Water Activities in Cozumel!

This Caribbean Island is known internationally for its coral reefs ideal for diving and snorkeling.

If you are are looking for a place with a variety of options where each member of the family finds interesting activities, Cozumel is one of the best choices: for the most daring, diving or snorkeling to get to know one of the most important reefs in the world, going by kayak, kite boarding and wind surfing for those who prefer to stay close to the shore, to sport fishing, for family members who prefer to spend a quieter time.

Countless beach clubs and water parks will give you hours of healthy fun: Playa Paraíso is highly recommended, with a pleasant atmosphere, for those who prefer to lie on a lounger and enjoy delicious food and tropical cocktails, nearby reefs for those who want to explore underwater.

The points to visit inside or near the island are the Cozumel Reef National Park and within it, the Chankanaab National Park, which offers an eco-archaeological tour for the whole family, sea lion show, crocodile and manatee exhibition, and for the more intrepid, zip lines, snuba and seatrek tours or swim with dolphins.

Also for nature lovers, Punta Sur is the largest and most important ecological reserve on the island, a more relaxed experience ideal for living in an ecotourism environment, watching exotic birds in freedom, boating on the lagoon, sleeping in a hammock on the shore of the beach and visit the Cultural and Navigation Museum, located inside an old lighthouse where you can take a family photo with the best aerial view of Cozumel.

It should be noted that all the attractions that we have mentioned are enabled to be accessible to all members of the family and even if any of them is an older adult or has a disability.

Free Walking tour Playa del Carmen! A great way to learn about the city

The free tour or walking free tours are walks that are done on foot, in groups of about 15-20 people (although this is variable because many times they do not accept more than 5 or 10) in the company of a guide, through the historic centers of the most touristic cities. The latter is also variable because more and more cities are incorporating it, even if they are not the most touristy, and because there are more and more options to get to know not only the historic center of the cities but also encourage you to go a little further. Some cities and companies already have free themed tours.

HOW DO THE FREE TOURS WORK? In general, the free tour or free tours last between 2 and 3 hours and have a historical imprint, because the guide usually emphasizes the monuments, curiosities or historical facts of each site. Those interested have to enter the web and reserve the place. In that same reservation they tell you the meeting point. Each company is usually identified with a color and has a meeting point, which is usually a monument or very touristy site in the city. Once all the people are gathered, the walk begins.

IS IT ALWAYS NECESSARY TO BOOK THE FREE TOUR ONLINE? It is not always necessary to book the free tour, but it is highly recommended to do so because there may not be seats, especially in the most touristy cities and in high season or on weekends. It doesn't cost anything to do it, it's free, and it's more organized for those who provide it. Below we share the links, ordered by country, so you can reserve the one you want.

The tours are promoted as free, because the traveler can book the tour without paying a single euro or dollar and can leave without leaving anything, but people are expected to leave a tip. It is expected that each one values ​​the knowledge and the time shared by the guide and leaves him a reward in money. For this reason, the free tours are free in the sense that they do not have a stipulated price.

ADVANTAGES OF DOING A FREE TOUR Although leaving a tip is recommended, it is always cheaper than other tours. You will find out about curiosities and stories that, surely, you did not read anywhere. The guides know the destination very well, so they share (or you can ask them) information about places to eat or see a show. You can go with the family. You can meet other travelers in a relaxed tour.

Explore the Riviera Maya on bicycle

Playa del Carmen is a city in continuous urban development and tourist growth that has managed to cover extensive areas of the Riviera Maya, expanding the territorial distance between the jungle and the sea.

Despite this, you can still breathe that air of a fishing village in which the only means of transport was two-wheeled vehicles, and specifically the bicycle is the means that to date continues to be the main transport of most of the new beach residents and visitors looking for an eco-tourism alternative to discover new places in this tropical paradise.

For this, we share three options where you can get to by bike in Playa del Carmen and make use of complementary services for your adventure.

THE BASIC

Get on the bike from wherever you are and go to 10th avenue (Parallel to 5th avenue) where you can find a cycle path that starts at the corner of Constituyentes with the Quinta Alegría Shopping Center, the circulation of bikes goes one way and return without problem in a stretch of no more than 500 meters until you reach Paseo del Carmen where you can shop or have a coffee.

Along the way you can find craft shops, restaurants and a small food market on Calle 6, to end this basic tour you can have a beer in one of the bars on the surrounding streets.

If you still have energy left to pedal, after Paseos del Carmen continue your route to Playacar, if you go by day look for an outlet to the beach to take a break, if you go at night turn around the circuit of this residential area and return to the avenue 10.

Approximate travel time: 20 min.

Bike ride Riviera Maya

THE INTERMEDIATE

If you are looking for less bustle and movement of people to pedal in longer stretches without so many pedestrians, head towards CTM street.

Start the route on 10th avenue heading north until you find 38th street, there you turn to the right where you can ride your bike on 5th avenue (vehicles can circulate from 38th street onwards) follow the same north direction until find CTM street, this area is still under development since the extension of fifth avenue to this area is planned, from there you have the option of going down towards the sea to finish your route with a dip, some exotic drink in the extinct Canibal Royal or a massage on the beach.

Approximate travel time: 30-40 min.

ADVANCED

For those looking for a more isolated, quiet and natural experience, there is the cycle path to Xcaret, which you can take orienting yourself from 10th avenue (From Paseos del Carmen, square where the Basic tour ends) entering the Playacar residential area orient yourself on the map of the security booth at the entrance, from there you will travel approximately 1 km until you come out on the Federal highway where you will turn left to take the cycle path.

