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Aerial view of Playa del Carmen's beach and town along the Caribbean
A bull shark swimming over the sandy bottom off Playa del Carmen
Stalactites reflected in the still water of the Río Secreto cave
The Gran Tlachco stage at Xcaret park, where the evening show is performed
The columned palace of the small Maya site of Xel-Há, beside the park

Things to do in Playa del Carmen: 9 experiences

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Photo: dronepicr, CC BY 2.0

Off Playa del Carmen

Dive with pregnant bull sharks off Playa del Carmen

Check dates and prices

Photo: João D'Andretta, CC BY 4.0

Río Secreto, Highway 307

Wade and swim through the caves of Río Secreto

Check dates and prices

Photo: edenpictures, CC BY 2.0

Xcaret, south of Playa del Carmen

Spend a day at Xcaret and stay for México Espectacular

Check dates and prices

Photo: Linjye, CC BY-SA 3.0

Xel-Há, Highway 307

Snorkel the Xel-Há inlet, where a river meets the sea

Check dates and prices

Photo: O.Mustafin, CC0

Playa del Carmen sits halfway down the coast between Cancún and Tulum, and it is the easiest base on the Riviera Maya: walkable, with buses and colectivos in every direction and the ferry to Cozumel at the end of its main street. The Mexico page already covers snorkelling Cozumel's reefs. This page is the rest.

The town itself is the Quinta Avenida and the beach. What fills the days lies along Highway 307: the big parks of Xcaret and Xel-Há, cave rivers at Río Secreto and Kantun Chi, and offshore, in winter, the bull sharks that make Playa a dive destination of its own.

9 things to do in Playa del Carmen

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The bronze Portal Maya arch facing the sea in Playa del Carmen

Walk Quinta Avenida from the Portal Maya to the lighthouse

Centro, Playa del Carmen

2 hours, best in the eveningFree

A town that was a hamlet fifty years ago, now strung along one long pedestrian street a block from the sand.

Been there?
The Gran Tlachco stage at Xcaret park, where the evening show is performed

Spend a day at Xcaret and stay for México Espectacular

Xcaret, south of Playa del Carmen

A full day, into the eveningBook ahead

An eco-archaeological park south of town, with underground rivers by day and a show of Mexican music and dance at night.

Check dates and pricesXcaret day ticket with the night show
Been there?
The columned palace of the small Maya site of Xel-Há, beside the park

Snorkel the Xel-Há inlet, where a river meets the sea

Xel-Há, Highway 307

A full dayBook ahead

A sea inlet where fresh underground water meets the Caribbean, turned into a park for a day of snorkelling.

Check dates and pricesXel-Há all-inclusive day with transport from Playa
Been there?
The Palace at the Maya site of San Gervasio, in the forest of Cozumel

Cross to Cozumel for the Maya sanctuary of San Gervasio

Cozumel

A full day with the ferryNo booking needed

Maya women once crossed this same strait to pray to Ixchel at San Gervasio, in the forest at the centre of Cozumel.

Tours in Playa del Carmen
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Stalactites reflected in the still water of the Río Secreto cave

Wade and swim through the caves of Río Secreto

Río Secreto, Highway 307

Half a dayBook ahead

A guided walk and swim through a flooded cave of stalactites, a short drive from Playa del Carmen.

Check dates and pricesGuided Río Secreto cave tour with pickup
Been there?
A bull shark swimming over the sandy bottom off Playa del Carmen

Dive with pregnant bull sharks off Playa del Carmen

Off Playa del Carmen

Half a dayBook ahead

Every winter, female bull sharks gather off Playa del Carmen, and certified divers kneel on the sand at about 24 metres to watch them.

Check dates and pricesBull shark dive and reef dive for certified divers
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The clear water and limestone walls of a cenote at Kantun Chi, near Puerto Aventuras

Take the cave river tour at Kantun Chi

Puerto Aventuras

Half a dayNo booking needed

A park of cenotes south of Playa del Carmen whose guided underground river tour is the reason to come.

Tours in Playa del Carmen
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Swim where a cenote meets the sea at Punta Esmeralda

Punta Esmeralda, Playa del Carmen

Half a dayFree

A free public beach in the north-east of town, where fresh water bubbles up from a cenote and runs into the sea.

Been there?
Coral formations on Palancar Reef off Cozumel

Snorkel the reefs of the Cozumel marine park

Cozumel, Quintana Roo

Half a day by boatBook ahead

Float with the current over Cozumel's protected reefs, Palancar among them, and let the boat pick you up downstream.

Tours in Playa del Carmen
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Traveller picks

Hidden gems suggested by travellers. We check each one before it goes up; the words are theirs, not ours.

No traveller picks for Playa del Carmen yet. Know a place most visitors miss?

Plan your trip

  • Getting there

    ADO buses run from Cancún's downtown station in about an hour and twenty minutes, and from Cancún airport. Colectivo vans from Calle 2 run on to Tulum every fifteen minutes or so. Ferries to Cozumel leave the pier at the end of the Quinta Avenida about every hour.

  • Getting around

    Walk in town. For the parks and cenotes, use ADO buses, which stop at Xcaret and Xel-Há, or the colectivos along Highway 307. Taxis are the way to Punta Esmeralda and back at night.

  • How many days

    In must30's view, four: one for Xcaret or Xel-Há, one for Cozumel, one for Río Secreto or Kantun Chi, and one free day for the beach and the Quinta Avenida. Divers should add a day for the bull sharks in season.

  • When to go

    December to April is dry and busy. November to March is bull shark season, with the most sightings in December and January. June to November is the rainy and hurricane season, and sargassum can reach the beach in the warmer months.

  • Where to base yourself

    Stay within a few blocks of the Quinta Avenida for walking to everything and to the bus and ferry. Playacar, south of the pier, is quieter and gated. Further north, around Colosio, is cheaper and closer to Punta Esmeralda.

Questions travellers ask

When is bull shark season in Playa del Carmen?

From about November to March, when pregnant females gather offshore, with the most sightings in December and January. It is a dive at about 24 metres for certified divers only.

How do I get from Playa del Carmen to Cozumel?

Take the Winjet or Ultramar ferry from the pier at the southern end of the Quinta Avenida; boats run about every hour. Buy one-way tickets, as each company only accepts its own.

Xcaret or Xel-Há?

Xcaret if you want a mix of culture, wildlife and an evening show; Xel-Há if you want a day in the water, snorkelling the inlet and floating the river. Both are full-day parks with full-day prices.

Is Playa del Carmen a good base for Tulum and Cozumel?

Yes. Colectivos run to Tulum about every fifteen minutes and ferries cross to Cozumel about every hour, so both work as day trips.

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