The white sands and turquoise waters of this picture-postcard Caribbean coast are just a short drive from Cancun.

Playa Delfines, or Dolphin Beach, is a truly beautiful place. The wide strip of light sand appears to stretch on for miles, contrasting with that particular kind of blue that you only find in the Caribbean Sea. Amazingly for a place like this, it's not difficult to find yourself a quiet spot, and with lifeguards to keep an eye on the little ones in the controlled swimming area, you can really put your feet up and enjoy the peaceful lapping of the waves.

The beach is dotted with umbrellas, free to use, so you'd be advised to set yourself up under one of these to have some protection from the intense heat. In fact, this coastal strip is very well tended to, and working alongside the trained lifeguards are also medical officers, should anything go wrong.

And it’s not for nothing that it's called Dolphin Beach. This is a favourite place for people to come dolphin watching, and you can often spot these amazing creatures playing in the waves not too far off the coast. It's also possible to charter a boat to take you out to sea if you want to see them up close, and you can even arrange to swim with them.

The beach is also quite popular amongst surfers. The waves here aren’t huge, but they’re definitely high enough for a decent surf. There's nowhere to hire boards on the beach itself, so that should be arranged in advance in one of Cancun’s many surf shops.

One of the many magical things about Playa Delfines is that it's not lined with large hotels and restaurants. You can really tell that this is a favourite hang-out among locals by the fact that the only food and refreshments available are from street vendors, and everything is reasonably priced. This makes the beach a surprisingly good place to try out some local dishes, such as fresh fish wrapped in banana leaf, or kibis, a kind of Yucatan dumpling.

Playa Delfines is 17.5 kilometres away from the centre of Cancun, and is very easy to get to by bus or by taxi. Uniquely for a Cancun beach, there's also free parking here. The beach is always open and free to use, but the lifeguards are only there during the day.

Plan a trip to see Delfines Beach

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Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya Resort & Spa - All Inclusive

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10 Feb - 16 Feb

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Brisbane (BNE) to Cancun (CUN)

8/10 Very Good! (3,355 reviews)

Beautiful resort, friendly staff, food was great, currently a lot of construction and improvements made the walk back to the room quite long. They had shuttles running but that was the only concern. Would love to go back once the improvements were done.

Reviewed on 24 Nov. 2024

Hidden Beach Resort Au Naturel Adults Only, Catamarán, Cenote & More Inclusive

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Brisbane (BNE) to Cancun (CUN)

9/10 Wonderful! (24 reviews)

Todo el personal muy atento la comida exelente bebidas el resort ♥️ todo exelente lo recomiendo

Reviewed on 21 Nov. 2024

Grand Fiesta Americana Coral Beach Cancun - All Inclusive

Zona Hotelera

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Melbourne (MEL) to Cancun (CUN)

9.2/10 Wonderful! (3,214 reviews)

Very beautiful property in the best location. Everything you want to see is within walking distance. I would suggest walking to playa forum. Catching a cab to playa defines. Although the beach is perfect at the hotel I enjoy super long walks. There is also delphinus at the neighboring hotel that you can swim with dolphins and a very short walk. The nightlife is also all within walking distance. The hotel has enough going on that you would never have to leave. We are at all of the restaurants. The hibachi was very fun and our favorite. The steak house was also very good. The outdoor restaurant all the way to right has a really good ribeye sandwich, or the half roasted chicken. I would also suggest using the 24 hour room service. Breakfast doesn’t start till 6 if you have an early excursion and it takes about 45 min so make sure you order ahead. Great service though. We also did a couples messages at the spa. Great experience. All in all the staff was very accommodating and the towel service was amazing. We also used the game room more than I expected and we had a really good time. Only set backs where the rooms and the spa looked a little worn since our last visit. The shower water pressure was very low. I think this is the best hotel in the best location and with that comes a lot of traffic and up keep. I would 100 percent suggest staying here and when we come back eventually we will likely stay here again. 10/10

Reviewed on 25 Nov. 2024

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