See also

Explore the Heart of the Riviera Maya - Caves and Cenotes

Explore the Heart of the Riviera Maya

In Explore

This tour manages to isolate you from urbanity by driving in a safe paved area surrounded by the jungle.

*Recommended to do it at sunrise (6-7am) or at sunset.

Elapsed time 40-45 min.

Riviera Maya bike ride

One last option for bike lovers is to visit the Punta Venado Bike Park

Learning more about the rich history of Playa del Carmen!

Before being called Playa del Carmen, the name of this region of the Mexican Southeast, it was known as Xaman Há, which means "Northern Water", (although there are those who say that it also means "the black wind of northern water"), which in pre-Hispanic times it was a small fishing village. It was one of the first towns seen by the Spanish conquerors at the beginning of the 16th century. It has a privileged location in front of the island of Cozumel and it is believed that it may have been one of its embarkation ports. It was an extensive settlement of masonry constructions and platforms for houses made of wood and palm, whose inhabitants were mainly engaged in fishing and agricultural activities.

During the first stage of the campaign to conquer Yucatán, Alonso Dávila, lieutenant of Francisco de Montejo, founded the Spanish settlement of Salamanca de Xamanhá in this place, the second in the entire Peninsula; however, it had to be abandoned in 1529 due to food shortages and the poor conditions of the Spanish soldiers who were there.

It was not until colonial times that the town received the name of Playa del Carmen, due to the founding of the chapel of the Virgen del Carmen. However, for a long time the area was relegated because it lacks mineral deposits such as gold or silver, and its soil is not so fertile for massive plantations.

Although at this time, it was a resting point for pirates of the Caribbean, who devastated the Spanish galleons in their transit to Cuba.

However, it was not until the 20th century when a group of fishermen, coconut palms and gum extractors settled in the region, being the first settlers of what we know today as Playa del Carmen.

In the 1980s it barely had 1,500 inhabitants, but tourism development attracted people from all over the Republic, to the extent that according to the 2010 Inegi census, there were 159,310 inhabitants. As of 2017, it is estimated that the population of Playa del Carmen, the head of the municipality of Solidaridad, amounts to more than 300,000 people.

Main Festivities

Playa del Carmen is a city with a cheerful personality, where nature and life are enjoyed. This is reflected in the festivities that the city has, ranging from the eclectic Carnival of Playa del Carmen to the solemnity of the Sacred Mayan Journey.

These are the most important celebrations in Playa del Carmen:

Playa del Carmen Carnival. It takes place at the end of January, there are shows and parades where they recreate the Mayan culture.

Festival of the Virgen del Carmen. It is celebrated in July, and it is one of the most important events for the municipality of Solidaridad since it is the patron saint of the town. On this date the Feria del Carmen is also held to commemorate said celebration.

The Guelaguetza. Playa del Carmen and Oaxaca twinned by the Guelaguetza, in April the Guelaguetza Expo in Playa del Carmen is received in the Civic Plaza on July 28, where you can find handicrafts and products from Oaxaca as well as being able to enjoy typical music and dances from that region.

Sacred Mayan Journey. It takes place in November, it is a ritual where hundreds of canoeists set sail from Xcaret towards the sanctuary of the goddess Ixchel, in Cozumel. They travel to listen to the message of their deity, to return to Playa del Carmen to transmit it to the Mayan people, who hope to find out what fate has in store for them. The participants of this recreation make the spiritual value of the Mayan roots feel, rowing kilometers to reach their goal. Thousands of tourists witness this spectacular event every year.

Riviera Maya Jazz Festival. With artists of the highest quality, Playa del Carmen, together with the state and municipal authorities, and the work of the Riviera Maya Tourism Promotion Trust, plus the participation of hoteliers and tourist servers, managed to capitalize on the Riviera Maya Jazz Festival, as one of the most relevant events in the world of this musical genre, the festival has grown considerably, both in technology and in logistics and quality, in order to provide a better experience for attendees; "This evolution represents a watershed for the jazz scene in Latin America."

Carmen Fair. It is carried out together with the celebrations of July 6 for the Virgen del Carmen. It is a party that lasts about 10 days where people from Playa and tourists gather to enjoy music, good food and the company of family and friends. It is one of the new Playa traditions.

Frida Kahlo Museum in Playa del Carmen

The Frida Kahlo Museum is located on Fifth Avenue in Playa del Carmen ‒it couldn't be anywhere else in the Riviera Maya‒. This site dedicated to the beloved Mexican artist is both a museum and a restaurant.

Visiting the Frida Kahlo Museum in Playa del Carmen is a joint sensory experience that will help you discover the passions and torments of this artist. So that you will be able to understand his life for a moment. For that purpose, museography uses different tools: touch screens, audio, video mapping, object boxes, art installations, infographics, as well as samples, of course, of her main paintings.

The Frida Kahlo Riviera Maya Museum is divided into nine rooms. The first begins with a timeline where his days are mixed with historical events in Mexico. Some headphones in the adjoining room are in charge of recreating the tram accident that in 1925 devastated her body, condemning her to despondency ever since.

Later, a video mapping follows where bed and loneliness are the protagonists. A convalescing artist begins to paint to save herself, and the viewer attends that incipient pictorial universe, under the newly discovered protection that colors brought with them.

The love relationship he had with Diego Rivera is revealed in a separate space. It is enough to look at the facsimiles of the letters that she dedicated to him with her singular style, to understand that the affection felt by the muralist was not a reason for peace in her life either.

Also, there is another room dedicated entirely to her brushstrokes: reproductions in light boxes serve as luminous witnesses of her work ‒there are no original oil paintings in this museum‒, but their absence is compensated with information and a sincere tribute not only to the public figure, but to the human being.

A tourist attraction that you must visit in Playa del Carmen.