Boat Tours

Day cruises to Isla Mujeres generally include snorkeling, a trip to the center of town, and lunch. Blue Waters Adventures runs daily cruises through Laguna Nichupté and to Isla in a glass-bottom boat. Colón Tours offers excursions to Isla Mujeres and Isla Contoy on replica boats of the Pinta, the Niña, and the Bermudian sloop of war Cosario. Sea Passion Catamaran offers both a day trip and night trip (which includes a lobster tail and fish dinner on the beach) in 60-foot and 75-foot catamarans to Isla Mujeres.

Contacts

Blue Waters Adventures (Playa Tortuga/Fat Tuesday Marina, Blvd. Kukulcán, Km 6.25, Zona Hotelera. 998/849-4444. www.bluewateradventures.com.mx). Colón Tours (Punta Conoco 36, Sm 24. 998/884-5333 or 800/715-3375. www.kolumbustours.com). Sea Passion Catamaran (El Embarcadero, next to the Museo del Arte Popular Mexicano, Blvd. Kukulcán, Km 4.5, Zona Hotelera. 849-5573. www.seapassion.net).

Ecotours

The 500,000-acre Reserva Ecológica El Edén, 48 km (30 mi) northwest of Cancún, is in the area known as Yalahau. The reserve was established by one of Mexico's leading naturalists, Arturo Gómez-Pompa, and his nephew, Marco Lazcano-Barrero, and is dedicated to research and conservation. It offers excursions for people interested in exploring wetlands, mangrove swamps, sand dunes, savannas, and tropical forests. Activities include bird-watching, animal-tracking, stargazing, and archaeology. You must call to make an appointment before you visit the site; rates are $75 per person for a full-day visit. If you're not into roughing it, these trips aren't for you.

Eco Colors runs adventure tours to the wildlife reserves at Isla Holbox and Sian Ka'an, El Edén, and to remote Mayan ruin sites. The company also offers bird-watching, kayaking, camping, and biking excursions around the peninsula. They operate day trips (from $48 to $205), three-day trips ($336 to $400), and seven-day trips (from $780 to $1,500). MayaSites Travel Services offers educational ecotours for families to a variety of Mayan ruins—including five-day trips to Chichén Itzá during the spring equinox (rates start at $1,100 per person). The outfit also operates custom tours for small groups to ruins throughout the Maya Riviera. Naturama runs ecological tours to 20 different areas, including Isla Contoy, Xcaret, and Xel-Há. Rates range from $54 per person for a jungle tour to $200 per person for the SeaTrek excursion that includes swimming with dolphins.

Contacts

Eco Colors (Calle Camarón 32, Sm 27. 998/884-9580. www.ecotravelmexico.com). MayaSites Travel Services (1217 Truman Avenue SE, Albuquerque, NM, 87108. 505/255-2279 or 877/620-8715. www.mayasites.com). Reserva Ecológica El Edén (998/880-5032. www.uv.mx/CITRO/el_eden/who_we_are/index.html). Naturama (Blvd. Kukulcán, Km 9, Zona Hotelera. 998/883-3320. www.naturama.com.mx).

Submarine Tours

Aquaworld's Sub See Explorer is a "floating submarine"—a glass-bottom boat that submerges halfway into the water. On a 2½-hour cruise ($40) you can experience the beauty of Cancún's reef and watch the exotic fish while staying dry. Tours leave on the hour daily 9 AM to 3 PM, and include refreshments.

If you like the idea of scuba diving but don't have time to get certified, check out B.O.B. (Breathing Observation Bubble) Cancún. Instead of using scuba gear, you can sit on a machine resembling an underwater motor scooter, and steer your way through the reef while wearing a pressurized helmet that lets you breathe normally. It's safe and requires minimal exertion. The two-hour tour through the Bahía de Mujeres costs $75 per person and includes a DVD of your adventure. Tours leave at 9, 11:30, 2, and in the summer also at 4:30.

Hurricane Wilma

Hurricane Wilma struck the northern wedge of the Yucatán Peninsula on October 21, 2005. Wilma was capricious in her attack on Yucatán. She lashed out at Cancún and spared Tulum. The Riviera Maya was hit hard in some places and left virtually unscathed in others. The worst hit were Cancún, Cozumel, and Isla Mueres. In Cancún, sand was washed offshore, winds broke through hotel windows to wreak havoc on countless rooms, and main the main road, Boulevard Kukulcán, was covered with downed trees and wires. Wilma then moved south to sit over the island of Cozumel for 24 hours; the delicate reefs so famous with snorkelers were damaged, and the some of the cruise ship ports were destroyed. Fragile Isla Mujeres, which shielded much of Cancún's Zona Hotelera from the storm, also lost of a lot sand, and its buildings sustained a lot of damage.

It might have looked like Cancún was dealt a lethal blow when the storm hit. But the whole region is on the mend. Shortly after the storm ended, then president Vicente Fox declared the region would be operational within three months. His prognostications were overly optimistic, but the Mexican government and private businesses poured (and continue to pour) boundless resources into the region's recovery, especially Cancún and Isla Mujeres. Puerto Morelos was severely damaged by Wilma and recovery was a bit more difficult for this small, tight-knit community.

In the meantime, other attractions to the south that were spared were found themselves with more visitors than usual. Sian Ka'an, the ecological reserve two hours south of Cancun saw more traffic and tour companies introduced groups to Maya villages and cenotes (sinkholes) buried deep in the jungle.

2006 was generally a quiet time for the region, as everyone worked to recover and airlines only slowly resumed their pre-Wilma routes. However, by mid-2007, things were getting back to normal and tourists were returning. Many hotels had taken advantage of the necessity for renovations to go even further and either expand their properties or make them more luxurious than ever before.

Contacts

AquaWorld's (Blvd. Kukulcán, Km 15.1, Zona Hotelera. 998/848-8327. www.aquaworld.com.mx) Sub See Explorer. B.O.B. (Breathing Observation Bubble) Cancún (El Embarcadero, Kukulcán, Km 4.5, Local E-3, Zona Hotelera. 998/849-4440 or 849-7284. 998/849-4440 or 849-7284).

Helicopter Tours

If you want to view the Zona Hotelera by air, TOFLY7 operates a helicopter tour daily from the El Embarcadero complex next to the pier. The tour lasts 15 minutes and costs $89 per person. A maximum of three people are allowed in each helicopter.

Contacts

TOFLY7 (El Embarcadero, stairs to office are next to the Museo del Arte Popular Mexicano, Blvd. Kukulcán, Km 4.5, Zona Hotelera. 998/849-5471; (cell) 044-998147-8088. www.tofly7.com).

On Isla Mujeres

Caribbean Realty & Travel Enterprises offers several different tours of Isla and the surrounding region. The agents there can also help you with long-term rentals and real estate. La Isleña Tours offers several tours to Isla Contoy at $42 per person, including snorkeling trips. Fishing excursions are also offered for groups of four for a minimun of four hours ($120) or a maximum of eight hours. Viajes Prisma is a small agency with good rates for a variety of local day trips, including visits to Mayan sites along the Riviera Maya.

Contacts

Caribbean Realty & Travel Enterprises (Calle Abasolo 6. 998/877-1371 or 998/877-1372. www.caribbeanrealtytravel.com). La Isleña Tours (Av. Morelos, 1 block up from ferry docks. 998/877-0578). Viajes Prisma (Av. Rueda Medina 9C. 998/877-0938. jesuscontreras6@hotmail.com).