Playa Del Carmen - A First Time Visitors Guide To Everything!

Everyone knows the books for Dummies series. We wanted to do a basic guide with lots of info to introduce Playa Del Carmen to the world. In this guide you will find where to go, what areas are good to visit and stay in, the best ways to get around, where to eat and lots of local tips to make your vacation the best possible for you!

Welcome to Playa Del Carmen, Mexico!

Where is Playa Del Carmen?

Playa Del Carmen is in Mexico on the Yucatan Peninsula. It is just south of Cancun on the stretch of beautiful coast called the Riviera Maya. Playa Del Carmen looks out on the beautiful turquoise waters of the Caribbean. Playa Del Carmen is about 45 minutes from the Cancun Airport and 40 minutes north of Tulum, Mexico.

How to get to Playa Del Carmen

Most everyone will be coming by air. Cancun airport is the main airport that services the area. Cozumel has an airport that is international but is often more expensive to fly into and out of and you would need to take the ferry to Playa Del Carmen.

There are several ways to connect from the airport to Playa Del Carmen.

• You can take a taxi.
• Rent a car.
• Book private transfers.
• or take ADO bus company to Playa Del Carmen .

For more on how to get to Playa Del Carmen from the Cancun airport see our article. What is Playa Del Carmen like?

Playa Del Carmen (or just “Playa” as called by locals) was a small fishing coastal town that has developed into a city with lots of tourist infrastructure but has retained some of the small town feel and is easily walkable. The center of Playa Del Carmen is where most things are. The one main street is a pedestrian street called 5th Avenue or “Quinta Avenida” in Spanish. This street is about 20 blocks and keeps growing. It has tons of restaurants, shops and entertainment for you. See our guide to discovering 5th Avenue here.

The entire city is lined with a nice beach which provides easy access from all the downtown areas.

Playa Del Carmen is a city in Mexico but it has a very international flavor. People from all over the world visit here and come here to live. You will notice a lot of Argentinians, Italians among the other North Americans that come to visit and live in Playa Del Carmen. Playa Del Carmen has a very “European” feel to it and is the reason so many like the special vibe the city has.

The city also is not that tall, most buildings are four stories or less. The scale of the city is more like a town. That is what makes it more different than Cancun.

Do I need to speak Spanish in Playa Del Carmen?

No, but it is nice to speak some, but not necessary. Since Playa Del Carmen is very international, English is the common language. Most people at hotel front desk, shops and restaurants in tourist areas all speak Spanish and English and maybe even some other languages. For more about visiting and speaking see our article on Spanish.

What is the weather like in Playa Del Carmen?

Everyone wants to know what the weather will be like for their vacation. You will be happy to know that the weather in Playa Del Carmen is great for the beach year round. We have an average temperature of about 27 degrees Celsius or 80 degrees Fahrenheit. The Most rainfall is historically in September but that is also the most active hurricane month so it knocks the records out of whack.

For more on the weather and the best time to visit Playa Del Carmen, check out our article with charts.

Here is a map of Playa Del Carmen to help you get oriented

Playa Del Carmen is not a huge city and actually the area where most tourist go is relatively small. The map photo below is Playa Del Carmen. The red circle is the tourist area of Playa and is where most shops, hotels and restaurants are. This area is also where the famous pedestrian street of 5th Avenue is. The red area is about 20 blocks long and about 4 blocks wide. So it is not a huge area where tourist normally go but it does offer a lot in a small area.

The yellow circle is the private community called Playacar which is part of Playa Del Carmen. In this area there are many hotels that are all inclusive resorts. There is only one small shopping area and just a few restaurants in this area. It is mainly an area for private houses and golf courses and of course the resorts. For more information on Playacar, we have an article with photos.

The streets go in even numbers and avenues go in multiples of 5. Starting at the south end of Playa Del Carmen is 2nd St, then 4th, 6th, 8th and so on. There is 1st Ave, 5th Ave, 10th Ave, 15th Ave, 20th Ave and so on. Most places are described at being on a street and what it is between. House or business numbers are not used.

What is the best area to stay in?

If you search for hotel on the internet for Playa Del Carmen you will get about a 40 mile coastline option because booking sites consider the large area around Playa Del Carmen to be labeled that way. This makes it very hard to know exactly if your hotel is in the city or along the coast.

You have to decide between two things. Do you want an all inclusive hotel or would you like a hotel with the option of doing your own thing for meals? and do you want to stay in the center of Playa Del Carmen or along the coast? These two things will narrow down what to look for. If you cannot decide between all inclusive or hotel you can see our article listing the pros and cons of each.

We also made a recommended hotel list for all of the Riviera Maya that might help you narrow your search.

In the map above with the red circle on it, this is where is it best to be in Playa Del Carmen center. It is basically from 2nd St.-46 St. and from the Beach -10th Avenue. The north end (16th Street -40th Street) of Playa Del Carmen is slightly more trendy and the southern end (Cozumel ferry pier to 16th Street) is generally the older developed area.

If you want to check prices of hotels in the Rivera Maya and Playa Del Carmen, click the link below for more information.