Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Playa del Carmen. Photo: © Marta Conesa

The town

Playa del Carmen is a marvellous place to spend time. It has all the advantages of a Mexican Caribbean resort -- a dazzling, white-sand beach, turquoise sea, a huge range of bars, restaurants and places to stay -- and yet it has managed to retain a relaxed, low-rise village atmosphere which has nothing in common with the large-scale tourist resorts elsewhere on the coast. There is plenty to do and see in Playa and the town is growing fast. But the atmosphere is anything other than hectic and it is the gentle surf that seems to dominate the pace of life.

Getting there

There are direct flights from most major cities to Cancun International Airport which is just 60 km (40 miles) north of Playa del Carmen. The journey from the airport to Playa del Carmen by taxi should take less than 1 hour and cost around 40 US$ (65 US$ after 22.00 or before 08.00).

Alternatively the school can arrange an airport meeting and transfer service on request (see below).

Weather in Playa del Carmen

Playa del Carmen has a sub-tropical climate, which means it's almost always warm. The annual average temperature is about 27C or 80F. Humidity is also quite high. Regardless of what time of year you come, you will have great beach days and the sea is always warm enough to swim in.

Here is a summary of seasonal variations:

February to May
Spring is a beautiful time of year, with little rain and flowers everywhere. The sea is calmer and gets steadily warmer as temperature rises. Nights can still be cool, but a sweater is rarely needed.
June to August
The summer in Playa del Carmen is hot. The water is so warm you can stay in for hours. Blue skies prevail. There is some rainfall with short heavy showers in the afternoon or evening. Nights do not get much cooler.
September and October
This is the season for tropical storms and the occasional hurricane (not usually nearly as powerful as Hurricane Wilma, in 2005 [report]!). It doesn't rain every day for two months, but there could be periods of more persistent rain. It's still warm.
November to January
These are the coolest months in Playa, which means it's very comfortable. There might be some rain, but it's not very frequent. This time of year nights can be cool - temperatures can drop to as low as 12C!

We recommend Yahoo if you want the weather forecast for Playa del Carmen for the next 10 days.

Arriving in Playa del Carmen

Students should fly into Cancun International Airport. There are direct flights from most major cities to Cancun which is just 60km (40 miles) north of Playa del Carmen.

The journey from the airport to Playa del Carmen should take less than 1 hour.

Students can catch a RIVIERA bus to Playa del Carmen from outside the National Arrivals Terminal. The bus leaves every 30 minutes from 08.00 to 20.30 and costs approximately 70 $ pesos. From the bus terminal in Playa del Carmen students will have to take a taxi to their lodging. Taxis cost between 15 $ and 20 $ pesos per trip within Playa del Carmen.

Alternatively, students can take a taxi from the airport directly to their lodging in Playa del Carmen. A taxi from the airport will cost around 500 $ pesos (40-65 US$ if before 08.00 or after 22.00).

Students can also take advantage of our airport transfer service (see below).

Those staying with a family should see this further arrival information.

Airport transfers

IH Riviera Maya can arrange a private airport meeting and transfer service from the airport to the student's lodging in Playa del Carmen.

On arrival at the airport students will be greeted by an International House representative who will be holding a sign with the student's name on it.

The fee per transfer is 75 US$ for 1 person, or 45 US$ per person for 2 or more people.

The prices quoted are for transfers from 08.00 to 22.00 (arrival time at the airport). If the students need a transfer before 08.00 or after 22.00, these prices will be increased by 50%. Please note that we need the arrival information at least 2 working days before arrival.

We strongly recommend that young students with no knowledge of Spanish take advantage of our meeting and transfer service.

Getting around Playa del Carmen
Playa del Carmen is relatively small and students will be able to get around on foot most of the time. Taxis are widely available and a journey within the town should only cost around 15-20$ pesos (2-3 US$). Students can also rent a bicycle for 10-15 US$ per week (a refundable deposit of 30-40 US$ is also required).