For 8 million visitors a year, the Mayan Riviera is a place to come and play, relax, rejuvenate, visit and explore. Over the last ten years, what used to be a few small villages south of Cancun has turned into a major tourist destination called the Mayan Riviera. It's a rare person that doesn't find something to love along this stretch of coast, blessed with powdery white sand, crystal clear water a hundred shades of blue and a warm, nurturing, tropical climate.

Cancun in the north is probably the most famous town along the coast. With its mega-hotels, world-class spas, shopping centers and international restaurants, Cancun caters to the all-inclusive crowd... those who want to spend each day with their biggest decision being whether to have a Mojito or a Piña Colada. Down the coast a ways is Puerto Morelos, a growing expatriate beach community where visitors can rent a vacation home and walk the quiet beach. Playa del Carmen is the fastest growing community in the Americas (we heard that somewhere...), a statistic no one would argue with who has been there lately. Despite the rapid growth, or maybe because of it, Playa is an intimate community along the beach chock full of small hotels, great restaurants and even greater shopping.

South of Playa is the upscale community of Puerto Aventuras, built around the coast's only marina. Multi-storied condo-miniums look out into a European-style community that has everything from golf courses, hotels and restaurants to Swim with the Dolphin programs. Akumal is the next town to the south and is really a string of condos, homes and hotels built along the shores of two wide bays, Akumal and Half Moon Bay. The waters are calm and the snorkeling, diving and fishing is great.

Finally, there is Tulum, site of the largest group of Mayan pyramid structures along the coast. Tulum is an eco-community, with beach hotels, restaurants and small shops built for low environmental impact and maximum relaxation. There's nothing like a few days in Tulum to help you forget all your problems.

South of the Tulum is the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve, a large virtually untouched stretch of beach and jungle that is a great place to visit and tour. At the very tip of the Boca Paila Peninsula is Punta Allen, a small fishing village with a few great open-air restaurants and a lot of character.

We can't forget the islands! Isla Mujeres and Cozumel are the two islands off the coast of the Riviera Maya. Cozumel is a scuba-diving paradise and Isla Mujeres (Island of the Women)
is a laid-back vacation spot for families and people looking for that endless summer.

There's much more to the Mayan Riviera than we could hope to put on these pages, of course. What we can tell you is that it is a lovely place to get married and to honeymoon. Get married on the Riviera Maya and you and your guests will never regret it for a moment!