Luc 'n' Steve on Leave

Quebec City is our home base, the one we return to every summer between stays in Mexico. A city we don’t visit — we live it: North America’s only walled city, with over 400 years of history, the Château Frontenac watching over the river, and Petit Champlain where every cobblestone street leads to a discovery. Here, Europe and America meet. We stroll through Old Quebec (a UNESCO World Heritage site), take the ferry to Lévis for the finest view of the city, bike to Île d’Orléans or Montmorency Falls. And when evening comes, Quebec City lights up and the magic works — we never tire of it.

The Expedia and Viator links on this page are affiliate links: if you book through them, we earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. That’s what helps us keep travelling slowly and sharing our finds. Our hotel and activity picks are based on traveler ratings and reviews — we haven’t personally tested every one, but we only list places we’d recommend to friends.

For most people, Cancun means the Hotel Zone and its all-inclusive mega-resorts. For us, it’s something else entirely: El Centro, the real Cancun where the Cancunenses live — lively markets, taquerías for a few pesos, superb public beaches and a local vibe. It’s our gateway to Mexico: easy direct flights from Quebec, guaranteed sunshine, and a perfect base camp for exploring. From Cancun, all of northern Yucatán and the Riviera Maya are within reach: Isla Mujeres 20 minutes away by ferry, cenotes hidden in the jungle, Playa del Carmen and Tulum further south. In slow-travel mode, we drop our bags in El Centro, eat where the locals eat, and explore at our own pace — without breaking the bank.

The Expedia and Viator links on this page are affiliate links: if you book through them, we earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. That’s what helps us keep travelling slowly and sharing our finds. Our hotel and activity picks are based on traveler ratings and reviews — we haven’t personally tested every one, but we only list places we’d recommend to friends.

We didn’t just visit Mérida: we lived there — twice for six months, in an apartment, at the locals’ pace. The “White City”, capital of Yucatán, is one of Mexico’s safest and most pleasant cities: colonial architecture, the grand mansions of Paseo de Montejo, lively plazas where people dance on Sundays, and a cuisine worth the trip on its own. It’s also the best base in Yucatán: Chichén Itzá and Uxmal, the turquoise cenotes of Homún, the yellow town of Izamal, the pink flamingos of Celestún and Progreso beach half an hour away. After a year of life there, we know its markets, its cantinas and its quiet café mornings — and we go back whenever we can.

The Expedia and Viator links on this page are affiliate links: if you book through them, we earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. That’s what helps us keep travelling slowly and sharing our finds. Our hotel and activity picks are based on traveler ratings and reviews — we haven’t personally tested every one, but we only list places we’d recommend to friends.