Planning a trip to Cancun
Visitor Information
The Cancún Municipal Tourism Office is downtown at Avenida Nader at the corner of Avenida Cobá (tel. 998/887-3379). It's open Monday through Friday from 9am to 4pm. The office lists hotels and their rates, as well as ferry schedules. For information prior to your arrival in Cancún, visit the Convention Bureau's website, www.cancun.travel. The state tourism website is in Spanish, at www.qroo.gob.mx.
Pick up copies of the free booklet Cancún Tips (www.cancuntips.com.mx), and a seasonal tabloid of the same name.
City Layout
There are really two Cancúns: Ciudad Cancún (Cancún City) and Isla Cancún (Cancún Island). Ciudad Cancún, on the mainland, is the original downtown area, where most of the local population lives. It's home to traditional restaurants, shops, and less expensive hotels, as well as pharmacies, dentists, automotive shops, banks, travel and airline agencies, and car-rental firms -- all within an area about 9 square blocks. The city's main thoroughfare is Avenida Tulum. Heading south, Avenida Tulum becomes the highway to the airport and to Tulum and Chetumal; heading north, it intersects the highway to Mérida and the road to Puerto Juárez and the Isla Mujeres ferries.
Isla Cancún is a sandy strip 22km (14 miles) long, shaped like a 7. It's home to the famed Zona Hotelera, or Hotel Zone (also called the Zona Turística, or Tourist Zone), connected to the mainland by the Playa Linda Bridge at the north end and the Punta Nizuc Bridge at the southern end. Between the two areas lies Laguna Nichupté. Avenida Cobá from Cancún City becomes Bulevar Kukulcán, the island's main traffic artery. Cancún's international airport is just inland from the south end of the island.
Finding an Address -- Cancún City's street-numbering system is a holdover from its early days. Addresses are still given by the number of the building lot and by the manzana (block) or supermanzana (group of blocks). The city is relatively compact, and the downtown commercial section is easy to cover on foot.
On the island, addresses are given by kilometer number on Bulevar Kukulcán or by reference to some well-known location. In Cancún, streets are named after famous Maya cities. Boulevards are named for nearby archaeological sites, Chichén Itzá, Tulum, and Uxmal.
Getting Around
By Taxi
Taxi prices in Cancún are clearly set by zone, although keeping track of what's in which zone can take some doing. The average fare within the Hotel Zone is 60–90 pesos per ride, making it one of the most expensive taxi areas in Mexico. In addition, taxis operating in the Hotel Zone feel perfectly justified in having a discriminatory pricing structure: Local residents pay about half of what tourists pay, and prices for guests at higher-priced hotels are about double those for budget hotel guests -- these are all established by the taxi union. Rates should be posted outside your hotel; if you have a question, all drivers are required to have an official rate card in their taxis, though it's generally in Spanish. Taxi drivers will accept dollars, though at a less favorable rate than pesos.
Within the downtown area, the cost is about 25 pesos per cab ride (not per person); within any other zone, it's 70 to 110 pesos. It'll cost about 180 pesos to travel between the Hotel Zone and downtown. Settle on a price in advance, or check at your hotel. Trips to the airport from most zones cost about 280 pesos (up to four people). Taxis can also be rented for 250 pesos per hour for travel around the city and Hotel Zone. If you want to hire a taxi for an all-day tour, for example to Chichén Itzá or along the Riviera Maya, expect to pay about 3,500 pesos total -- many taxi drivers feel that they are also providing guide services.
By Bus
Bus travel within Cancún continues to improve and is increasingly popular. In town, almost everything lies within walking distance. Ruta 1 and Ruta 2 (HOTELES) city buses travel frequently from Puerto Juárez on the mainland to the beaches along Avenida Tulum (the main street) and all the way to Punta Nizuc at the far end of the Hotel Zone on Isla Cancún. Ruta 8 buses go to Puerto Juárez/Punta Sam for ferries to Isla Mujeres. They stop on the east side of Avenida Tulum. All these city buses run between 6am and 10pm daily. Buses also go up and down the main strip of the Hotel Zone day and night. Public buses have the fare painted on the front; at press time, the fare was 12 pesos.
