If you’re looking for things to do in Playa del Carmen, you have plenty of options! Playa del Carmen is a great home base to travel around the Yucatan Peninsula. We have loved living here this past year because there are amazing things to see and do within just a few hours drive of Playa (or a ferry ride to get to Cozumel), so we wrote a post about the best day trips from Playa del Carmen.
But there are also some pretty great things to do in Playa del Carmen that are just a short distance from downtown. So this post is dedicated to what we recommend as the top 15 best Playa del Carmen attractions and activities!
What to Do in Playa del Carmen Mexico
In no particular order, here are some of our favorite experiences in and near Playa!
1. Fifth Avenue
Fifth Avenue is the main, iconic street of Playa del Carmen. It is a pedestrian-only street lined with all types of restaurants and shops (everything from popular brand-name stores to small street stands). Fifth Avenue is a long street, stretching over a mile long from the outdoor mall near Parque Los Fundadores to Avenida CTM.
Living here, we actually don’t spend a lot of time on Fifth Avenue because many of the places have “tourist prices” (we’ll write another post about our favorite restaurants off Fifth Avenue), but it would be similar to (although a much smaller version of) going to New York City and not seeing Times Square.
Even if you are staying at one of the many all-inclusive resorts in Playa del Carmen, it’s worth taking an hour to walk down the street and experience this part of town!
2. Rooftop Pools and Beach Clubs
Ask anyone what to do in Playa del Carmen Mexico and they’ll probably end up telling you about a rooftop pool or beach club. There are no shortage of beach clubs and rooftop pools in Playa del Carmen – you can pretty much throw a stone from anywhere and hit one! It’s a good idea to always have a swimsuit on hand in Playa because you never know when you may need it!
It does cost to access most of the beach clubs, although some are “free” with just a minimum food/drink consumption, which is nice if you were planning to get food anyway. Also, if you are staying in a hotel in centro (downtown Playa), there’s a good chance it may have its own picture perfect infinity pool!
3. Playa del Carmen Beaches
It’s so obvious that I almost didn’t list it, but there’s no way we could make a list of best things to do in Playa del Carmen and not mention the beaches! We are going to write a separate blog post about our recommendations for the best beaches in Playa del Carmen because there are so many great ones.
4. Xcaret
You can’t really travel anywhere around Playa del Carmen without seeing something about Xcaret. It is like the eco amusement park version of Disneyworld in the sense that it is massive, has several different parks, and a place that you have to experience at least once. Instead of roller coasters and thrill rides, the parks have ziplines, floating rivers, cenotes, ATVs, and rafting. Of all the Playa del Carmen attractions, this is the one people talk about the most!
We visited the main Xcaret park and loved how it included some of the best parts of the Yucatan Peninsula all in one place. You can swim in underground rivers, visit haciendas and chapels, explore Mayan ruins, and see all kinds of birds, butterflies, sea life, and animals. There is SO much to do that you will not be able to fit it all into one day – so it’s helpful to plan out your day in advance. We were there for the entire day and felt like we saw a lot, but there were so many things we missed.
Our favorite parts of the day were seeing the massive sea turtles, swimming in the underground river, and eating at the La Peninsula buffet. There are lots of great restaurants you can choose from with the Xcaret Plus pass, which includes a lunch buffet. The best thing about Xcaret is that, if you buy the photo package, they make photos super easy. You scan your wristband at various photo spots throughout the park and the next day you can download all of the photos that were taken of you! Xcaret is super well done and we had a really positive experience there!
5. Sunrise in Playa del Carmen
If you want to wake up early enough, you will be rewarded with a beautiful sunrise over the ocean. It is a really neat experience to see the sun coming up over the ocean while the town is still asleep. Afterwards, head to a local restaurant for coffee and breakfast!
6. Cenotes
Cenotes are “natural pits, or sinkholes, resulting from the collapse of limestone bedrock that exposes groundwater underneath” (you can thank Wikipedia for that one ha)! It has been estimated that there are over 6000 cenotes in the Yucatan Peninsula! Em and I haven’t been to quite that many yet ha but we have loved the ones we’ve gone to and definitely recommend this as one of the very best things to do in Playa del Carmen!
We are going to write a separate blog post about the best cenotes because there are so many. There are a few awesome cenotes near Playa del Carmen, but some of the best cenotes in Quintana Roo (the state Playa del Carmen is in) are about an hour south of Playa, closer to Tulum. The names of some of our favorite cenotes there are Gran Cenote, Cenote Calavera, and Casa Cenote.
7. Swimming with Turtles in Akumal
A must-do in my opinion is to go swimming with sea turtles in Akumal. This is about 30 minutes south of Playa and it’s a really unique experience. You can go by yourself or pay for a guided tour. The guided tour is more crowded, but you are able to go into more areas than you can on your own. It is a really fun experience to be face to face with a turtle in their own habitat.
