There are good reasons why each year Playa del Carmen receives more than two million visitors a year, mainly North Americans and Europeans. These are the top 20 reasons to go to this fascinating city located in the municipality of Solidaridad in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo.
1.- Visit Fifth Avenue and the beach of Playa Del Carmen
The Fifth Avenue It is the heart of Playa del Carmen, but it is also its lungs, since the city breathes there. Wherever you go, at some point you will pass by La Quinta, as the locals colloquially call it. It is an Eden for shopping and recreation, and its exclusive boutiques, jewelers, galleries, souvenir shops, restaurants and cafes have nothing to envy of its namesake New Yorker.
To know the 12 things to visit on La Quinta Avenida click here.
2.- Visit Xcaret - Reserve now with 15% discount
Just 5 kilometers from Playa del Carmen is this beautiful place, which is both an archaeological site and an ecological park.
The Mayans used it as a port and commercial center, preserving the ruins that testify to it.
It was also converted into a point for the preservation of emblematic species of the fauna of the Atlantic forest region of Mexico, such as the spider monkey, the manatee and the sea turtle.
Below you can see a video of the things to do in Xcaret:
3.- Walk along the Paseo del Carmen
If you have already consumed your portion of folklore and want to reconnect with the shops, fast food (or slow food), and 21st century entertainment, after a day at the sea, archeology or tradition, you can go to Paseo del Carmen Shopping Mall , a modern and cozy place located south of Fifth Avenue.
4.- Visit the Mayan Riviera
Playa del Carmen is a small paradise that is enough by itself to offer you everything you want on your vacation trip, long or short. But it is good that you know that Playa del Carmen is in the heart of a larger paradise, the Rivera Maya, a 140-kilometer-long territory in the luminous and crystalline Mexican Caribbean.
Both have splendid beaches, archaeological sites, excellent food, entertainment venues, shopping malls, and anything else you need to have a pleasant trip.
5.- Xplor– Reserve now with 15% discount
Next to Xcaret, on the Cancun - Tulum highway, is Xplor, another charming natural park.
It is a place to enjoy mainly below the ground, with cenotes, caves and caves where you can practice your favorite adventure sport. There are facilities for diving, canoeing, rustic tours and zip lining. The thick groves on the surface are impressive.
6.- Xel-Ha -Reserve now with 15% discount
On the road from Cancun to Tulum, 50 kilometers from Playa del Carmen, is Xel-Ha, considered the largest natural aquarium in the world and one of the Natural Wonders of the Mexican geography.
It is a small cove in which the waters of a river meet the Caribbean Sea, making it a place where freshwater and saltwater species coexist.
7.- Visit the Cenotes– Reserve now with 10% discount
The Rivera Maya has more than 3,000 cenotes, many of them in the vicinity of Playa del Carmen. These curious flooded depressions are transitory, since the water of the underground rivers does not stop its action of continuous erosion in the limestone. But in the meantime we can enjoy them to swim, dive and observe the rich marine life in paradises with crystal clear waters.
If you want to know the 10 most impressive cenotes in Playa del Carmen click here.
Below is a video of the best cenotes near Playa del Carmen:
8.- The Jungle Place
The spider monkey, also called marimonda and koatá, is a curious species of primate that lacks a thumb. This species in risk of extinction has a special reserve in Jungle Place, an ecological park located on the road between Tulum and Playa del Carmen, very close to the small town of Chemuyil. Visitors can interact with the clever and playful monkeys, which are the delight of young and old.
9.- Sian Ka’an
It is a biosphere reserve and protected area with the category of World Heritage of the UN. It is 113 kilometers from Playa del Carmen, on the Rivera Maya highway. It has beaches and forests where you can see the abundant native wildlife of the coastal forest region of Mexico on the Atlantic. One of the main attractions is the petenes, huge concentrations of trees up to 30 meters high above the marshy land.
10.- Xaman-Ha
This was the Mayan name for Playa del Carmen in pre-Columbian times. One of the main current attractions of the place is an aviary, a sanctuary for 45 species of birds native to the Mexican tropical forest, most of them at risk of extinction. Aside from bird watching and photographing, other attractions include butterflies, iguanas (a lizard), and aquatic life in the cenotes.
