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They are indistinguishable. I was in a beach hotel once, and a man at the next table in the restaurant tapped me on the shoulder, and asked me "Perhaps you can settle an argument for us -- Is this Punta del Este or Cartagena?"
I love Latin America! All of those beach destination seem good to me! However, if I had to pick one, it would be Cancun. There are still a lot of Mayan sites that I would love to go see; that's if it were physically possible for me to do so.
Cancun, Paraiso (in the Mexican state of Tabasco), Jaco (Costa Rica), and Quepos / Manuel Antonio (Costa Rica). Jaco wa first, but I didn't go in the water. I remember some girls being reprimanded for getting temporary tattoos at a parlor there (this was a high school trip). Quepos was the best. It also happened to be the first time I had ever swam in ocean water. The sun was making a dramatic descent over the Pacific, the waves were large, the water was cool but not cold (it was a city beach, not in the national park if I remember correctly), and had an agreeably dirty feeling. Swimming in it after a long bus ride was one of the best experiences of my life. The next day we spent at a famous nearby beach in Manuel Antonio National Park. I applied some sunscreen over my somewhat obese body, thinking that I never suffer from sunbun and too embarrassed to have somebody else rub it on me anyway. I woke up that night in utter pain, emerging from a dream that I was being caned by angry union workers. Then I became conscious enough to realize it was real, and looked in the mirror to see grotesque green bubbles all over my shoulders and arms! That took the rest of my vacation and a topical treatment (which somebody else had to apply!) to cure.
Fast forward to 2011, and the first ocean beach I visited was Paraiso, in Tabasco, which wasn't really impressive. I remember the sand was really hot but the water kind of cold. I spent my last night in Mexico in Cancun, where I think I got my feet wet the morning of my departure but didn't swim, as the red flags were up.
I have to check these out. Other than Puerto Rico and the DR, I've never really looked at Latin America for beach destinations since the Caribbean islands are right there...
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