Playa del Carmen is a very popular hangout in the Riviera Maya. This place used to be a sleepy fishing town in the 70’s and little by little it grew and became commercialized. It is a big tourist attraction as hundreds of people visit Playa Del Carmen every day. We enjoy taking a walk along the popular Quinta Avenida which is a strip of restaurants, bars, street vendors, department stores, popular night clubs such a Coco Bongo and there is even a couple of malls along La Quinta.
We prefer to take the walk when it is not too hot, usually around 5pm is a good time because it’s cooling down. Although, we enjoy cooling off with some cocktails for that we go to one of our favorite bars in La Quinta called Pez Vela. This bar is pretty cool with swings instead of bar stools and good appetizers. There are also a lot of small “hole in the wall” eateries, which we enjoy as well. You can find taco shops, pizza by the slice, churros, hotdogs and burger carts, as well, fine dinning in some very VERY nice restaurants.
Another big attraction is the 50-foot tall bronze Portal Maya located in the heart of the square and in the late afternoons just before sunset you will find local dancers dressed up in Mayan costumes and dancing to the sound of their drums. It’s nice to tip them when they are done performing as this is most likely a big source of income for them and you can also take pictures with them.
Another cool thing to look out for is a Mayan ruin tucked away in the middle of all these shops. located behind a massage and spa parlor. The ruin is protected and has a chain linked fence around it. Playa del Carmen just grew all around this neat ruin.
There is a ADO bus terminal in this area which makes it very convenient for those like us traveling in the colectivos, you can chose to either take a colectivo back or ride in a nice comfortable bus back to your destination. If you want to have a fun night of partying, dancing and dining then this would be the place to go, just make sure you are careful and always watch your surroundings although there is a big police presence.