By Scooter
Rented scooters used to be a popular way to zip around Cancún, but they cost as much as renting a car and are extremely dangerous in the city’s congested traffiic. Stick to cars and buses if you value life and limb.
Fast Facts
Area Code -- The telephone area code is 998.
ATMs & Banks -- Most banks sit downtown along Avenida Tulum and are usually open Monday through Friday from 9am to 3pm, although some are open later and even half the day on Saturday. Many have ATMs for after-hours cash withdrawals. In the Hotel Zone, you'll find banks with ATMs in Kukulcán Plaza and the Caracol Plaza.
Consulates -- The U.S. Consular Agent is in the Plaza Caracol 2, Bulevar Kukulcán Km 8.5, 2nd level, 320-323 (tel. 998/883-0272; http://merida.usconsulate.gov); open Monday through Friday from 8am to 1pm. The Canadian Consulate is in the Centro Empresarial, Bulevar Kukulcán Km 12 (tel. 998/883-3360; www.mexico.gc.ca); open Monday through Friday from 9am to 1pm. The United Kingdom has a consular office at the Royal Sands Hotel (tel. 998/881-0100; http://ukinmexico.fco.gov.uk/en); open Monday through Friday from 9am to 3pm. Irish, Australian, and New Zealand citizens should contact their embassies in Mexico City.
Crime -- Car break-ins are the most frequent crime, especially around shopping centers in the Hotel Zone. Sexual assaults sometimes occur, usually at night or in the early morning. Some bars and nightclubs in outlying downtown areas (rarely if ever visited by tourists) are havens for drug dealers and petty criminals. It is safest to travel in pairs or small groups; women should not walk alone at night.
Currency Exchange -- Cancún has many casas de cambio (exchange houses) with varying exchange rates. Hotels may change money for guests, usually at an awful exchange rate. Avoid changing money at the airport, especially at the first exchange booth you see—its rates are less favorable than those of any in town or others farther inside the airport. The easiest way to draw money is at an ATM machine, which will dispense money in pesos and charge a small transaction fee (usually around 35 pesos). ATMs also give you the best exchange rate, even considering the fee.
Doctors---Several private hospitals, comparable to those in the U.S., are clustered in El Centro. Galenia Hospital (www.hospitalgalenia.com; 📞 998/891-5200) at Av. Tulum, SM 12, at Nizuc. is one of the city’s most modern and provides excellent care. Also recommended: Hospitén Cancún (www.hospiten.com; 📞 998/881-3700) at Av. Bonampak south of Av. Nichupté; and AmeriMed Hospital (www.amerimedcancun.com; 📞 998/881-3400), at Av. Bonampak and Av. Nichupté (behind Las Americas mall). All are open 24 hours and staffed by English-speaking doctors and nurses (though not necessarly receptionists). Note: Mexican hospitals do not accept medical insurance from other countries; buy travelers’ medical insurance if there’s a chance you will need a hospital. U.S. Air Ambulance service (www.usairambulance.net; 📞 800/948-1214) is available around the clock.
Drugstores-- In the Hotel Zone at Bulevar Kukulcán Km 9.5, Farmacías del Ahorro (www.fahorro.com.mx; tel. 998/892-7291 for call center offering deliveries) is open 24 hours. Plenty of drugstores sit in the major shopping malls in the Hotel Zone and are open until 10pm. Farmacías del Ahorro is also downtown, in front of El Rey del Caribe hotel at the corner of avs. Uxmal and Nadar. It’s open daily from 7am to 11pm. Farmacías Similares (tel.998/898-019 0), open 24 hours, is part of a well-regarded national chain, in Hotel RiveMar on Av. Tulum near Calle Crisantemos. Many prescription drugs are sold in Mexico without a prescription.
Emergencies -- The local Red Cross (tel. 998/884-1616) is open 24 hours on Avenida Yaxchilán between avenidas Xcaret and Labná, next to the Telmex building. See also the numbers for the police and fire department below.
Internet Access -- Most hotels and many restaurants have Internet access, and five-star hotels have business centers. All of Kukulcán Plaza, Bulevar Kukulcán Km 13, offers free Wi-Fi. Pick up a password at Customer Services, near the main entrance.
