Originally known as Ekab (Black Earth), what is now the northern district of the state of Quintana Roo, Mexico, was thickly populated by people who spoke the language now known as Mayan. After the XVI century, only small settlements on closer islands of  Isla Mujeres and Cozumel remained.

Barely 30 years ago, Cancún was not more than a long virgin island of white sands. Today, Cancún has a highly sophisticated infrastructure, offering a wide range of tourist services. Besides, there is an amazing diversity of both natural and archeological places that have made this place the most important tourist destination in Mexico, and one of the top-10 tourist places all over the world. Nowadays, about 4 million people visit Cancún each year, offering a wide range of hotel accommodations and services, amounting to 24,000 rooms and over 300 restaurants, besides many other amusements. 

The hotel zone, laid out along a 22 km of land stretch, is bounded by the sea to the east and the Nichupté lagoon on the other side. Almost all hotels face the Caribbean Sea, and are very close to beaches of silky, soft sand and transparent, turquoise waters. Coral reefs, regarded among the largest all over the world, can be found close to Cancún, where diving and snorkeling is possible.

Not so far from Cancún, one can still hear the voices of those who forged the history of one of the most important prehispanic cultures: the Mayans. Amongst the Mayan cities that are worth visiting are Tulum, the walled city of the Mayans, very close to Cancún, and the imposing Coba, which is one of the largest Mayan cities in the surrounding area.