Swaying in the arms of an ancient civilization

Just south of bustling Cancun lies the serenity of the Maya's turtle- friendly Tulum.

GOING TO TULUM

• Getting there: American Airlines and Mexicana have non-stop flights from Miami to Cancun, starting at $268. From Fort Lauderdale, Spirit and Jet Blue fly non-stop to Cancun, starting at $228. The flight is about 1 ½ hours. Tulum is a two-hour drive south of Cancun by rental car, bus or a shuttle that can be booked through your resort.

• Travel tips: Some hotels in Tulum's Zone Hotelera don't take credit cards, but U.S. dollars (and of course Mexican pesos) are widely accepted. Bring mosquito repellent, sunscreen and a small flashlight or headlamp.

WHAT TO DO

• Chichen Itza: Tulum is just two hours from the spectacular Mayan ruins. Allow a full day to visit this historic site.

• Snorkeling above Tulum's reef: Your hotel can arrange a tour.

WHERE TO STAY

• Hotel Nueva Vida de Ramiro -- Find this eco-minded collection of rustic cabins by driving up the miles-long Zona Hotelera along the beach. Our cabin had non-stop electricity (the resort stores solar- and wind-generated energy in batteries so there's no droning generator, a common nuisance at some other lodgings). $115-$420, depending on cabin size and season, 011-52-984-877-8512; www.tulumnv.com.

• Zamas -- The beach cabana hotel has a hip, eco-chic vibe that's popular with young, upscale travelers. Dine al fresco; there's usually live music in the evenings. $110-$160; www.zamas.com

• Mezzanine -- A more stylish and upscale hotel with a Thai fusion restaurant on site. $143 to $325, higher during winter peak season. 011-52-1-984-131-1596; www.mezzanine.com.mx.

DINING

• La Zebra, next to Hotel Nueva Vida, is the place to be on Sunday nights, when a Cuban salsa band lights up the beach. Dinner of ceviche, two entrées (grilled lamb in banana leaves) and three pure agave margaritas cost less than $60. La Zebra also has lodgings near the beach. 011-52-1-984-115-4726; www.lazebratulum.com Entrees $7-$46.

• El Mariachi, in Tulum pueblo, has fresh grilled fish and tasty enchiladas. On Av. Tulum, aka Highway 307, across street from Orion.
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But just as it did for Cancún, which sprang up about 1974, Mexico's government tourism development agency decided to put a name to this beautiful face, and the Riviera Maya was born. And soon enough a highway paralleling the coast was built, linking this sun-drenched piece of real estate to the busy Cancún airport.

Sure, the name rings of a romanticized marketing conceit, but Riviera Maya is indeed an ideal description of the magic carpet of sand that unrolls virtually unbroken for 81 miles south of Cancún.

•Two Cancuns: Including the kids at an all-inclusive
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So how did we end up at an all-inclusive resort in Cancun, a town void of culture and created for tourists? One where we never converted our dollars to pesos? Where the biggest culinary decision was which room to sit in for our buffet meal?
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Riviera Maya all-inclusive caters to kids of all agesSpanish lessons, yoga or a snooze on the beach in an oversized casita?
Beach butlers hustle with tall frozen drinks while adults and kids gather at the interconnected pools' swim-up bars and restaurant decks.
A toddler sleeps peacefully in one of these spacious ''beach beds'' (her mom says she's so grateful she doesn't have to spend naptime in their room), a grandfather plays cards with his granddaughter in another and a dad is tosses a football along the beach with his sons. A mom goes out in a kayak with her daughter.

By MICHAEL SHAPIRO
Special to The Miami Herald
A Caribbean salsa band plays up-tempo Cuban songs as dozens of people dance on the beach below. On an open-air patio, my girlfriend and I feast on ultra-fresh ceviche and potent Herradura margaritas under the moonlight. This may sound like a scene from any number of Mexican beaches, but there's one big difference: we're swaying in the shadow of the Mayan ruins of Tulum.

This gleaming city on a hill, built eight centuries ago to give the local Mayans a commanding view of the sea, remains one of Mexico's most beguiling sights. Most Mayan ruins are inland, concealed by their jungle surroundings.

Tulum occupies a bluff top and has a sunrise view overlooking the turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea. And Tulum shows off the Mayans' flair for stone carvings, with figures of jaguars, fertility goddesses, and plumed serpents that evoke the resplendent quetzal, a bird that Maya leaders revered as an embodiment of spirit.

After a week on the Mayan Riviera in typical resorts near Cancun, my girlfriend, Jackie, and I sought a more down-to-earth Mexican experience. Though the all-inclusives can be fun, we wanted a place where beach sand didn't have to be trucked in, where Mayan ruins were just 10 minutes away, and where sea turtles had the right of way.

AWAY FROM IT ALL

We found our paradise in Tulum, one of the most picturesque beachside resorts in the Yucatán. Less than two hours south of the Cancun airport, Tulum is everything that the growing resortopolis of Cancun is not: tranquil, lightly and thoughtfully developed, and home to Mayan ruins that almost appear to be hovering above the beach. Tulum has all the comforts, but unlike in Cancun, you feel like you're in Mexico.

We arrived in Tulum without reservations not realizing it was the first Saturday of spring break week.

Jackie and I visited several lodges before we found our home for the weekend: a beachfront cabana on stilts about 25 yards from the lapping waves at Hotel Nueva Vida de Ramiro.

The light-tan sand felt as fine as baby powder, the water segued from cobalt blue to emerald green, the vibe was relaxed. Occasionally a vendor would stroll by offering hand-carved coral bracelets or homemade necklaces. The pieces were beautiful and the sell was as soft as the sand.

Hotel Nueva Vida is part of Tulum's Zona Hotelera, which stretches for several miles along the coast and is strictly regulated to prevent skyscrapers and haphazard development. Judging from the low-slung skyline, it seemed like no hotel in Tulum was taller than the highest palm tree, and most weren't half that high.

Which is not to say that Tulum isn't growing -- it's boomed in the last few years and is expected to keep expanding. But growth will be limited by strict environmental regulations to maintain the delicate balance of nature, said Santiago Kenny, a young man who's part of the family that owns Hotel Nueva Vida.

The cabanas are built on stilts to prevent erosion, Kenny said, and the fence enclosing the cluster of bungalows was designed so baby sea turtles can crawl between the slats and get back to the ocean.

During spawning season, the gate is left open so nesting turtles can enter the property's sands. The hotel's white lights are replaced with dim red lamps so that the baby loggerheads and green turtles, which navigate by moonlight, don't get disoriented.

Our first night in the cabana, the sound of gently breaking waves lulled us to sleep. The next day we rose early (to beat the heat and tour bus crowds) to visit Tulum's Mayan ruins. We parked and walked about 10 minutes (just over half a mile) to the main entrance.

(cont'd on next post)