Newspapers & Magazines -- Most hotel gift shops and newsstands carry English-language magazines and English-language, Mexican-edition newspapers, such as USA Today. Cancún Tips (www.cancuntips.com.mx) is an entertainment magazine that offers descriptions of local activities, maps, and tourist information.
Police & Fire Departments---Dial tel. 060 or 066 to reach the police, fire station, or ambulance in an emergency. Cancún also has a fleet of tourist police to help travelers. Dial tel. 998/885-2277.
Post Office -- The main correo is on Avenida Sunyaxchen at the corner of Avenida Xel-Ha (tel. 998/884-1418), in front of Mercado 28. It’s open Monday through Friday from 9am to 4pm, and Saturday from 9am to noon for the purchase of stamps only.
Seasons -- High season runs from December 15 to April; low season extends from May to December 15, when prices drop 10% to 30%. Some hotels are starting to charge high-season rates during June and July, when Mexican, European, and school-holiday visitors often travel, although rates may still be lower than in winter months.
Weather -- The day's are hot and, in summer, very humid. The rainy season runs May through October. August to November is hurricane season, which brings erratic weather. November through February can be partly cloudy, windy, and occasionally rainy. Evenings can get cool.
Getting There
By Plane
Most international visitors arrive at Cancun International Airport (📞 998/848-7200; www.cancun-airport.com), lying across Highway 307 from the southern tip of Cancun’s Hotel Zone. The airport is 20 km (12.5 miles) from the heart of the Hotel Zone, about a 25-minute drive, and 19 km (12 miles) from Ciudad Cancun, about 20 minutes away.RENTAL CARS: Most major car-rental firms have outlets at the airport, so if you’re renting a car, consider picking it up and dropping it off at the there to save on airport-transportation costs. Booking the rental online before you leave home will also save money compared with renting after you arrive. Major agencies include Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Hertz, National, and Thrifty; In my experience, National generally has the best cars at the lowest prices. The Zona Hotelera (Hotel Zone) lies 10km (6[bf]1/4 miles)—a 20-minute drive—from the airport along wide, well-paved roads. Be prepared: Online quotes usually do not include taxes and insurance, which can bring the daily price to double what’s initially quoted. (See p.### for more details.)
TAXIS: The rate for a private taxi from the airport is $40 one way or $70 round trip to Ciudad Cancún (downtown) or the Hotel Zone. The airport shuttle service to the Hotel Zone is $12 per person one way or $20 round trip; up to four people can book the “Economical Service” for $30 one way or $55 round trip for the entire group. SuperShuttle (www. supershuttle.com) began service in Cancun in 2014; rates range from $11 per person to Cancun (downtown or Hotel Zone) to $38 to Tulum There is no shuttle service returning to the airport from Ciudad Cancún or the Hotel Zone, so you’ll have to take a taxi, but the rate will be much less than for the trip from the airport. (Only federally chartered taxis may take fares from the airport, but any taxi may bring passengers to the airport.) Ask at your hotel what the fare should be.
LOCAL BUSES: ADO runs a bus from the airport to its station in Ciudad Cancún for 64 pesos. From there, you can take another bus for less than a dollar to Puerto Juárez, where passenger ferries run to Isla Mujeres regularly. It also has a bus from the airport to Playa del Carmen for 156 pesos.By Car
From Mérida or Campeche, take Hwy. 180 east to Cancún. This is mostly a winding, two-lane road that branches off into the express toll road 180D at Izamal, The toll road ends at the libre (free) Hwy. 180 in the outskirts of Cancun. At that point you can either continue on Hwy 180 east into Cancun, or take the local road to the southeast to the airport and Hwy. 307, which will take you to Riviera Maya and points south. Mérida is about 320km (200 miles) from Cancun, about four hours’ drive.
By Bus
Cancún's ADO bus terminal (tel. 01-800/702-8000; www.ado.com.mx) sits in downtown Ciudad Cancún at the intersection of avenidas Tulum and Uxmal. All out-of-town buses arrive here. Buses run to Playa del Carmen, Tulum, Chichén Itzá, other nearby beach and archaeological zones, and other points within Mexico. ADO buses operate between the airport and downtown,as well as from the airport directly to Playa del Carmen (from where ferries depart for Cozumel). Schedules and fares are subject to change, so ask your hotel for current details or stop by the station before you plan your departure.
