Playa del Carmen has the charm of a little town with a lovely pedestrian area and not any high rise concrete buildings. While still growing a certain flair has been conserved and makes it such a great vacation spot.

A wide range of restaurants, shops, stores, bars with a long white beach and the plenty beach clubs are adding to the mix. A wide variety of activities can be done ranging from snorkeling, diving, horse back riding, sky diving, atv adventures, zip line canopy exploration, cenote adventure tours, mountain bike tours, wind surfing, kite surfing and what not can be all squeezed into the vacation or just chill in a beach chair, but don't forget to put on some sun screen lotion.

Night life is great, live music frequent with good security and safety, walking around at 1:00 am is no problem at all and you will be not alone.  The water is warm year round, rarely dropping below 79F / 26C making Playa Del Carmen a great place to get away anytime of year.

For more information about Playa Del Carmen visit  http://www.simplyplayadelcarmen.org - an online travel guide to Playa del Carmen.

click here to view our separate dive conditions page - if you would like to use our dive conditions on your own website, instructions are on the dive conditions page

Weather
The weather is semi-tropical with an average temperature between 79 - 91F (26-33 C)
    >>   January to March: 68 - 86F (20 - 30C)
    >>   April to June: 71 - 89F (22 - 32C)
    >>   July to September: 75 - 95F (24 - 35C)
    >>   October to December 68 - 87F (20 - 31C)

Water Temperature
The water is warm year round varying between 26 and 29 C (79 - 84F)
    >>   January to March: 77 - 81F (25 - 27C)
    >>   April to June: 81 - 82F (27 - 28C)
    >>   July to September: 82 - 84F (28 - 29C)
    >>   October to December 79 - 82F (26 - 28C)

Currency
The offical currency of Mexico is the Mexican Peso (MXN), though many places accept US Dollars & Euros at a value determined by the vendor.  There are many places to exchange money along Fifth Avenue. Click here for an online  currency converter & printable travelers "cheat sheet".

Telephone Dialing
For local calls just dial the 7 digit number, to make a national long distance call dial 01 + the 3 digit area code.  To call a local cell phone dial 044 + the area code first, or 045 for national cell phones.  If calling from a US cell phone you need to add "1" between the country code and area code.

Car Rental & Airport Transfers
There are many places in Playa del Carmen to rent a car or motorcycle who have good prices and good variety of vehicles.  To get here from Cancun Airport there are several shuttle services, we recommend Cancun Shuttle who have a variety of shared & private options at a very reasonable price.

Language
The official language in Mexico is Spanish.  Int he Mayan Riviera most locals speak Spanish as well as their native Mayan, but in most of the area English is spoken.  An effort to speak the local language though is always appreciated wherever you go.  Click here for some useful phrases in Spanish.

Electricity
It is 110 volts throughout Mexico, which two flat rectangular plugs (same as US plugs).  If you are unsure bring an adapter or there are many places they can be purchased locally. 

Internet
Most hotels now have wireless internet connections, or at the very least a computer that can be used to access the internet available for guest use.  Several local cafes and bars also have wifi internet and there are several internet "cafes" along Fifth Avenue with computers and internet access.