8. Skydiving in Playa del Carmen
Ever since we started traveling, skydiving has been at the top of our bucketlist! But we wanted to wait and go someplace with an awesome view. Playa del Carmen is the perfect place to get that thrill with a perfect view. You can see the town and the blue beaches as you are screaming your way to the ground! Em said that she was always a little scared to go skydiving, but after seeing the skydivers land perfectly in the exact same location every day at the beach she knew that this was the place she wanted to go! Here’s more info about our experience skydiving in Playa del Carmen.
9. Water Sports
If you are looking for a more adventurous vacation while still taking advantage of beautiful beaches, then check out jetskis, parasailing, or paddle boarding. Be sure to do a little research online for the best prices, though. This could save a lot of money instead of just going with the first one you see!
10. Snorkeling and Scuba Diving in Playa del Carmen
There are reefs near Playa that we’ve enjoyed snorkeling at, but from our research if you are planning on scuba diving near Playa del Carmen it may be worth taking the trip to Cozumel (here is our Cozumel scuba diving experience). Cozumel is only a 30 minute ferry ride away, and the reefs are amazing. For divers who are a little more adventurous, you can also check out the cenotes for some incredible cave dives!
11. Xaman-Ha Bird Sanctuary
If you are a bird lover and want a little break from the beach, head over to to see the Xaman-Ha bird sanctuary. Honestly, it isn’t the biggest sanctuary and you can probably experience the whole thing in 20-30 minutes. It is a little pricey (as of 2019 it costs 300 MXN or $15 USD), so I would say it’s probably only worth it for the true bird lovers. But for the friends of feathered fowl, it is located in Playacar Phase 2 (walking distance from centro) and is a great way to see parrots, flamingos, and other tropical birds.
12. Mayan Ruins
Usually when you picture Mayan ruins, you think of Chichén Itzá, Coba, Tulum and Uxmal. The ruins in Playa del Carmen are not so grand. If massive pyramid shapes are what you are picturing, then I would suggest skipping these and taking a day trip to one of the more well-known locations. However, if you are a history buff and don’t have time to go somewhere else, Playa del Carmen does have its very own Mayan Ruins. They are located in Playacar, which is walking distance from centro.
13. Parque Los Fundadores
Chances are, if you have seen a picture of Playa del Carmen, you’ve probably seen the statue at Parque Los Fundadores (“Founding Fathers Park”). For many people arriving to Playa by bus or ferry, this statue serves as the gateway to the beach. It is the centerpiece of a park that leads directly down to the beach. In addition to the ferry, Parque Los Fundadores also has several local vendors selling fruit and souvenirs. This makes for a perfect opportunity to buy a coconut and take the classic “I’m on a beach in Mexico just sippin on a coconut” pic!
If you can time your visit to Parque Los Fundadores right, you can also see the Papantla Flyers ( Voladores de Papantla ). No matter how many times I see them, I still am amazed and afraid that one of them are going to fall. These acrobats climb about 90 feet up a pole and then swing around the pole holding onto nothing but a rope! It is quite a sight and definitely something I will not ever be doing myself! The show is in the center of the park but only happens occasionally. It is completely free, but they do ask for a donation at the end of the performance to help preserve the tradition.
14. Nightlife
Playa del Carmen and Cancun are known for their amazing nightlife. Now Em and I aren’t really nightlife people, but sometimes it is fun to get out and see what all the hype is about.
The best-known place for Playa del Carmen nightlife is Coco Bongo. The best way to describe it is part night-club / part variety show. It is open every night from 10PM – 3AM and is one massive party from start to finish. Coco Bongo is known for a quote on CNN where a nightlife researcher said that Coco Bongo blew away Las Vegas nightlife. Now fair warning: if you aren’t a fan of loud music or nightlife, you might want to try something that’s a little slower/quieter pace. However, if you are in town for a year, month, or just want to take a night away from your resort for the week, Coco Bongo is a great way to experience Playa’s nightlife. Even if you aren’t a big drinker like us, we had a lot of fun singing along to the variety of impersonators. I think my favorite act was the ribbon acrobats. I’m not sure how they are able to hold themselves up without falling! It was a lot of fun and a great way to experience Playa del Carmen at night.
15. Playa del Carmen Events
One of Em’s favorite things to do is attend events, which happen quite often here in Playa! There is a local market with food and art vendors on weekend evenings in the municipal park (Andador Solidaridad), and there are also always local street vendors which we love to get food at! Then there are also pretty often various community events, holidays, and celebrations. In addition to checking an online list of events, the best thing to do is to ask around when you arrive to see what events in Playa del Carmen will be taking place while you are in town!
So that’s our list of the 15 best things to do in Playa del Carmen! There are plenty other Playa del Carmen attractions and experiences – including our list of best day trips from Playa del Carmen, but these are the ones we’d recommend starting with! If you have any questions about what to do in Playa del Carmen Mexico or where to stay or eat while you are here, feel free to ask! We love it here and hope you do too!!
If you’re looking for more than just Playa del Carmen travel tips, here are our other blog posts about our favorite things to do in the Yucatan Peninsula:
Cozumel
Best Day Trips from Playa del Carmen
Isla Mujeres
Swimming with Whale Sharks
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