11.- Mayan Ruins of Cobá
This archaeological site is located 110 kilometers from Playa del Carmen and was one of the main urban centers of the Mayan civilization, reaching 50,000 inhabitants during the classic period of that pre-Columbian culture. One of the best-preserved buildings is the Nohoch Mul pyramid, the tallest Mayan structure in the Yucatan Peninsula, at 42 meters that are ascended in 120 steps. It's worth the climb, both for the exercise and for the splendid view from the summit. There is a rope that helps in the ascent and descent.
12.- Visit Cancun
With all its fame and cosmopolitan glamor, just 68 kilometers from Playa del Carmen is Cancun, the most important tourist destination in Mexico. Regardless of your level of demand and your budget, in Cancun you will surely find the hotel to suit you in one of the most complete offers in the world. Turquoise blue beaches, fun, gastronomy, archeology, sports and much more, make Cancun the place that no one can miss on their travel itinerary.
13.- Visit Cozumel
It would be a shame if you go to Playa del Carmen and return to your city without taking a little escape to the island of Cozumel. The crossing is only one hour on a full-speed ferry. In the Land of the Swallows in the translation of the Mayan language, its crystalline beaches, cenotes and archaeological squares await you. Also a delicious red currant, a lobster or any other gift from the Caribbean Sea.
14.- Tulum– Reserve now with 15% discount
Tulum is one of the main enclaves of the Mayan culture in Mesoamerica. It is located just 70 kilometers from Playa del Carmen, along the beautiful Ribera Maya route.
The most relevant Mayan construction in the area is El Castillo, a tall building that served as a point of reference for indigenous navigators to circumvent the huge barrier reef near the coast. In the Temple of the Frescoes you can admire pre-Columbian painting.
15.- Visit the Church of Our Lady of Carmen
How could it be otherwise, the most important temple in Playa del Carmen is the Church of Nuestra Señora del Carmen, located at the intersection of Avenida 15 and Calle 12 Norte.
Apart from regular religious services, the parish offers the possibility of foreign weddings. So if you want to get married, this is the ideal place in Playa del Carmen to do it.
If your trip coincides with the first half of July, you can enjoy the festivities of the city's patron saint.
16.- Go to the Carnival of Playa del Carmen
If what you want is a pagan party, the ideal in Playa del Carmen is the carnival. It is celebrated as everywhere in February or March, before the beginning of Christian Lent. The parades and parades of the Playa del Carmen carnival are very picturesque due to their reminiscences of the Mayan culture. One of the most striking previous events is the election of the monarchs - the queen, the king and the court - who will preside over the holiday.
17.- Sacred Mayan Journey
If you are also interested in the rituals and symbolic places of the Mayan civilization, during two days of the month of May a ceremony that the indigenous people already performed more than a thousand years ago takes place: the sacred journey in canoes from the continental shore to the island of Cozumel, to pay tribute to Ixchel, the goddess of health, fertility, vegetation, water, as well as a painter and weaver. Currently the folkloric tour is made by more than 400 canoes manned by men and women.
18.- Visit the Guelaguetza of Playa Del Carmen
This is a typical festival that takes place in various locations in Mexico, the most famous being those in the state of Oaxaca, which regularly occur in other places. The Guelaguetza in Playa del Carmen is traditionally performed in the Cerro del Fortín during the month of July. The festival commemorates the colonial era, when the indigenous people gave the landowners the first fruits of the harvest. The choreography, costumes and music are very flashy and lively.
19.- Inter Playa del Carmen
In all parts of the world, the most loyal and thunderous hobbies in soccer are those of the small local teams, who dream of being promoted to the third or second division. The team of the soccer fans of Playa del Carmen is Inter Playa del Carmen, which despite its name that recalls the Italian top league, plays in the Mexican second division. They score at the Mario Villanueva Madrid stadium, an Olympic field with a capacity for 10,000 people.
20.- Go to the Riviera Maya Jazz Festival
To close with music, we recommend the Riviera Maya Jazz Festival, an event with open-air concerts that takes place every year in the month of November in Playa del Carmen, during the weekend corresponding to the week of Thanksgiving. Although the symbol of the festival is jazz, the music is more eclectic, with the participation of renowned artists from both the United States and Latin America.
We are sorry that this tour of Playa del Carmen is over. We hope to be with you again soon to enjoy another wonderful place in the world. We will meet again soon.
Also visit in playa del carmen:
The 10 most impressive cenotes in Playa del Carmen
The 12 best clubs and bars in Playa Del Carmen
The 12 best places to eat in Playa Del Carmen
