This salt-washed island just off the coast of Quintana Roo has one foot in Latin America and the other in the tropical Caribbean. You get the unmistakable whiff of the Carib life in Cozumel to the tunes of the smooth rhythms of Mexican mariachi. The single major draw here is diving. Reefs sparkle and shine from Palancar to Santa Rosa, peppered with Cozumel tour guides leading visitors through schools of angelfish and hawksbill turtles. Scuba gear apart, laid back balneario resorts occupy the popular coastal stretches in the west, while hidden coves of wave-buffeted cliffs and empty sands ring the rugged south-east coast. The main town, San Miguel de Cozumel, is a laid-back lesson in Creole food joints and lazy surf shacks, all slowly feathering out into the endless stretches of wild mangrove in the heart of the island. It makes for the perfect break from high-energy Cancun and the mainland Yucatan.