Mayan Ruins

There is more to Cancun than plopping yourself down under a palapa (thatched roof). Downtown offers a more authentic glimpse into the sights and sounds of Mexico. For diving and snorkeling, the reefs off Cancun and nearby Cozumel, Puerto Morelos, and Isla Mujeres are among the best in the world. Cancun also makes a relaxing base for venturing to the stupendous ruins of Chichen Itza, Tulum, and Coba, remnants of the area's rich Maya heritage.

The Maya people settled the area during the Pre-Classic era, around AD 200, and remained until the 14th or 15th century. But little is known about them. Other explorers seem to have overlooked the barrier island -- it doesn't appear on early navigators' maps. It was never heavily populated, perhaps because its terrain of mangroves and marshes (and resulting swarms of mosquitoes) discouraged settlement. Some minor Maya ruins were discovered in the mid-19th century, but archaeologists didn't get around to studying them until the 1950s.