While archaeological sites such as El Rey and San Miguelito show that the area that is now Cancún has been inhabited by the Maya up until shortly after Spanish conquest, the modern-day city can be said to have been conceived in 1969-70. It was during these years that the organization now known as FONATUR, Mexico’s Tourism Investment Board, recognized that the area’s pristine Caribbean beaches had great potential as a resort. The long island, divided from the mainland by the Nichupté Lagoon, that is now the Zona Hotelera (Hotel Zone) was…
