From Cancun to Playa del Carmen – Tipps for your arrival in Mexico

On all the flights I’ve been on, I’ve had a few stop-overs in cities, where I had to change the plane and then continue on with my journey. However on my flight from Brussels to Cancun there was something new. We landed in Varadero Cuba and half of the plane got off while the rest stayed on. After about 1.5 hours of just sitting there and some new people coming on we took off again and one hour later landed in Cancun. As I arrived in the evening, I first thought that I should stay in Cancun city. However, since my time in Mexico was limited and many sources told me that Cancun city wasn’t worth staying at, I directly walked to the ADO bus station to get from Cancun to Playa del Carmen.

How to get from Cancun to Playa del Carmen

After perhaps having eaten your first Guacamole for 40 pesos at one of the airport Restaurants, head to the red ticket counter of the ADO buses. The ticket from Cancun to Playa del Carmen costs 190 pesos in February 2018 for the about one hour ride. But it might very well be more at your time of travel as the Yucatan peninsula is suffering from a bad inflation. There is a second counter outside (just ask a few people for the ADO (each letter pronounced seperately) terminal if you can’t find it. Buses go quite frequently but to be sure, you can check the schedule online. Their website is pretty bad and most times there are even more buses than there are stated on the website. So, if you aren’t sure about the times when you are in Mexico it’s best to go to their office and ask.

Is it safe to arrive in Playa del Carmen late at night?

I would say yes. It’s a party town after all and there will be many people out and about. However, don’t expect a lot of life before 8 am or even 8.30 am.

ADO bus or collectivo for traveling around?

You’d think that the collectivo taxis were cheaper than the bus as it’s less comfortable to travel on them and they might stop or even wait along the way for many times. Yet, I found out that ADO buses are most times cheaper although they are the first class buses. Oriente Express and Myab are cheaper than ADO but they are both fine as well. My Myab bus didn’t have a/c but the windows worked fine and Oriente Express had too much a/c. The collectivos are only better if you are on your own and no bus is going to that place or only once per day and it’s your only other option. If you are three or more people it might be cheaper to haggle down a taxi. Plus, if you travel with a big bag on the collectivo, they sometimes charge you extra.

Is it safe to eat from a street vendor?

My stomach is very sensible and I get sickish at least once on every trip to Asia or or what I thought also Mexico. But here, I consequently brushed my teeth with clean water out of a supermarket bottle and if I ate somewhere, I made sure that many Mexicans were eating there as well. Sometimes, when I was hungry that was tough but luckily I only felt a little weird twice on this trip (that’s a good job for me and my sensitive stomach) and I never got sick. So, for the most part I think it’s the dirty water that gets to me and I might have found a solution for it.

What to do in Playa del Carmen

You can do anything beach related from just relaxing to getting married. On the busy street along the beach there are all kinds of restaurants and even Starbucks. If you walk any of the streets away from the main tourist one, food will be a little cheaper. If you like it really cheap, there is a big Wallmart in town.

Ladies drink for free

You will find enough places to drink and party in Playa to fill your week. The most fun thing for women is to check out ladies night. You will see signs on bars or hostels announcing it. I was at one where it said “ladies drink free until 10 pm”. And really, I did not have to pay for any of my cocktails. Plus, it even was the best Margarita I had in Mexico.

Get a massage

You can find massages at the beach for 18 USD and anything above that.

Get your nails done

A simple shellac manicure and pedicure costs about 300 pesos.

Shop souvenirs

There are so many souvenir shops in Playa that the prices are actually quite good. I made a bargain on my blanket. While the cheapest price I found before was 140 pesos I now bought the same one for 54 pesos!

What is your tipp for Playa del Carmen? Do you still have any questions?