Quintana Roo · Mexico
Where to stay in Playa del Carmen
Playa del Carmen is a city in Quintana Roo, Mexico, home to about 305,000 people. This guide covers 2 hotels in Playa del Carmen.
- Places to stay in this guide
- 2
- Best months
- January
- Nearest airport
- CZM20 km · Cozumel International Airport
- Currency
- MXNpeso
- Time zone
- America/Cancun
- Language
- Nahuatl, Spanish, Yucatec Maya
About
About Playa del Carmen
Playa del Carmen is a resort city along the Caribbean Sea in the southeastern state of Quintana Roo, Mexico. It is part of the municipality of Playa del Carmen, and is around 68 kilometers away from Cancun.
Playa del Carmen is less internationally recognized than its northern sister city, Cancun. However, this comes with many added benefits. Unlike Cancun, which has a reputation of being incredibly touristy, Playa del Carmen retains an authentic Mexican feel due to its smaller size despite still being a tourist destination. Also, Playa del Carmen can be far less crowded and hectic than Cancun year-round. The resorts and hotels are also much newer in Playa del Carmen.
Wikipedia and Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Things to do
What to see and do in Playa del Carmen
See
- Portal Maya
- La Quinta Avenida
- Parque La Ceiba
- 3D Museum of Wonders
- Parroquia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen
- Playa del Carmen Lighthouse
Do
- Abyss Dive Center and Training Facility
- AlwaysDiving
- Cenote Dive Center
- Scuba10
- Advanced Diver Mexico
- Dive X
- Xcaret (ecopark)
- Native Park Playa del Carmen
- Kantun Chi
- Chanolandia
- Tulum Archeological Site
- Coba
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Where to stay
Places to stay in Playa del Carmen
2 places to stay from the chains this guide covers, each linked to its own website.
| Place to stay |
|---|
| Allegro Playacar - All Inclusive hotel |
| Royal Hideaway Playacar - Adults only - All Inclusive hotel |
Schematic: the city centre in orange, each place to stay as a dot, distance rings in kilometres.
Where to stay
Which part of Playa del Carmen to stay in
Unlike other beach destinations, all the "best" hotels are not on the beach. There are some inexpensive backpacker hostels in Playa del Carmen.
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
When to go
The best time to visit Playa del Carmen
The most comfortable months for a city stay in Playa del Carmen are January. August is the warmest month, with average highs of 33 °C; October is the wettest, with about 229 mm of rain.
Comfortable means average daytime high between 18 °C and 29 °C and under 80 mm of rain in the month. Averages for 1991–2020 over the surrounding area, a grid square about 50 km across, so a coast or a nearby mountain can make the town itself warmer or cooler. Data: CRU TS v4.10, Climatic Research Unit, University of East Anglia (Open Database License).
Getting there
Getting to Playa del Carmen: airports and arrival
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Cozumel International Airport (CZM), about 20 km from the city centre in a straight line; Cancún International Airport (CUN, 51 km) and Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport Tulum (TQO, 79 km) are also within reach.
Getting in
The main airport for Playa is Cancún International Airport (CUN). You could also check flights to the Cozumel airport (CZM), which is much closer than CUN, or the new Tulum International Airport (TQO), which is almost 2 hours by taxi or bus from Playa. From all terminals of the Cancún International Airport depart ADO buses directly to Playa del Carmen. The price is M$240 (pesos) (Sep 2023). Purchase a ticket right before exiting the terminal or at a kiosk right at the bus. Buying it in pesos will save you a few dollars. Tickets for children are half-price. The ride takes about 50 minutes.
Getting around
Because the layout of downtown Playa is a rectangular grid, getting around is very easy. The main east-west street, Avenida Juárez, connects Highway 307 with the town square, El Zócalo, near the beach. As it does so, it crosses several numbered north-south avenues that run parallel to the beach, all of which, interestingly enough, are multiples of five. Quinta Avenida (Fifth Avenue), the closest to the beach, is closed to traffic from the Zócalo to Calle 6 (and some blocks beyond, in the evening). Almost the entire town is north and west of the town square, El Zócalo.
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
CZM · Cozumel International Airport
CUN · Cancún International Airport
TQO · Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport Tulum
Local knowledge
Eating, drinking and staying safe in Playa del Carmen
Eat
There are dozens of restaurants in Playa, with foods of every type and price range: try to stay away from 5th avenue to get decent prices - usually 2 blocks only will make a huge difference. There are also various pizza stands with prices ranging from M$10-20, most of them remain open up to 06:00 when bars begin to close. As is the case in much of Mexico, the street food is not to be missed. There are carts serving tacos, tortas, and empanadas. Every seafood taco is generally outstanding, along with the carnitas, pollo, and chorizo. Also, try the stuffed poblano tacos. Tacos are typically in the US$2-3 range.
Drink
Nightlife is definitely happening in Playa del Carmen, but is not as wild as its neighbor to the north, Cancún. Typically, Playa's shops and restaurants close around 22:00, but nearly all of the clubs stay open through most of the night. Some of the best nightclubs are on the beach. If you are interested in nightlife (dancing, drinks late until the evening/morning), then be sure to visit El Pirata. There is no shortage of great bars in Playa, many of which can be found on the beach. Alternatively, if you are on a very tight budget, many shops outside the main tourist area will sell drinks in bottles and cans that you can pack into a cooler for the beach.
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Questions
Playa del Carmen: questions travellers ask
When is the best time to visit Playa del Carmen?
The most comfortable months for a city stay in Playa del Carmen are January. August is the warmest month, with average highs of 33 °C; October is the wettest, with about 229 mm of rain.
Which airport is closest to Playa del Carmen?
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Cozumel International Airport (CZM), about 20 km from the city centre in a straight line; Cancún International Airport (CUN, 51 km) and Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport Tulum (TQO, 79 km) are also within reach.
What currency is used in Playa del Carmen?
peso (MXN).
Nearby
Destinations near Playa del Carmen
Sources: city facts from Wikidata and Wikipedia; airports from OurAirports; climate from CRU TS v4.10 (University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit), 1991–2020 monthly means, 0.5° grid; places to stay, guest scores and amenities from each operator's own public pages. How this guide is made.