The centre of Cancún, also known as Cancún Centro or Downtown Cancún, is a typical modern Mexican city with shops, restaurants, markets and busy streets.

Don’t expect a historic centre with colonial architecture like in Valladolid or Mérida.

For most tourists, the most important place is the ADO bus terminal, from where buses depart for the airport and other parts of the Yucatán Peninsula.

Our verdict

We wouldn’t stay in the city centre for the whole holiday.

Although the hotels are significantly cheaper than in the Zona Hotelera, you’ll have to travel 20 to 45 minutes by bus, Uber or taxi to reach any beach. You’ll have to make the same journey again in the evening to get back.

When planning my trip to Cancún, I myself considered staying in the city centre precisely because of the lower prices and proximity to the ADO terminal. It looks logical on the map, but for a typical seaside holiday, it’s more of a false economy.

Staying in the city centre mainly makes sense:

• one night before a very early ADO bus
• after a late arrival by bus
• before a morning bus to the airport
• if you’ll be using ADO buses regularly
• if price is more important to you than proximity to the beach

If you want to spend most of your holiday on the beaches, you’re better off choosing the Zona Hotelera.

Find hotels in the Zona Hotelera

The city centre or the Zona Hotelera?

	Cancún city centre	Zona Hotelera
Hotel prices	Lower	Significantly higher
Beaches	None	Right next to the hotels
Restaurants	Cheaper and more local	More expensive and touristy
ADO terminal	On foot	By bus or taxi
Evening entertainment	Parque Las Palapas and local venues	Clubs, bars and restaurants
Best for	Transit and budget accommodation	Beach holidays

If there’s only one ADO bus in the middle of the day, we wouldn’t stay in the city centre because of the terminal.

From the Zona Hotelera, you can get there by taking the R1 bus or using the Uber and DiDi apps.

What you’ll find in the city centre

There are no sights in the city centre that would warrant planning a separate day trip here.

However, if you’re waiting for a bus here or staying overnight, you can check out a few places in the vicinity.

Parque de las Palapas

Parque de las Palapas is the main public square in the city centre and, from a tourist’s perspective, its most pleasant part.

It’s liveliest in the evening, when food stalls open, local families gather and there’s occasionally a musical or cultural programme. It’s about a 10-minute walk from the ADO terminal.

If you’re staying in the city centre, this is exactly where we’d head for dinner.

Mercado 28

Mercado 28 is a large market specialising mainly in souvenirs, clothing, jewellery and tourist goods.

Prices aren’t fixed and haggling is common. Vendors can be persistent, so don’t be afraid to turn down an offer and move on.

It takes about 10 minutes to walk here from Parque Las Palapas; from the ADO terminal, allow 15 to 20 minutes. If you don’t want to buy souvenirs, you can skip this place without any qualms.

Mercado 23

Mercado 23 is situated north of the ADO terminal and is significantly less touristy than Mercado 28. It sells fruit, vegetables, meat, spices and everyday essentials for local residents.

It’s more of a local market than a tourist attraction. Only visit it if you genuinely enjoy places like this.

Restaurants and shops

Around Parque Las Palapas, Avenida Tulum and Avenida Nader, you’ll find cheaper restaurants, bakeries, cafés, chemists and supermarkets.

Food tends to be cheaper than in the Zona Hotelera, but we wouldn’t make the trip from the beach to the centre regularly just for the restaurants. The time and cost of transport would eat into most of the savings.

ADO Bus Terminal

The ADO Cancún Centro terminal is situated between Avenida Uxmal, Avenida Tulum and Calle Pino. It is open 24 hours a day.

Long-distance buses depart from the terminal to destinations such as:

• Cancún Airport
• Playa del Carmen
• Tulum
• Valladolid
• Chiquilá for the journey to Holbox
• Mérida
• Bacalar
• other towns on the Yucatán Peninsula

Please check the latest timetables and fares on the official ADO website. When searching, select Cancún Centro or Terminal ADO Cancún as your departure point.

Please arrive at the terminal at least 20 to 30 minutes before departure. Your ticket will show the service number, destination, departure time and your allocated seat.

Do not confuse the ADO Cancún Centro terminal with:

• the ADO bus stop in Punta Cancún
• the Tren Maya Cancún Aeropuerto railway station
• the ADO stops directly at the airport terminals

When to stay overnight near the ADO terminal

It’s worth spending a night in the city centre if, for example, your bus leaves before 7.00 am or arrives after 10.00 pm. This way, you’ll avoid the uncertainty of travelling at night and can walk to the bus in the morning.

If your bus leaves later in the morning or in the afternoon, we’d stay in the Zona Hotelera and travel to the terminal by the R1 bus, Uber or DiDi.

Always check your specific connection before booking a hotel. Simply staying overnight near the terminal won’t help if there are no buses running to the airport or your final destination at the time you need.

Where to stay near ADO

For a night’s stay whilst in transit, we’d only choose hotels within walking distance of the terminal. There’s no point in saving a few hundred crowns on a room only to end up booking a taxi all the way through the city centre.

We recommend these three options:

• The Hotel Plaza Caribe is situated directly opposite the ADO terminal. Its biggest advantage isn’t luxury, but the fact that you can simply cross the road with your suitcase in the morning. It also has a swimming pool and a restaurant.
• Adhara Express is about a 5-minute walk from the terminal. It offers slightly more extensive hotel facilities, an outdoor swimming pool and a fitness centre.
• Hotel Luma by Kavia is a simple, modern hotel about a 7-minute walk from ADO and closer to Parque Las Palapas. It’s a good choice if you want to combine a stopover with an evening visit to the city centre.

If we were choosing a hotel purely for the sake of an early morning bus, we’d go for Hotel Plaza Caribe, right opposite the terminal.

Find all hotels near ADO Cancún

How to get to the Zona Hotelera

From the ADO terminal, head towards Avenida Tulum. About 100 metres from the terminal, you’ll find a bus stop marked R1 A Zona Hotelera.

To get to the beaches, take the R1 bus:

• pay the driver in cash
• make sure you have small change
• tell the driver the name of the beach or hotel
• Buses usually run at short intervals during the day

Approximate journey time from the centre:

• Playa Langosta: approximately 15 to 20 minutes,
• Punta Cancún: approximately 25 to 30 minutes,
• Playa Delfines approximately 40 to 50 minutes.

Journey times may be significantly longer during heavy traffic. For the return journey, board the R1 bus in the Zona Hotelera heading towards the city centre and tell the driver ‘ADO’.

Although the R2 bus also connects the Zona Hotelera with some parts of the city centre, the R1 is easier if you’re heading directly to the terminal.

The most comfortable and very reliable option is also Uber, which works perfectly here; a journey to the Zona Hotelera will cost between 120 mxn and 300 mxn.

What to see around

Discover all the places to see in Cancun.