Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

The hundreds of luxury hotel rooms along the corridor to the north of Cabo San Lucas have transformed the very essence of this formerly rustic and rowdy outpost. Although it still retains a boisterous nightlife that belies the pampered services that surround it, Cabo San Lucas is no longer the simple town Steinbeck wrote about and enjoyed.

Once legendary for the big-game fish that lurk beneath the deep blue sea, Cabo San Lucas now draws more people for its nearby fairways and greens - and the world-class golf being played on them. Today, it caters to a traveller getting away for a long weekend or indulgent stay of sport and relaxation. Cabo San Lucas has become Mexico's most elite resort destination.

Travellers here enjoy a growing roster of adventure-oriented activities, and playtime doesn't end when the sun goes down. The nightlife here is as hot as the desert in July, and oddly casual, having grown up away from the higher-end hotels. It's still the raucous, playful party scene that helped put Cabo on the map. A collection of popular restaurants and bars, spread along Cabo's main street, stay open and active until the morning's first fishing charters head out to sea.

Despite the growth in diversions, Cabo remains more or less a "one stoplight" town, with most everything located along the main strip, within easy walking distance.