Merida (Mexico)

A short distance — yet seemingly a world away — from the rowdy, touristy beach resorts of Cancún and Cozumel that make up the Yucatán of cliché, Mérida is the cultural center of southern Mexico, boasting a panoply of excellent museums and attractions, a vibrant street life, and a wealth of historic colonial-era architecture that's second only to Mexico City on the national scene.