day, but there is also a “Pajama Club”, which offers supervised activities in the evening, so parents can go out on the town, or simply enjoy the hotel’s facilities without the kids. There are special cooking classes, Zumba classes & other fitness classes, as well as tennis lessons, especially for small children. There is even a Teen Spa, for older kids. Most guest rooms hold only two adults and two children, but there are some Family Suites available, which can accommodate up to seven people.

Dreams Cancun Resort & Spa: Even though this is one of the oldest properties in Cancun’s, it is still one of nicest family-oriented resorts in town. There are two sections of the hotel; the Club Tower and the Pyramid Tower. Some rooms in the Club Tower have bathtubs, which is often a big concern for parents with small children. The main feature of the Pyramid Tower are its Dolphin View rooms. The Dolphin View rooms have unobstructed views of the hotel’s dolphinarium, a “natural saltwater lagoon”, where dolphins are kept, and guests staying in those rooms  can watch dolphins jump and do tricks while people participate in “Swim with Dolphins” programs at the hotel. The resort has an excellent kids club, called Explorer’s Club, which has activities throughout the day for children ages three to twelve. In addition to the daily activities at the Explorer’s Club, there is also an overnight “camping trip”, once a week, where children camp out on the beach. Room service is included in the hotel’s all-inclusive plan and it is available 24 hours a day. This is perfect for times when the family is too tired to go to one of the resort’s restaurants for a meal, or when you want a late-night snack, but the restaurants are closed.

Great Parnassus : This resort has a pirate-themed water park, a Mayan-inspired, 18-hole miniature golf course, a kids club, and a baby club, for children that are between 18 months and three years of age. A variety of room types are offered at this resort, but only the Family Rooms can accommodate up to two adults and three children. The Family Rooms have either one king bed, or two double beds, plus three bunk beds. These rooms are a wonderful feature for families with more than two children, since most hotel rooms can only hold two adults and two children. This hotel sometimes has specials where kids under the age of twelve stay free and eat free.

Sea Adventure Resort & Waterpark (formerly Blue Bay Club):  Located on the beach in Puerto Juarez, just north of downtown Cancun, this small resort (only 160 rooms and junior suites) has its own waterpark, a 13-hole miniature golf course, a playground, and a kids club, for ages 4-12. The waterpark has an area called “Little Adventure”, for children under the age of six, and another section that is known as “The Treehouse”, for ages six and up. The Treehouse section has four water slides, as well as waterfalls, while the Little Adventure area has small slides, in very shallow water, as well as structures that resemble mushrooms, which have water pouring off of them, creating a waterfall effect. The waterpark and mini-golf course are both open daily, from 9:00am until 5:00pm. The kids club has scheduled activities throughout the day. In the evenings, there are themed shows, in the dinner theater, which are suitable for families. Guest rooms have either one king bed or two double beds and can accommodate up to two adults and three children. Babysitting is available, at an additional cost, if mom and dad would like to go out in the evening, without the children.