Bright beach umbrellas dot white expanses of sand, writhing with tanned bodies in peak season and fringed with palms year round. Warm Caribbean waters beckon in this popular paradise. Sliding along the eastern coast of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, Cancun has long been a favorite getaway for all sorts of sun enthusiasts.

Sandy stretches trail along the turquoise Caribbean Sea lining Costa Maya, a busy sunbather's dream come true. Punctuate adventurous afternoons of beach volleyball with water-based activities, Mayan ruins and a bike ride before retiring to the bars and clubs after sunset.

For sparkling translucent seas and flashy schools of tropical fish, the reef-fringed waters off the coast of Cozumel are a diver's playground. Warm Caribbean seas sizzle up onto the shores of white sand beaches on this small island off mainland Mexico.

Get culture and a good dose of regional cuisine in Merida, once an important Mayan city and now the Yucatan Peninsula's urban center. With easy access to the soft sandy shores frosting the Caribbean Sea, Merida straddles the northwest portion of the peninsula.

Wisps of white clouds pass high over the sunny Caribbean shores of Playa del Carmen. Ferries link from the port here to the island of Cozumel, though this stretch of beach and water is fast becoming an important destination in its own right.