What is the Best Hotel to Stay at the Cancun Airport?

You might first think, “Why would anyone want to stay at the Cancun Airport?”. The whole reason people fly into Cancun Airport is to get to the beaches and Riviera Maya. But there are in fact several good reasons why people want to stay close to the airport. For example, people with early flights might not want to make the one-hour trip to the airport at a super early hour. Then there are people with canceled flights that have already checked out of their hotels, and it is easier to stay near the airport rather than go reserve again and go back to the same hotel.

So, what are the options for staying near the Cancun Airport? Here are the best hotels to stay at. Over the past decade we have had to stay near the airport on several occasions. We have stayed at almost all of these options, so we are able to give you some good tips for where the best place might be to stay.

What hotels are close to the Cancun Airport?

There is only one hotel on the Cancun Airport property and that is the Hilton Garden Inn. The other hotels on this list are on the 307 Highway just outside of the Cancun Airport. The farthest hotel on this list is 5km (3.1 miles). So, all the hotels on this list are fairly close to the airport. In fact, all of them are within 10-minute drive to the terminals. We picked a random date to sample prices of all the hotels to give you a fair sample of comparable prices. Prices are for the most basic room at each hotel for two people and taxes are included. Check the links for details on each hotel and the prices from when you want to book. These are affiliate links. This means that if you book with these links, we get credit for referring you. You still pay the best price possible, and this helps support our website.

Beyond this 5km limit to the airport, we don’t really recommend any of the hotels. The reason for this is the added time to the airport and many outside of this range do not have free shuttles to the airport. We also do not recommend any of the Airbnb’s near the Cancun Airport unless you have a large family and need the value these offer. Yes, there might be a nice one that works for you, but in general:

You can save some money on the stay, but you will have to have a car or pay for taxis. Taxis can be a minimum of 500 pesos one way. Taxis are not metered and often charge exorbitant rates to and from the Airport.
There are often not too many services nearby the Airbnb’s and compared to the hotels. For example, you normally need a place for dinner and breakfast.
Hotels offer everything that travelers need for a stay close to the airport and personally we like the professionalism of the hotels. At hotels there is a reception and often some flexibility in checking in and out.

Hilton Garden Inn Cancun Airport

This is one of the newest options near the Cancun Airport. In fact, it is the only hotel on the airport property. We have stayed at this hotel and found it to be perfect for a night before a flight. The rooms are a little smaller than normal for a Hilton (but most everyone is just here for one night). You can expect to pay about $15-25 USD more a night compared to other hotels nearby because the location, but this might seem worth it because you can actually walk to Terminal 2 and 3 from this hotel or take their shuttle.

The design of the hotels is nice with the circular elevated pool, small gym, restaurant, room service and overall, a nice place to chill. If you can book this hotel close to prices of the Fairfield Inn, we say go for it! The price is 2512 pesos a night on our sample date (but we have paid much less a night here). This does not include breakfast which is a little steep at 467 pesos per person.

Cancun Airport Hotels — One of the rooms at the Hilton Garden Inn at the Cancun Airport.

Best Hotels Cancun Airport — This circular poolis fun to swim in as you look up at the sky and see the planes landing and taking off.

Capital O Cancun International Airport 24/7

This is the closest hotel outside of the airport property. However, this is a cheap option and does not get very good reviews online. We don’t recommend this hotel because it is a cheaper option and most do not want to end their vacations at what some people describe as an office complex turned hotel. The price per night for two people starts at 1117 pesos. It should be noted that the shuttle to the airport is 400 pesos per person. This is more expensive than a taxi for two to the airport and also raises the price for a couple to about 1917 pesos, which makes it not that attractive when compared to the other hotels.

City Express by Marriott Cancun Airport

This hotel is the second closest to the airport. On our sample night it the first level room was 1756 pesos a night. This is a better option than the Capital O Hotel because there are restaurant services here and a free shuttle to the airport. It is not as nice as the Fairfield Inn or Hilton Garden Inn though because the rooms are more basic and start at 17 sq. meters. Of the four hotels here, this is the best cheapest option.

Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Cancun Airport

This is our favorite or second favorite hotel near the Cancun Airport depending on the requirements of the stay. It really ties with the Hilton Garden Inn. The Fairfield Inn hotel has more space in the rooms than the Hilton and is modern, clean and efficient hotel that is just off the property of the Cancun Airport. There is a pool, free airport shuttle and restaurant onsite.

On our sample day for prices, this hotel was going for 2018 pesos which includes breakfast and a free shuttle to the airport. This means that a couple that eats breakfast at the hotel will save about $80 USD over the Hilton Garden Inn on our sample day. You will also have 5 sq meters more of room since there is more space at the Fairfield Inn. So, it basically comes down to comfort about how close you are to the terminals in deciding between these hotels. If you are going to eat breakfast in a lounge or on your flight, this makes the decision tighter between the two hotels.

Alternative to Staying by the Cancun Airport

If you want to have access to more restaurants and still enjoy a little more vacation connected to Cancun, you can stay downtown by the ADO bus station. This would give you both taxis and the convenient ADO bus direct to the airport.

Most people look directly around the Cancun ADO Bus Station or just southwest in an area near Parque (park) de las Palapas. This area has some restaurants, food stalls and a somewhat of a park that is fairly busy. This area however is a little tired and not as nice as just across Avenue Tulum. The area southeast of the bus station is calmer, has some nicer cafes and restaurants and a better hotel option. The Mex Hotel (Hoteles) is out pick in this area.

The Mex Hoteles is modern with good size rooms that make for a comfortable stay. There is food service here including a rooftop restaurant and pool area. It is centrally located so if you want to order in without having to figure out a new area or even exchange more money, you can do that pretty easily here. Since there are better restaurants and cafes in this area and the hotel is nicer than others near the bus station, we recommend this hotel.

On the same date as all the hotels in this list, the price was 977 pesos a night. Breakfast is extra and there is not shuttle to the airport, but you are close to the ADO Bus Station to get a frequent bus to the airport. If you want to know more about this hotel or reserve here, just click the link below to go to the booking website.