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Guides 26 Oct 2026 7 min read

Cancún and the Riviera Maya: Eating Beyond the Resort, from the UK

For British holidaymakers in Cancún and the Riviera Maya: flights from UK airports, the Quintana Roo entry tax, and the Yucatecan dishes to leave the resort for.

Edmond BojalilEB

Edmond Bojalil

Recetas Mexas

Cancún and the Riviera Maya: Eating Beyond the Resort, from the UK

For most British travellers, Mexico means Cancún and the Riviera Maya: a long flight, a beach, and very often an all-inclusive resort. The resort buffet is designed to be familiar, and plenty of holidaymakers fly home without having tasted the food of the region they were staying in. That is a shame, because the Yucatán Peninsula has a distinctive cuisine of its own, with deep Maya roots, and much of it is cheap, easy to find and only a short trip from the hotel. This guide is for anyone flying from the UK to Cancún who wants to eat at least a few meals outside the resort.

Getting there from the UK

According to the Cancún airport's Wikipedia page, consulted in October 2026, British Airways flies to Cancún from London Gatwick, Virgin Atlantic from London Heathrow, and TUI from Birmingham, London Gatwick and Manchester all year, with seasonal TUI flights from Belfast, Cardiff, Glasgow and Newcastle. Schedules change from season to season, so check with the airline.

Two official points from the FCDO's travel advice for Mexico are worth knowing before you go. British passport holders do not need a visa for a tourist visit, but you may be asked at the border for a return ticket, proof of accommodation and proof of funds. And visitors to the state of Quintana Roo, which is where Cancún, Playa del Carmen and Tulum are, must pay an entry tax. Read the FCDO page in full before you travel, including its advice on safety, because it changes more often than any guide.

For health, the FCDO advises drinking only boiled or bottled water and avoiding ice in drinks, and flags a food and water bug, cyclospora, that has affected travellers returning from Mexico. Our guide to eating street food safely in Mexico explains how to choose where to eat sensibly.

What Yucatecan food is

Cancún is in Quintana Roo, one of the three states of the Yucatán Peninsula, and its food belongs to the peninsula's tradition: citrus marinades, slow-roasted meat, black beans, pickled red onion and the fierce habanero chilli. Our guide to Yucatán and Maya cooking covers the whole region; here are the dishes to look for on a beach holiday.

The dishes to leave the resort for

  • Cochinita pibil. The Yucatán's signature: pork marinated in strongly acidic citrus juice with annatto, which turns it a vivid orange, wrapped in banana leaf and traditionally roasted in a pit oven. It is eaten in tacos and tortas. Try our cochinita pibil recipe when you get home.
  • Panuchos. A fried tortilla stuffed with refried black beans and topped with cabbage, pulled chicken or turkey, tomato, pickled red onion and avocado. Our panuchos recipe recreates them.
  • Salbutes. A puffed, deep-fried tortilla topped with lettuce, avocado, pulled chicken or turkey, tomato and pickled onion. See our salbutes recipe.
  • Sopa de lima. Lime soup: chicken or other meat in a broth sharpened with lime juice and served with crisp tortilla strips.
  • Poc chuc. Meat, usually pork, marinated in citrus and cooked over a grill, served with rice, pickled onion, beans and avocado. One of the signature dishes of the Yucatán; our poc chuc recipe works on a British barbecue.
  • Papadzules. Corn tortillas dipped in a pumpkin-seed sauce, filled with hard-boiled egg and finished with a cooked tomato sauce, a dish with no meat at all. See our papadzules recipe.
  • Marquesitas. The street dessert: a crisp rolled crêpe filled with cajeta, condensed milk, jam, chocolate or, unexpectedly, Edam cheese, sold in squares, parks and streets. A British supermarket Edam makes a passable version of our marquesitas at home.

For vegetarians and anyone with allergies

Yucatecan food is meat-heavy, with pork in its most famous dishes, but there are options. Papadzules contain no meat at all, and panuchos and salbutes can usually be ordered with just beans, cabbage, tomato and avocado. Two things to ask about: whether the refried beans are cooked with lard, which is common in Mexico, and, if you have a seed or nut allergy, whether a sauce is made with pumpkin seeds, as the papadzules sauce is. Writing down your requirement in Spanish on a card before you travel is far more reliable than trying to explain it at a busy counter.

Ordering with confidence

Most stalls and small restaurants in town will have a short menu on the wall. Order by the piece: tacos, panuchos and salbutes are sold individually, so you can try several things at once and order more if you like them. Point at what the person in front of you is eating if you are unsure. Salsas and pickled onion are usually on the table for you to add yourself, which is the safest way to control the heat. And keep some small change in pesos, because small stalls may not take cards.

Handling the habanero

The salsas on a Yucatecan table can be very hot, because they are made with habanero chillies. Taste a drop before you spoon it on. The fresh habanero and onion relish, xnipec, is the one to approach with respect; pickled red onion, served with almost everything, is the cooling counterpart. Our guide to handling chilli heat has more tips.

Making the most of a resort holiday

  • Eat one meal a day out. Even on all-inclusive, a lunch of panuchos and salbutes in town costs you nothing in missed meals and shows you the real food of the region.
  • Go to the town, not the hotel strip. In Cancún, head for the downtown area away from the hotel zone; in Playa del Carmen and Tulum, try the streets back from the tourist front.
  • Ask the staff. Hotel staff who live locally often know exactly where to send you.

Bringing a taste home

Much of what you need to cook Yucatecan food at home, from dried chillies to Mexican sauces, can be ordered from the online Mexican grocers in our directory, so check their ranges before you squeeze jars into your suitcase. Our guide to bringing food back from Mexico explains what GOV.UK allows, and our checklist for planning a food trip to Mexico from the UK covers the rest of the country.

Cool Chile Co Online

Address: 46 Westwood Park Trading Estate, Concord Road, W3 0TH
Opening hours (directory listing): Mon–Fri 08:00–17:00 · Sat–Sun closed
Website: coolchile.co.uk

Frequently asked questions

Which UK airports fly to Cancún?

According to Wikipedia, as of October 2026: London Gatwick, London Heathrow, Birmingham and Manchester all year, with seasonal flights from Belfast, Cardiff, Glasgow and Newcastle. Check with the airlines.

Is there a tourist tax in Cancún?

The FCDO says visitors to Quintana Roo must pay an entry tax. Check the current details before you travel.

What should I eat in Cancún?

Cochinita pibil, panuchos, salbutes, sopa de lima, poc chuc, papadzules and marquesitas.

Is Yucatecan food very spicy?

The dishes themselves are usually not; the habanero salsas served alongside them can be very hot.

Sources

Edmond Bojalil
Edmond Bojalil

Founder, Recetas Mexas

Mexican from Puebla, IT professional and foodie. Author of 1000+ authentic Mexican recipes adapted for home kitchens worldwide. Based in Madrid since 2018.

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