What It’s Like Now Traveling To Playa Del Carmen Mexico 2020/2021

Playa Del Carmen is a hot travel destination in the Riviera Maya, but is it for everybody?  I spent a day in Playa Del Carmen, walking the tourist hot spot of 5th avenue and its most popular beach.

If you love to party on the beach, be in the midst of all the action, you would like Playa Del Carmen because it’s very lively! 

Perhaps too lively for my taste, but before I give you my opinion on it, you can see for yourselves in this video. I filmed this video while walking through Playa Del Carmen and it gives you a real world view of what the scene is like there.

What did I think of Playa Del Carmen? 

While the beach was beautiful with amazingly clear water that you would expect in the Mexican Caribbean, I found Playa Del Carmen much too touristy and busy for my taste. Even while lounging on the beach, I found it hard to relax completely because I could hear music from many different people playing their music all at once and it’s just a lot of people! It’s definitely not the place you got to feel like you have your own slice of heaven on the beach.

I can understand that some people may really like this type of beach environment so while it wasn’t my ideal beach to visit, it could be wonderful for someone else. After all, it is very lively, there are many activities like jet skiing and paddle boarding that you can take part in from the beach.  Also, there are plenty of beach clubs where you can hang out, relax in a lounge chair with a drink in hand.

On 5th avenue where you have a wide selection of places to eat and shop, I thought it was very crowded, even right now.  I went a week before high season picked up during the Christmas holidays.  Even then, there were more people than I expected. 

There are lots of stores to shop for something special to bring home from your trip.  In the Riviera Maya, you can find many handmade items like clothes, art, and jewelry that are made in Mexico.

While the local shops on 5th avenue sell some unique things, the prices are a bit overpriced compared to other places I’ve shopped in the Riviera Maya. 

I compared some similar items I found in Playa Del Carmen to those I found in Puerto Morelos (just 25 minutes away) and the prices were much higher. Because I know some very good places to shop in Puerto Morelos, I didn’t buy anything in Playa Del Carmen that day. 

You will also find some recognizable brands like Starbucks, H & M, BurgerKing and Forever 21 in Playa Del Carmen. Whenever I see a Starbucks or McDonalds, that’s when I know I’m in a popular tourist spot! It just seems to be true all over the world.

Have you been to Playa Del Carmen and what are your thoughts about it?