Cancun vs. Playa Del Carmen?

morenachica110

So the resort we're thinking of booking is fairly close to Cancun and 35km from Playa Del Carmen. FI and I really don't have an interest in partying and nightlife. We would want to take a day trip to a local town for some shopping and taking in some of Mexico (as opposed to just staying on the resort the entire time). Which would be better? Cancun or Playa Del Carmen?

And also about how much would a cab ride be to get the 35km to Playa Del Carmen and back?

dazyabbey

I would reccomend going to a place close to or within walking distance of Playa Del Carmen. We stayed the RIU Palace Riviera Maya and it was a 5 minute walk down the beach to 5th Avenue which is the main shopping area in Playa Del Carmen. Also I noticed a lot of the things to do in the area tend to be south of Playa Del Carmen when Cancun is a little over an hour north of Playa Del Carmen. We went to Xplor, Xcaret and Xel-Ha which were all south of Playa. They were amazing and a great experience. Also Tulum which is a great set of ruines is about an hour south of Playa Del Carmen. I think there are a lot more things to do in terms of Honeymoon in Playa Del Carmen.

morenachica110

Okay. So we're looking at a couple of places closer to Playa. Besides the X's (as I refer to them now lol) what are some must sees around the area? And, Duds, what is the Coba Mayan Encounter?

Thanks guys!

Habs2Hart

If you stay in Playa, the island of Cozumel is just a short ferry ride away also.  I have family in Cozumel and we took a day trip from Cozumel to Playa.  I found PDC really busy and really touristy, but we went to tulum and had to take the ferry into PDC which is why we went.  I prefer Cozumel.  Far lest touristy, quieter (almost dead when there are no cruize ships) and beautiful. 

alithebride

both have their pluses and minuses. milkduds-i did the mayan adventure too and from cancun it was only about 25 minutes further due to the proximity of the first location that they take you to.
they both have islands reachable by ferry, they both have great shops and restaurants. playa isn't what it used to be-even just a few years ago.

graysquirrel

I would definitely say Playa! It has a lot of shopping, the ferry to Cozumel, and like pps said, the excursions are mostly south of Playa anyway. There are some amazing resorts between Cancun and Playa. They are really private and have amazing beaches. Since most excursions will pick you up, staying at one of those is a good deal.

We did the Coba trip and had a great time. We only toured the ruins (none of the adventure stuff), and thought it was really cool. We opted for that vs any of the other ruins because you can actually climb the pyramid.

I've also heard that there is a great spider monkey sanctuary in Playa. I really wanted to go, but H didn't. Other tourists said that it was amazing. I think it was called the Jungle Place.