RIVIERA MAYA
This is the name that was assigned to the Puerto Morelos-Tulum corridor, which has a length of 83 miles (134km) in the north side of the State of Quintana Roo and south of Cancun on the 307 Highway. Some people considerate the Riviera Maya begin after the Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort, located south to the Cancun International Airport, but the hotel is nearest to Cancun area than Puerto Morelos. The terrain is flat, covered by low rainforest, and its coasts alongside the Caribbean Sea provide many kilometers of powdery white sand beaches, inlets, bays, and mangrove swamps.

Along the Riviera Maya you will find a lot of hotels with ecologic concept or boutique style and with a lot of spread, like small towns due the characteristic of these hotels are to preserve the gardens and some mangroves around the hotels, for that reason the hotel rooms are located in small buildings with no more than 3 floors in contrast with the typical hotel buildings that you will find in Cancun, as well there are some areas where the hotels are not one next to the other and the privacy between them is significant. In other areas you will find the tropical and rustic small houses built of wood, with a tropical style and dry palms roof as ecological cabins (called “cabañas” in Spanish) in the seashore.

Nowadays, Riviera Maya has more than 200 hotels and 34,000 rooms approximately, considering the small hotels and the big resorts. Some of the principal places along the Riviera Maya are:

Puerto Morelos
Puerto Morelos is located in the main entrance of the Riviera Maya at 11miles / 18km south of the Cancun International Airport (15 minutes), down the coast of the State of Quintana Roo, 22miles / 36km from the Cancun Hotel Zone (25 minutes) and 19miles / 31km north of Playa del Carmen (20 minutes), for that reason the hotels located in Puerto Morelos are considered as strategic place between Cancun and Playa del Carmen for lodging.

Puerto Morelos downtown is the original laid-back coastal fishing village, mixed use neighborhood of private homes and condominiums. Around Puerto Morelos you will find from small hotels to boutique hotels and recognize brand All Inclusive Resorts. The most important attraction in Puerto Morelos is The National Maritime Park “Puerto Morelos Reef”, part of the Grand Maya Reef, the second world's largest reef barrier, at only 250 meters (273 yards) from the shore.

Playa del Carmen
Playa del Carmen is located in the heart of the Riviera Maya, at 39miles / 64km south of Cancun (45 minutes) and 38miles / 61km north of Tulum (45 minutes).  It is a romantic place and with a very European life style, people come to this site to relax and to rest. The beaches, the sand, the palms and the fresh breeze of the sea do it a somewhat unique place in the region.

The 5th Avenue is a pedestrian walkway and the most tourist area that runs parallel to the Caribbean Sea and around 2 blocks inland from the beach. Along this avenue (1.2miles / 2 km) you will find handicraft stores, exclusive beach clothes, small hotels, jewelry stores and restaurants of Italian, Mediterranean, Mexican, Maya and Gourmet cuisine. At night, the ambience and the atmosphere in the 5th Avenue is unique due you can see a lot of people from different countries, most of them from Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Spain, enjoying the performances from the Maya characters, Brazilian drummers or fire dancers.

Playacar is a tourist upscale development located in the south of Playa del Carmen downtown that has a golf course, a dozen of large All Inclusive hotels, private condominiums and an aviary called “Xaman-Ha”, where you can appreciate more than 30 species of birds, including the famous toucan and macaw.

Xcaret is a popular tourist eco-park full of Mexico, at only 10 minutes south of Playa del Carmen. Maya culture, flora and fauna, archaeological tours, water attractions and much more can be found inside the park.

If you decide to visit Riviera Maya, Playa del Carmen is a strategic place where you can be lodged to start and enjoy your vacations.

Puerto Aventuras
Puerto Aventuras is an upscale residential community resort located in the Riviera Maya at only 15 minutes south of Playa del Carmen. It is known primarily for its marina, which accommodates luxury yachts. Puerto Aventuras is also the center of sport fishing for Mexico's Caribbean coast and is the biggest marina along the Riviera Maya.

Puerto Aventuras is a quiet alternative to the noisy and more crowded Playa del Carmen. It is centrally located, has an international selection of restaurants and is safe due has a 24 hours security patrol. Activities include golf, tennis and diving and there are a few small shops selling local crafts, a pharmacy and two small grocery stores. Puerto Aventuras hosts the areas only maritime museum. This museum features contents of the many shipwrecks which occurred along the Riviera Maya coast.

As well, the swim with dolphins’ facilities is other attraction in this place, due you can walk around the dock where the marine mammals swim. Take the opportunity to experience a swim with dolphins program, a lifetime experience that you will never forget.
 
Akumal
Akumal is located between Puerto Aventuras and Tulum and 21miles / 34 km south of Playa del Carmen (25 minutes). Akumal means, in Maya language, “place of the turtles”. Sea turtles can be found in Akumal laying eggs on the beaches at night throughout the nesting season (end of April to October) or swimming in the main bay during the day. Hatching season runs from June to November. Many environmental associations are settled in the Akumal area, including the Akumal Ecological Centre (“Centro Ecológico Akumal” in Spanish), better known as CEA.

What bring people from all over the world are its spectacular shallow bay and the fresh water underground rivers (called “cenotes”). In Akumal you find nearly two hundred entrances to subterranean caves, with depths of up to 150 meters. As well, in the north side of Akumal you will appreciate the beautiful Yal-Ku Lagoon, an amazing inlet perfect for relax and snorkeling.

As most of the Riviera Maya, in Akumal you will find lodgings from little ecological cabins to great hotels. Akumal is without a doubt one of the most tranquil places on the Earth.

Tulum
Tulum is located at 38miles / 62km) south of Playa del Carmen (45 minutes) and 77miles / 124km south of Cancun (90 minutes). The tourist area is now divided into three main areas: the archaeological site, the town and the hotel zone.

The archaeological site and the vestiges are located on 39ft / 12m cliffs, along the east coast, on the Caribbean Sea in the State of Quintana Roo. The Tulum archaeological site is called “The Walled Maya City” due the walls surrounding the site allowed the Tulum fort to serve as a defense against invasion. The archaeological site is relatively compact, compared with many other Maya sites, and is one of the best-preserved coastal Maya sites. Tulum is the third most-visited archaeological site in Mexico, after Teotihuacan (in the State of Mexico) and Chichen Itza (in the State of Yucatan).

The little town of Tulum is slowly developing until to turn into one of the nine borough council of the state of Quintana Roo, it offers various services as a small city. There are several very good local restaurants and a few on the beach. This is where many of the locals live, whose work in the nearby resorts and hotels.
 
The Tulum hotel zone is divided in two. The first are the hotels located on the 307 Highway, where most of All Inclusive resorts can be found, with a lot of facilities and nice accommodation. The second zone runs from a detour of the Tulum town to the south, on the Caribbean Sea coastline, until Punta Allen. Along this area you will find a lot of ecological cabins, small seafood restaurants and some campsites. The place is always enjoyed for environmentalists, couples and mostly European visitors.

If you want to disconnected from the urban world, finding pace, sun, beautiful beaches and relax…escape to Tulum.

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