Playa Del Carmen/Mexican Riviera

Sorry my geography sucks but we recently went to the Riviera Maya. If that is the same or close, it was fabulous! We stayed at the El Dorado Royale. It was amazing. I highly recommend the rooms with a swim up pool.

I would stay away from Mexico these days.

yes playa carmen 20+ years ago.. but mexico is quite dangerous these days.. I might pick a location not in mexico.. our neighbors.. who moved here from mexico.. were supposed to go back to mexico to visit last summer cancelled their trip due to the danger..

Went about 10 yrs ago for 1 week. It was gorgeous. I went in early February and the weather there was beautiful; high 80's-90's. The resort was 5 star and was beautiful. We did all inclusive and the food was amazing, we had 4 restaurants to choose from. I don't drink so can't comment on that. We did many excursions that we loved.

Like Wild mentioned, this was before Fast & Furios (Obama scandal). Since my visit to Cancun, there has been murders at Cancun Resorts. I would NOT feel safe there now.

Every Christmas we go to Puerto Morales about 15 miles from Playa del Carmen. Love it. Beautiful weather. Small town with some great resturants. People are very nice. Easy to navigate. We rent a villa or condo depending on how many of us there are right on the ocean. Love it, love it. We rent a car. Easy to get to from the airport. We go into Cancun to Costco to stock up as we usually stay 3 weeks. Lots to do in the area or just sit at the pool with a cocktail Can't recommend a resort as we always rent a villa/condo....but if you are interested in this type of accomodation PM me. Have fun!

PS I feel safe there and have never had any kind of problem and we drive around and go where we want when we are there. I think it is a great place to visit.

We had our honeymoon there 9 years ago. It was WONDERFUL and I would love to go back. We stayed at an all-inclusive resort and went on excursions several days. O. day we went snorkeling in a cenote and at a reef, another day we went to Cancun, another day we went to Xcaret, another day we went snorkeling in Cozumel, and some days we just lounged on the beach or in the hotel pools.

I have heard that Mexico is not currently as safe for tourists, so that's something to consider. We stayed at the El Dorado Royale, which is all adults.

My husband and I have been several times and loved it, and we took our boys about 6 years ago to Cozumel. We always stay at high-end, all inclusive resorts, and have never had a bad experience, but as others have mentioned, I wouldn't go right now.

We stayed at Puerto Aventuras on our honeymoon almost 20 years ago. I don't know if it even exists anymore, but it was wonderful at the time. We prefer off the beaten path rather than staying in Cancun. It was a couple of hours south of Cancun in the jungle. I don't remember the places we've stayed in Cozumel, but they were lovely, too. We've talked about cruising there. I think I would feel more comfortable visiting that way so that we wouldn't have to drive or take a bus through town. I don't know, though. Right now we'll probably stick with vacationing elsewhere.

Have fun wherever you go! :)

I love Akumal - which is just a bit further south of Playa.

I have friends who were there in Nov., and also Jan.

It's the best. IMO - you can't go wrong with any Akumal resorts or rentals.

You will fly into Cancun Airport. It's an older airport - open plan. Once you go through customs, you are shepherded out to the bus area to go to your hotel.

Playa Del Carmen is Cancun, Mexico.

Went in May 2006, right after the hurricane that went through, so the beaches were a tad messed up. This was BEFORE Fast & Furious and the drug cartels moving all over the country.

Weather was beautiful in May - hit in the 100's.
We stayed at the all-inclusive Playa de Riveria resort. They picked us up from the airport and took us to the hotel. It can be a longer drive as the buses do stop at other resorts along the way - up to an hour.

There were 4 restaurants in town (maybe two blocks) that were associated with the hotel/resort - so you got "tickets" for meals and were able to eat outside the resort.

There are TONS of things to do - bungee jumping, zip-lining, pools, lounging on the beach, massages under a cabana on the beach, etc.

The food was good.
The bugs could be bad....just depended on the location as well as the heat.
staff was WONDERFUL.

Our room was huge - king bed that looked "small" in the room - bathroom with a bath tub (although I didn't use it) and a shower that was more like a low jacuzzi. Our terrace was gated, however, since we were on the first floor, we could walk directly out on to the beach from our room.

The resort had 3 or 4 pools to choose from. Each had a bar attached to it.

When we went, there were bazaars in the town and we bought some great stuff.

GOOD LUCK!

We stay at the Melia Resort. It's a high-end resort in Cancun for adults only.

It is considered on the expensive side, so not sure if you can afford that. If you are choosing Mexico because it is probably O. of the cheapest places to travel right now, I would talk to your travel agent before you book. There is a reason why prices are dropping and it is cheap.

http://www.melia.com/hotels/mexico/cancun/me-cancun-compl...

It is very contemporary. The food is great. We have access to great beaches, spas and choice restaurants. We reserve a level master suite.

We will not be traveling there this year as our travel agent recommended that, while Cancun is relatively safe, the situation is not good. We are looking at Hawaii or the Dominican Republic instead of Mexico.

Puerto Vallarta is great as well. It is on the Pacific side of the peninsula. When our kids were younger, we went there once a year. There is much to do.

If you are about history, then you might want to travel to Tulum to see the Mayan ruins. That would mean staying near Cozumel.

Most, if not all resorts, have transportation to and from the airport. If you are not fluent in Spanish, I would recommend picking up a book or Rosetta Stone. It helps when walking the streets.

Yes! We've been several times and loved it every time. Weather is great, people are great. We stayed along the resort strip along the beach about a 15-20 minute drive from Playa del Carmen itself. I would look at resorts there rather than right in the city. We stayed at the Occidental which was nice and I think all inclusive. The other times we went we stayed at the Grand Mayan, which is a time share place and they WILL try to suck you in to a presentation, etc. I think that is common in the area, so watch out for anyone offering "free tours," etc -- usually there is a hardcore sales session involved before you get your free tickets, and it's really not worth the two hours of your vacation (and sanity) you'll lose at the presentation to save $50 on scuba diving.

Also make sure you memorize general money exchange math -- I got screwed a couple times because I couldn't quickly translate pesos to dollars and got talked into overpaying for things. I'm horrible at math though!

It's a great part of the world to visit, and fairly affordable too. Have fun!

ETA: I believe this is a "safe" part of Mexico -- of course there is crime everywhere on earth. But Riviera Maya does not seem to be the focus of the drug violence we hear about and I always felt safe.

We go at least once every year. As to what resort to stay at it really depends what you are looking for. Do you have adults only? Younger kids or teenagers? We only do all inclusives and really have not had a bad O., just differences in what you are looking for. Last year we stayed at Now Jade and it was very nice for adults. I don't think it would be great for kids and we rarely saw any kids. As for the people saying its dangerous I have never felt anything but safe. They pick you up at the airport and bring you on the bus/hotel transport to your resort. We have in the past always gone on excursions but in the recent years we really only take snorkeling trips. If you go to sites like "trip advisor" etc. you can read a million reviews of the resorts. Next January my daughter is getting married in Mexico. We have not yet picked which resort. Have fun!