Riviera Maya · The days
Things to Do Between Playa del Carmen and Tulum, Besides the Parties
The parties are at night. The days are yours.
It's easy to plan the whole trip around the nights and forget the days exist. The Tulum festivals are at night, so the daylight hours are completely open, and the stretch between Playa del Carmen and Tulum is one of the most packed with things to see in the whole country. This isn't a speaker-lined venue you go to just to dance: it's the Caribbean.
Stay in Tulum or Playa del Carmen?
You can do either, and the parties are equally reachable. But if you ask us, we recommend Playa del Carmen, for a very specific reason almost nobody knows before booking.
The detail that changes the trip
In Tulum, the town and the beach are two different things: from lodging in town it's at least about 20 minutes to the water. And staying right on the beach is possible, but that's where prices skyrocket, some of the most expensive lodging in the whole Riviera Maya. In Playa del Carmen you're steps from the water without paying that.
You feel the difference every day of the trip: you don't plan an outing to go to the beach, you walk out of the hotel and you're there. After a festival night, that matters more than it sounds.
And Quinta Avenida (yes, that means Fifth Avenue) is a few blocks away: the pedestrian street with most of the food and a good chunk of the city's nightlife. It works just as well for breakfast as for a night that isn't a festival night.
Tulum is about 40 miles (65 km) south. Everything that follows is in that stretch.
Swimming with turtles in Akumal
Akumal is right halfway, and it's a bay where sea turtles come to feed. It's not a staged show or an aquarium: it's their habitat, which is why they're there every day.
The best part is that you don't need to book anything to see them. Wading into the regular water, from the shore, they swim right by you. A mask and some patience is enough: it happens a lot, and the first time one passes within a foot and a half of you, you don't forget it.
If you want to go farther out, the rules change
Guided snorkeling toward the seagrass area, farther out, is regulated: you need an authorized guide from a local cooperative, a life vest, groups of 6 people max and sessions of 55 minutes max, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. It's prohibited to touch, chase or feed them. It's worth showing up early either way: fewer people and clearer water.
The cenotes, and the rule almost nobody knows
A cenote is a natural freshwater sinkhole in the limestone, connected to underground rivers. There are dozens in this stretch; the best known near Tulum are Gran Cenote and Dos Ojos.
No regular sunscreen
Only certified biodegradable sunscreen is allowed, and many make you rinse off before getting in to wash away cream, bug spray and deodorant residue. It's not a pointless hassle: that water is underground and doesn't renew itself like the sea, so whatever gets in stays in. If you show up with regular sunscreen they can deny you entry: the simplest move is to not put anything on beforehand, rinse off there, and apply it when you get out.
Bring cash
Many cenotes and their parking lots are cash only, and there isn't always an ATM nearby. It's one of the dumbest things that can wreck your day: getting all the way out there and being stuck outside because you didn't bring bills.
The Tulum ruins, and why you go early
It's the only walled Maya city built on a cliff facing the sea. That's the whole explanation of why it's worth it: there's no other one like it, and the view from the top doesn't look like any photo you've seen.
The practical tip matters more than the description: go right when they open. There's very little shade and the midday heat is punishing, plus the tours from Cancún and Playa del Carmen start showing up mid-morning.
El Cielo, in Cozumel
This one deserves a clarification because almost everybody places it wrong: El Cielo is in Cozumel, not Isla Mujeres. It's a sandbar in the middle of the sea, with turquoise water that barely reaches your waist and live starfish on the bottom. You can only get there by boat.
And if you're staying in Playa del Carmen, it's right there: the ferry to Cozumel leaves from there and takes about 45 minutes. It's one of the most doable excursions of the trip, and one of the least like everything else.
The sea, from the water
The color of the water in this stretch is why people come back. Seeing it from the sand is one thing; heading out to open sea is another. That's why the catamaran is available as an extra when you build your trip, at $1,500 MXN per person (about US$80).
How to fit it around the party nights
Honest advice: don't schedule the ruins and a cenote for the day after a party that ends at sunrise. It's not going to happen. What does work is putting the daytime plans on the days with no event, and keeping the day after each party for the beach and nothing else, which in Playa del Carmen is literally crossing the street.
If you only pick one thing: a cenote. Cold water after a long night does more for you than any other activity.
Frequently asked questions
What's between Playa del Carmen and Tulum?
It's the most packed stretch of the entire Riviera Maya: Akumal (where you swim with sea turtles in their natural habitat), dozens of cenotes, and clear-water beaches almost one after another. Playa del Carmen and Tulum are about 40 miles (65 km) apart, so all of that sits halfway between the two.
Should I stay in Tulum or Playa del Carmen?
The parties are reachable from either one, but Playa del Carmen usually makes more sense. In Tulum the town and the beach are separate: from lodging in town it's at least about 20 minutes to the water, and staying right on the beach there is some of the most expensive lodging in the whole Riviera Maya. In Playa del Carmen you're steps from the water without paying that, and Quinta Avenida is a few blocks away.
Can I swim with turtles in Akumal on my own?
Yes, from the shore. Just wading into the water at Akumal beach, it's common for turtles to swim right past you: a mask is enough, you don't need to book anything. What is regulated is guided snorkeling farther out, toward the seagrass area: that requires an authorized guide from a local cooperative, a life vest, groups of 6 people max and sessions of 55 minutes max, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Either way, it's prohibited to touch, chase or feed them: Akumal is their feeding ground, not an aquarium.
Can I get into a cenote with regular sunscreen?
No. Cenotes only allow certified biodegradable sunscreen, and many make you rinse off before entering to wash away cream, bug spray and deodorant residue. The water is underground and doesn't renew itself like the sea, so whatever goes in stays in. If you show up with regular sunscreen, they can deny you entry.
What's the best time to visit the Tulum ruins?
Early, right when they open. The site has very little shade and the midday heat is brutal, plus the tours from Cancún and Playa del Carmen start arriving mid-morning. Going at opening saves you both the heat and the lines.
What is El Cielo and where is it?
It's a sandbar off Cozumel (not Isla Mujeres, which is the most common mix-up) with turquoise waist-deep water and live starfish on the bottom. You can only get there by boat. From Playa del Carmen the ferry to Cozumel takes about 45 minutes, so it's one of the most doable excursions if you're staying there.