Photos: Cancun by Tellez Erik, Pexels License; El Nido by nennnn, CC BY 2.0, cropped.
Cancun or El Nido?
Our verdict in twelve categories, each scored against the same fixed benchmark cities, and the climate month by month, so you can choose for your trip.
Choose Cancun for
- day trips
- nightlife
- families
What lies behind each score is written up on Cancun’s own page.
Choose El Nido for
- nature and the outdoors
- prices
What lies behind each score is written up on El Nido’s own page.
Scoreboard
Twelve categories on one fixed scale from 0 to 100. The shaded stretch is the gap between the two.
What lies behind each score is written up on the two cities’ own pages: Cancun and El Nido.
Your match
Pick a travel style or drag the sliders, and both match scores follow your weighting.
Wins on day trips and nightlife with your weighting.
Wins on nature and the outdoors and prices with your weighting.
What matters to you?
When should you go?
Pick your month. The climate figures are measured averages, not a forecast.
Cancun in July
El Nido in July
Daytime high, °C
Rainfall in the month, mm
Where the figures come from
Cancun has no weather station within reach, so its figures come from a gridded climate model rather than a measured record, and read a broad area rather than the city itself.
El Nido has no weather station within reach, so its figures come from a gridded climate model rather than a measured record, and read a broad area rather than the city itself.
Temperature and rainfall are climate normals, averaged over the years shown. Cancun: 2001-2020 normals, NASA POWER reanalysis grid, no weather station within 90 km. El Nido: 2001-2020 normals, NASA POWER reanalysis grid, no weather station within 90 km.
Before you go
| Measure | Cancun | El Nido |
|---|---|---|
| Official language | Spanish, Nahuatl, Yucatec Maya | English, Filipino, Taglish |
| Currency | Mexican Peso (MXN) | Philippine Peso (PHP) |
| Sockets | AB127 V, 60 Hz | ABC220 V, 60 Hz |
| Driving side | Right | Right |
| Time zone | UTC-5 | UTC+8 |
| Emergency number | 911 | 911 |
| Elevation | 5 m | 35 m |
| Main airport | Cancún International Airport (CUN)14 km from centre135 non-stop destinations | El Nido Airport (ENI)4 km from centre5 non-stop destinations |
| Public holidays this year | 9 days | 18 days |
By the numbers
| Measure | Cancun | El Nido |
|---|---|---|
| City population | 888,797 | 51,367 |
| People per km² | - | 56 |
| Museums within 10 km | 1 | 0 |
| UNESCO World Heritage sites within 50 km | 0 | 0 |
| Swim season, months above 21 °C | 12 months | 12 months |
Where else could you go?
Every comparison below shares a destination with this one, so you can follow Cancun or El Nido somewhere new.