Cancun tours, Cancun restaurants, hotels and more, by PEOPLE’S CHOICE GUIDE CANCUN
Cancun is innovative and always changing... PEOPLE'S CHOICE GUIDE CANCUN Travel Survey Guidebook is the only travel guide that includes detailed establishment information along with ratings and reviews from their customers. Featuring more than 500 Cancun Restaurants, Clubs, Bars, Accommodations, Tours and Attractions, it is the most comprehensive collection of Cancun travel information available anywhere.
Friday, April 22, 2011
La Habichuela Cancun & La Habichuela Sunset
Monday, February 7, 2011
FITA, The International Travel Fair of the Americas
And finally the Mayan rain god known as Chac Mool, pronounced Chahc+mole, like the animal, mole:
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Cancun Restaurant CALENDA OAXACA
When looking for authentic regional Mexican fare in the Cancun Hotel Zone, you needn't look any further than Calenda Oaxaca. Located on the lagoon side of Boulevard Kukulcan at Kilometer 8.9 next to the Plaza La Fiesta indoor flea market and across from the Convention Center, stands one of the more unique Mexican restaurants in all of Cancun. Calenda Oaxaca features fare that is inspired by recipes and ingredients that are found throughout the Mexican State of Oaxaca, which is located in Southern Mexico, nestled between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. The State features many geographical regions including low-lying coastal areas, flatlands and mountainous zones. Because it has two coasts that border on completely different bodies of water, Oaxaca has long been known for its wide range of seafood. There is also a diverse array of livestock, fruits and vegetables that are farmed in a year round fertile tropical climate. The restaurant derives its name from two words, Calenda, which is a procession of marchers that involves traditional dancing and takes place in the state’s capital city, which is also called Oaxaca.
Monday, October 4, 2010
CHARITY IN CANCUN
The concept of to give a toy and get a smile in return, sounds like a rewarding experience and a heartwarming moment waiting to happen. However it is quite a different situation when the needs of so many children and families motivate someone to take action. When we here at PEOPLE'S CHOICE GUIDE CANCUN learned about this Yucatan based charity GIVE A TOY, GET A SMILE, we felt that it was such a worth while cause that we decided to seize the opportunity, and put our money where our proverbial mouth is. Earlier this year, shortly after the release of our current edition, we made the pledge to give a donation in the amount of $1.60 (10% of the regular retail price), to this Cancun based charity that helps so many people. We do this for every guidebook purchased via our BUY DIRECT & SAVE store, located on our website's SHOP page.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
REMEMBER THE UNTOUCHABLES
Saturday, August 21, 2010
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION?
MISCONCEPTION
When I first created the PEOPLE’S CHOICE GUIDE CANCUN Travel Survey Guidebook, I spent quite a bit of time on the Internet doing research, and on bulletin boards such as the Cancún Forum on Tripadvisor, answering travelers’ questions. These days I find myself spending much more time on the topic of the drug war, instead of answering questions about hotels, tours, and the various types cuisine served at local area restaurants.
Ever since the highly publicized drug war being played out in the media on an almost daily basis, I have been overwhelmed with trying to convince people that Cancun is still safe. In addition to this challenge, when compared to other vacation destinations, there has been virtually no advertising. Even though it is the single most visited Caribbean destination, it is unrealistic to think that the city can compete with the advertising budgets of other Caribbean countries such as Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Aruba. However with the absense of advertising, people naturally assume that if they aren’t hearing anything positive, this must mean something bad is going on, like drug cartel violence. What makes the lack of promoting Cancun an even bigger mystery, is the fact that an investment of $71 million Dollars U.S. was made to completely restore the beaches by the beginning of 2010. After months of negative press, the Mexico Travel Board finally announced a new ad campaign on August 9, 2010:
After reading the press release, the question that entered my mind was “why no mention of Cancun and the newly restored beaches?" I think it is extremely important to point out that Cancun is located roughly 1,500 miles away from the border where the majority of the drug war violence has been taking place. I only wish that the Mexico Tourism Board would consider airing TV commercials showing Cancun on a map so everyone could see how far it is from the border for themselves. This would certainly make my life, and the lives of the Cancunenses who depend on the tourist trade, so much easier.
PERCEPTION
Perhaps the best way to judge if Cancun is safe enough to visit is to ask yourself this; with gang violence in Chicago and the murder rate on the rise, would this prevent you from visiting Miami’s South Beach? Obviously there is violent crime in every major city, but this doesn’t stop people from visiting them, including Chicago. With that said, I have posted a number of news articles and a fairly informative BBC documentary from youtube.com about México's drug war. I will also be posting more articles, opinion pieces and videos on my next blog about the problems happening along the border. While the information is from very different sources, there is one common theme that all the videos and articles share… there is no mention of Cancún being dangerous! While there have been recent events that show Cancun is not immune to the drug cartels' infiltration, including the mayor being arrested on corruption charges, there have been no reports of tourists being caught up in the violence.
The following is a link to a great article, with one of my favorite quotes, “Popular tourist areas remain the safest places in the country, and Stratfor singles out Cozumel, Cancún and Los Cabos as the safest of all.” Read more:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/06/02/mexicomix060210.DTL#ixzz0xD5EllNZhttp://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/06/02/mexicomix060210.DTL
USA Today published an informative story that also doesn’t mention Cancún as being a dangerous place to visit. What's even more important about this article is the reliance on statistics, instead of feelings. I especially love the part that reads,“The state with the lowest murder rate is Yucatán, the Gulf of Mexico state known for its beaches and Mayan ruins. Its murder rate of 2 per 100,000 was comparable to Wyoming and Montana.”:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2010-08-03-Mexico-drug-violence_N.htm
Earlier this year, the BBC produced a rather interesting documentary describing many different angles and a little about the history of the drug war in México. While they visit several locations and discuss the problems of violence that is taking place around the country, the one place that is never mentioned is Cancun.
In order to view the entire documentary, after each part reaches its conclusion, simply scroll down to the next installment and click the arrow in the center of the screen to start the next installment, enjoy:
PART ONE BBC documentary – México’s Drug War 2010
PART TWO BBC documentary – México’s Drug War 2010
PART THREE BBC documentary – México’s Drug War 2010
PART FOUR BBC documentary – México’s Drug War 2010
PART FIVE BBC documentary – México’s Drug War 2010
PART SIX BBC documentary – México’s Drug War 2010
PART SEVEN BBC documentary – México’s Drug War 2010