Isla Mujeres, which lies about 31⁄2 miles off the northeast tip of Cancun , is a throwback to a time before Cancun became the holiday fun machine it is today. Whereas modern Cancun is about nightlife, noise and bustle, Isla Mujeres retains an atmosphere of tranquility, relaxation and unpretentiousness.

This tiny island is five miles long but less than half a mile wide and forms part of the Great Mayan reef. The name, which means “ Island of Women ,” derives from its history as a sanctuary dedicated to Ixchel, the Mayan goddess of love and fertility. Legend says that when the Spaniards came they found many stone statues of women carved in her honor.

While there is a very small airstrip and a marina for private transportation, the ferry is the way that most people get to the island. Ferries run every half hour and take less than 20 minutes to make the crossing.

What we like best about the island is the friendliness of the people and the complete lack of hustle and bustle. Some might say that much of Isla Mujeres is run down, a little dilapidated and a bit forgotten. But don’t be deceived; there are several beautiful hotel complexes and many new properties being built. The little island is home to almost 13,000 people, many of whom work locally in the tourist or fishing industries, at the military hospital on take the ferry to work in Cancun ..

Most people stay on the north of the island where the downtown portion and ferries are located. Playa Norte offers vast tracts of white sand and shallow clear blue water in which to bathe. Many visitors are content to sit on the beach, swim, drink a beer or margarita from one of the beach bars or take the short stroll into town for lunch or to buy souvenirs. But for those wishing to go a little further afield, the island offers many other diversions.

Getting around the island is easy and often fun. Of the hundred or so cars on the island, nearly all are bright red taxis. They have no meters, but fixed charges for the most frequent journeys are posted in nearly all hotels. You can also rent your own transportation, a bicycle, motor scooter or a golf cart, according to your fancy or how many people you wish to transport. Any is suitable for the near-constant 80 degree weather. Our favorite is the golf cart, which enables you to go from one end of the island to the other in less than half an hour.

As you pass along the beach south out of the town, you enter a second, mostly residential area. Even a small, sleepy island like this has speed bumps, and you have to be careful here or you will receive a very nasty jolt. Further south you pass mangrove-edged lagoons which hide the Marina . Within no time at all you are at Hacienda Mundaca.

Built in 1860, this was once the home of infamous pirate and white slave trader Fermin Mundaca. Once covering almost 40 percent of the island, it was built to impress a local girl who, despite the pirate’s wealth, decided to marry a younger man. Today, many of the Hacienda's remaining structures are being restored, including gardens and attractive walkways. There is a sad attempt at a zoo with a few snakes, monkeys, crocodiles and birds in cages. Meanwhile the grounds are teeming with other wildlife. Butterflies, both small and huge, beautifully colored dragonflies, bright greenlizards and the inevitable iguanas prove more compelling than their captive cousins.

On leaving the Hacienda, my advice is to go straight on and stop at Playa Lancheros, especially if it is near lunch time. The beach restaurant’s specialty is tikin xic, fresh fish marinaded in achiote paste with other spices, left until it is a vivid red and then barbecued just for you. Eat it with soft tortillas and wash it down with a bottle of Mexican beer while looking out over the tranquil sea.

For the more adventurous you can swim here with the sharks. Connected to the pier is a pen that is home to a couple of nurse sharks who will come out to investigate what all the fuss is about. Nurse sharks are found locally and are known to be particularly docile – but they are sharks and can be dangerous if provoked.

Being part of the Grand Mayan reef, snorkeling and scuba diving are premier activities around the island, but there is no need to risk life and limb. One special place is the Cave of the Sleeping Sharks, a dive made famous by Jacques Cousteau. Fresh water here makes sea sharks groggy and approachable. You can hire scuba equipment from several stores; one on the main street doubles as an internet café. And if sharks are not to your taste (or you prefer not to be to theirs), Dolphin Discovery located on the exclusive Sac Bajo peninsula allows you to swim with trained tame dolphins. Fun, but expensive.

A little further along on Sac Bajo is the Isla Mujeres Turtle Farm. The young of the giant turtle have many enemies, from seabirds to large fish who see them as a tasty morsel. Adult turtles were once hunted and killed by humans for food and their shells. Now these creatures are federally protected, but the local seabirds still try to catch the newly hatched turtles before they can get down to the sea.

The turtle farm, once government run but now a private foundation, is situated on a historic turtle breeding spot. Turtles come back to the same place they were born to lay their eggs deep in the beach sand. The farm protects the eggs and collects and protects the young, rearing them in large tanks until they can be released into the sea at an age and size where they can take care of themselves. There are usually three types of turtles at the farm, green, loggerhead and hawksbill. You can get really close to the larger ones in the tanks. The farm often lets schoolchildren take a turtle and release it into the sea. These are truly wonderful and beautiful creatures.

At the very south of the island is El Garrafon Park. This is a small sea-based theme park. The reef where you snorkel is severely damaged, but there are efforts underway to revive it. For the more adventurous there is a zip line that takes you over the park and the sea before depositing you at the beach, a climbing tower and a panoramic tower from which you can see the whole island. Garrafon offers a short cliffside walk to the only Mayan presence on the island, a small temple to Ixchel. This is a somewhat unremarkable site, but is well worth the walk as on the way you pass many large metal sculptures painted in bright colors. These 23 sculptures, all by different artists from around the world, were designed to create a positive relationship between man’s creation and nature.

If you continue round the island, you will return along the Caribbean coast. This is much more rugged, with a rougher ocean and less beach. Many new homes are being built here, often of interesting architectural design. One that caught our eye was designed to look like a conch shell.

Isla Contoy is slightly further away. It is a bird sanctuary where you see nesting frigate birds as well as cormorants and pelicans. The trip takes 45 minutes and follows the reef. You can snorkel on the way and catch fish which will then be barbecued for lunch. Later you can watch hundreds of hermit crabs come scuttling out to find scraps, or stand on the beach and watch huge rays traversing back and forth in the shallows.

The town offers a variety of restaurants serving many different types of food. There is no McDonald’s or Burger King on the island, but there is a Thai restaurant owned by a large impressive Dutchman whose primary occupation is designing and building vast industrial greenhouses throughout the Caribbean . There are also a number of restaurants on the main street, which also is home to many Mexican souvenir shops and a number of upscale market jewelers. Mexican, Spanish, French, Italian and American styles are available. Probably the best food on the island can be found at Villa Rolandi, located in an exclusive hotel. The Italian cuisine can be summed up in one word, delicious, and the service exquisite.

Isla Mujeres was badly hit by hurricane Wilma. I called a few places in late December to see how things were. There was some severe damage, as floodwaters reached over four feet high in places. The island’s electrical supply system was completely wrecked. But when I called the island already has a new electrical supply and just about everything is open and working. The Avalon Reef Club expects to open at the end of January and Garrafon at the end of February. The sea is clear and the beach at Playa Norte is even bigger. The Marina was operating normally and Villa Rolandi was fully booked.

Isla Mujeres is an eclectic combination of everything, the new and shiny right next to the poor and rundown. Tourism here goes hand in hand with conservation, while the rough Caribbean sits a stone’s throw from calm lagoons. We met people from all over the world, Sweden , Italy , England , Australia , Japan , America , Holland and other parts of Mexico . Some had come here for the first time, but mostly we met people who were coming back for as many as the tenth time. We hope to be joining them again soon.

(C) Copyright Stephen Spill for Ess And Ess