Playa Del Carmen, Top 10 Things to Do and Costs of Living

The above video and the below paragraphs are from our previous trip to Playa Del Carmen in 2017.

Playa del Carmen is not as inexpensive as it once was.  To retire early and travel the world, reduce your cost of living while you start your new online business, or travel cheap while you write your first novel visit VagabondBuddha.com to find your cheat sheet for low cost of living in paradise locations.  

But once you save crazy money living cheap in paradise most of each year, you can afford to stay in more expensive places like Europe, the USA, and Playa Del Carmen.  

I hadn’t been to Playa Del Carmen 7 years.  But now when I think of low cost of living destinations, Playa Del Carmen no longer fits that definition.  But it is still worth a month every few years because of a unique combination of elements found here: Turquoise Water, Blue Skies, White Sand Beaches, Scuba Adventures, Tulum, Cozumel, Chichen Itza, Cenotes, Partying, and Excellent food.  

Turquoise Water, Blue Skies, White Sand Beaches:  I will let the pictures in the video accompanying this, speak for themselves.   

Scuba Adventures:  4 reef dives in Playa Del Carmen with equipment is about $250.  4 reef dives plus two cenote dives including equipment is less about $350.  Prices vary based upon season, but walking into a few of the many dive centers may provide even lower rates.  It is getting harder every year in Mexico to dive without showing certification.  

Tulum Ruins:  You can catch the air-conditioned ADO bus for about $5.00 per person to Tulum.  Just Google ADO Bus station in Playa Del Carmen, there are two stations.  Once in Tulum downtown, you walk a few kilometers north to the Tulum Ruins or ask anyone which way to the Tulum Ruins (or get a Taxi to the Ruins for about $7).  You can also catch a non-air-conditioned local mini-van labeled “collectivo-Tulum-Playa Del Carmen” for about $1.00 and just ask them to let you out when you see the sign labeled “Tulum Ruins.”  You might be sitting next to a chicken, but you will have better stories.  You can catch the collectivo’s anywhere along “30 Avenida Norte” which runs north and south in Playa between the beach and the highway.  

Tulum Beaches:  Make a day of your trip to Tulum Ruins.  Once you are done with the Tulum Ruins, exit the ruins on the south side (your right hand when you face the beach).  You will walk less than a kilometer and you will see a dirt road on your left.  That will take you to the most beautiful beach in the world.  You will be hungry and thirsty (if you forgot water and a granola bar) but don’t eat at the first restaurant on the right as you see the beach.  They are land pirates, the food sucks, and they add insult to injury with a 20% mandatory tip.  Walk just another 200 meters south on the beach (your right hand as you face the beach) and the real food and drink choices will unfold, one after another.  Bring your sunblock and your dreams.  When your battery is dead from (all the pictures of this beach you will brag about for years) and your pockets are empty from drinking $6 Margaritas or $3 Beers, catch a taxi back to Tulum and catch a collectivo full of locals back to Playa Del Carmen for $1.00.  Go first thing in the morning to avoid the crowds or go in the hottest part of the day when tourists are hiding under umbrellas.  Bring your sunblock.  

Cozumel:  Catch a ferry to Cozumel for the day.  Cozumel used to be a dump, honestly.  I used to go over there just to rent a scooter and drive around looking at Mayan Ruins and swim naked on the deserted east side beaches on the east side of the island.  Cozumel has always been one of the best dive sites in the world.  Walk to the southern pier in Playa (on your right when you face the beach) and catch the ferry to Cozumel for about $25 per person round trip.  Ask when the last ferry returns to Playa so you don’t miss your ferry home.  The trip is about 20 minutes each way.  Rent a scooter for about $20 for the day (includes insurance, bring drivers license) and do the loop around the island stopping when you see anything interesting.  Just follow the road as it curves along the beach, it is impossible to get lost.  The round trip is less than an hour but you are likely to find fun stuff along the way and take another gazillion Instagram pics.  Make the world your bitch, in a non-sexist way.    

Chichen Itza:  Every eleven steps you take while in Playa will include someone pimping a trip to Chichen Itza.  Go.  Make sure to get one that includes a trip to a cenote and a colonial town on the way there or back.  The bus, lunch, and an English speaking guide will cost about $50 per person.  Don’t buy any of the pimped trips that allegedly include upgrades like a drink or a light breakfast for an extra $10 per person.  If you are a foodie, just eat breakfast before you leave and bring snacks (chips, nuts, water from the 7-11 or OXXO store) and a bottle of wine for the trip home.  It is an extremely long f-ing day, but well worth seeing one of the “Seven Wonders of the World.”  No really, go.  Would you skip the pyramids if you flew to Egypt?

Xcaret:  If you go to a few Cenotes, and the Tulum Ruins, you should skip this.  Why do I say that?  It is a water park with beautiful landscaping but only a beautiful cenote river which you can find in many cenotes for much cheaper in this area.  There are also some animals in Xcaret forced to live in captivity, a zoo.  A nice zoo, but why pay someone to imprison animals?  Just go see a few cenotes and see a few wild animals who have a choice about where they roam, like you do, hopefully.  There are a few cool shows at night in Xcaret about Mexican history, and I love Mexico, so I only sadly recommend not going to Xcaret.  

Cenotes: A cenote is a natural sinkhole or underground river that has developed naturally over millions of years.  You can take amazing pictures, swim in many of them, and scuba dive in some of them.  This will blow your mind.  Do this.  Just google and read about the various cenotes near you and go for it.  I mentioned cenotes in my suggestion for a trip to Chichen Itza, so you get to see one for sure.  You can also see the “Gran Cenote” on your trip to Tulum and there are other trips you can take to see cenotes near Playa.  The taxi to “Gran Cenote” from Tulum downtown is about $5 and the entry fee to Gran Cenote upon is $15 per person.  The ultimate is scuba diving in cenotes.  

Partying:  This goes without saying in Playa.  Just head to the beach at 10 PM and listen for music that makes you move your groove thang.  It is a beach party scene.  If you are looking for a bottle service VIP type place (barf), go somewhere like “Coco Cabana” or head to Cancun (double barf).  I enjoy more funky places.