MEXICO

The Hot Spots Cancun (Quintana Roo state) Pristine beaches and a crystal-clear, turquoise sea are among the virtues of an area once home to the ancient Maya and a refuge for pirates. Cancun (a Mayan word meaning "four serpents") was for many years a fishing village inhabited by 100 people. But, in the early 1970s, it was selected by computer as the ideal Caribbean resort, and its subsequent, master-planned development has been swift.