Mexico

When it comes to choosing a vacation destination, there are so many things to consider, from the cost and the weather to the culture and types of activities available. Whether …

We visited 10 countries this year, and we fell in love with a lot of the places we visited. Which cities made it into our top five favorite destinations of 2012?

The Riviera Maya is one of the most popular destinations in Mexico, and it’s easy to see why: crystal clear Caribbean waters, pristine beaches, beautiful beach towns and Maya ruins …

Two shiny new Ford transporter vans stop along the side of a white cement road and nearly 30 passengers pile out and reformulate into the small groups everyone came with. Dani and I stand off to the side and observe with some shock the other tourists in the group. A group of Brazilians (both female and male) in tank-tops, short-shorts and movie-star sunglasses and several girls in short-ish skirts. Before you start thinking Dani and I to be very prude (standing there in our long pants, closed toe shoes and jackets), we should explain that our tour was taking place in traditional Mayan villages outside of San Cristobal de las Casas, Mexico. The agency had mentioned that we should wear appropriate clothes out of respect to the villagers – advice apparently very few of us chose to heed.

Isla Mujeres – this little Caribbean island near Cancun is my little Mexican paradise, complete with picture-perfect palm-fringed sandy beaches and crystal clear turquoise water!

Without fail, every single person we told warned us against a trip to Mexico. Don’t you know how dangerous it is there, they would warn, speaking of killings, kidnappings and drug crime. Don’t believe the hype – Go to Mexico!!!

This year has been a total beach for the two of us. Having spent over five months on the coast around the world, we share our top five beaches of the year in this post.

No trip to Mexico is complete without spending at least a few days in this modern yet traditional, culturally-rich, forward thinking gateway to Latin America.

The sleepy colonial town in the center of the Yucatan peninsula has a classic, authentic feel, the kind of place which is somehow still devoid of major tourism despite its proximity to the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza and several beautiful cenotes.

This Yucatan road trip offers a great taste of Mexico: A mix of Caribbean beaches, Maya ruins, cenotes, jungle, delicious food and authentic Mexican villages.