Walk far enough North, past Avenida Constituyentes, and you’ll find little Italy, where it’s a bit quieter and prices are a bit lower.
Tip: Food and entertainment are pretty expensive on Quinta Avenida, but you’ll find the cheapest ice cream at McDonalds (70 pesos or about 50 US cents for a cone) and the cheapest eats at Pizza Pazza (between calles 14 and 16) where you can grab a slice starting at 15 pesos (about 1.25 USD). Head west on 10th Avenida or along any of the streets (calles, in Spanish) leading west of Quinta and you’ll find much cheaper eats than on the main drag itself.
Get some local flavor on Avenida Juarez
Juarez is busy, vibrant and chock full of cheap places to eat and shop any time of day. Most tourists don’t venture West of 10th avenue and it’s a shame. The touristy Playa del Carmen rapidly fades to a real Mexican town the further West you go. Just use the same common sense precautions you would use walking around any strange city in North America or Europe and you’ll be fine. We’ve walked Juarez all the way from Quinta Avenida to about Avenida 80 with our little kids many times, both during the day and early evening.Too rainy for the beach?
It won’t you cost a penny to take a walk through two of Playa’s largest malls, Maya Centro (on the highway/50th Avenida and about Calle 28 Sur) and Plaza las Americas (located at Avenida 115 Norte and Calle 75 Norte). The malls are air conditioned, indoor and modern and the food courts abound for cheap food options.Hang out in Park Fundadores
Two spots where you can find Mayan ruins are right in the center of Playa and they are hidden from view. You can see where they are in our article on Hidden Playa Del Carmen. The largest ruins are right in the Playacar Phase 1 neighborhood on the south end of town. Best of all, these are all free to go see. You can see a map of this neighborhood in our article on Playacar Phase 1.
local vendors selling fresh fruits and others. Easily walking distance from PDC on a paved path. As tourists visiting PDC, we do feel a little bad that we are intruding upon the locals, which is probably around 90 percent occupying this beach.
You don’t have to leave Playa del Carmen or wear one of those bright orange life jackets to visit this cenote located on the northernmost edge of 5th Avenue near Paradisus Hotel.
Here, in Punta Esmeralda, you can visit one of the few beaches where you’re likely to find more locals
Cool off in a nearby cenote. Just to the north of town there is a beach visited mostly by locals, featuring a freshwater cenote that flows into the ocean.
Go here! this is such a beautiful beach and the cenote and fresh water meeting the ocean is just crazy. the water in the ocean is not deep and you can walk a distance without it going over your head. Sundays are family days there and we loved being there (I think our third time) and we knew it would be busy
This was a nice local beach. In the mornings it is empty. After 11 a lot more people
Beautiful crescent shaped beach with a long shallow walk out plus a shallow fresh water lagoon for children. Gets crowded on the weekends so go early especially if you want to park a car. Free parking but limited. Great empanadas truck down by the beach at the end of the entrance road. Lots of snack carts around lunchtime. Get the mangos slices with chili and lime.
- Experience Local Nature at La Ceiba Park
- Explore the Playacar Ruins for FREE!
- https://www.playadelcarmen.com/blog/things-to-do-in-playa-del-carmen-for-free/
. Learn more about Mexico’s Mayan heritage (and you don’t have to leave Playa to do it). Playa is home to three sites of ruins, two right in the middle of town. The first is a small building located on 2nd Street, between 5th Avenue and the beach.
In the area between 12th and 14th street on 5th Ave, you can either go all the way through a restaurant or the adjacent ‘heart’ store where you’ll see what looks like a heavily tropical environment. Going all the way through, the restaurant have table settings amongst the vegetation and will think you’re in the wrong place, but continue to pursue your way through where you’ll encounter a small sunken area that is not part of the restaurant and the site not marked, but will have found this hidden surprise. Go down a set of stairs and in this area you’ll find a small outcrop of Mayan stones identified with the deity offering table, a dried cenotes and metal ‘Love’ letters, and a sitting area to contemplate how the town and shopping area sprung around this space that is now so hidden. We were the only ones here and were so excited to have found this little gem since it was such an effort to locate.
The small ‘hearts' shop is the key landmark. Also, in the area a couple doors away, you can see Mayan wall carvings.
The second in-town site is just off 5th Avenue in the center of town. While very small, the ruins sit on a small park that features a small fresh-water cenote. A larger display can be found close to the entrance of the Playacar development in the south part of town.
In the area between 12th and 14th street on 5th Ave, you can either go all the way through a restaurant or the adjacent ‘heart’ store where you’ll see what looks like a heavily tropical environment. Going all the way through, the restaurant have table settings amongst the vegetation and will think you’re in the wrong place, but continue to pursue your way through where you’ll encounter a small sunken area that is not part of the restaurant and the site not marked, but will have found this hidden surprise. Go down a set of stairs and in this area you’ll find a small outcrop of Mayan stones identified with the deity offering table, a dried cenotes and metal ‘Love’ letters, and a sitting area to contemplate how the town and shopping area sprung around this space that is now so hidden. We were the only ones here and were so excited to have found this little gem since it was such an effort to locate.
The small ‘hearts' shop is the key landmark. Also, in the area a couple doors away, you can see Mayan wall carvings.
The second in-town site is just off 5th Avenue in the center of town. While very small, the ruins sit on a small park that features a small fresh-water cenote. A larger display can be found close to the entrance of the Playacar development in the south part of town.
Ancient Mayan Ruins in Playacar: Did you know not far from the heart of Playa in the exclusive gated community of Playacar are ancient Mayan ruins known as Xaman Ha that you can view for free? These Mayan ruins were predominately a residential community during the Post-Classic period due to the easy access to Cozumel. The remaining 3 buildings were thought to be the first of the communities visited by the Spanish. It is a very pleasant walk through Playacar so take your camera.
*The beaches in Playacar south of the ferry are quiet and spacious. Take a stroll on the beach at night and you’ll come across live music, belly dancers and fire shows.
NOTE: Notice the signs in the background of the photo above advertising that you can also pay in U.S. Dollars. Sounds convenient, right? While it might be more convenient for you to pay in dollars, it also means you’ll end up paying more than you should for you ferry ticket. As a matter of fact, it’s not just ferry tickets but using U.S. Dollars to purchase anything in Mexico will always cost you more. Do yourself a favor and come prepared to mexico with pesos in hand (aka never pay in U.S. Dollars).
Dine: You’ll find taquerias -- inexpensive taco shops -- throughout Playa del Carmen. For arguably the best in the city, head to El Fogon and order the tacos al pastor, fresh tacos made of pork that is sliced from a Lebanese-style shawarma. In addition to tacos, the restaurant serves fajitas and massive burritos. The Best Al Pastor Tacos in Playa Del Carment – El Fogon
you may want to learn how to hop on a collectivo, the way the locals get around. Between Tulum and Playa (and other destination) are 12 passenger air conditioned vans. They line up Calle 2 Norte between Av. 15 and 20 and leave when they are full – which doesn’t take long. The drivers will drop you anywhere you want to go on their route. For example, the Collectivo costs 25 peso to get from Playa to Akumal. Just make sure you remind the driver where you are going. To get back you can flag down any Collectivo headed your direction. There are also covered bus stops at all of the main attractions along route 307.
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