Playa del Carmen
A pleasant little town on the beach which still maintains some of the charms of its former existence as a fishing village. The beach is dazzling white, with crystal-clear shallow water, ideal for swimming, and further out there is good scuba diving. There is accommodation for every budget, and plenty of good restaurants and bars of every description. Many travelers choose Playa as their base for trips to the ruins of Tulum in the south, and archaeological sites such as Coba in the interior.
The town is laid out in a grid system, with the main centre of tourist activity based on Avenida 5, pedestrianized, one block from and parallel with the beach. This is where the more expensive hotels and restaurants are, as well as being the centre for nightlife. Cheaper accommodation can be found up Avenida Juarez and further north of the beach. Tourist information is scant, but the kiosk on the main plaza will provide a copy of Destination Playa del Carmen, a useful guide with maps pro¬duced by US residents.
Paamul, just south of Playa del Carmen and about 92 km south of Cancun, is a fine beach on a bay, planned for development, with chalets (C with bath, fan, terrace for hammocks, comfortable, pretty, clean, recommended) and campsites (recom¬mended). There is snorkelling and diving and a reef a few metres offshore. Sec¬ond-class buses from Cancun and Playa del Carmen pass.
Xcaret
Back on the mainland, there are some Maya ruins at Xcaret, a turn-off left on Route 307 to Tulum, after Playa del Carmen. The Maya site, an ancient port called Pole, was the departure point for voyages to Cozumel. It has now been turned into an overpriced and very tacky theme park catering exclusively for day-trippers. â– US$37 (children under five years free). This entry fee entitles you to visit the small ruins, the aviary, the -, K beach, lagoon and inlet, to take an underground river trip (life vest included) and to use all chairs, hammocks and palapas.
Six dead as Wilma batters Mexico
At least six people have died as Hurricane Wilma lingers over Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, Reuters reports.
Two deaths been reported on the island on the island of Cozumel, and one person died in Cancun when a gust of wind blew out a window.
In the resort town of Playa del Carmen, two people died when a gas tank exploded, while to the west of the Yucatan Peninsula, a large tree branch crushed a man to death.
The slow-moving storm has sent waves as high as the third storey of some hotels in the resort of
Cozumel
The town, San Miguel de Cozumel, is a seedy, overpriced version ofPlaya del Carmen. C Daily tour groups arrive on cruises from Miami and Cancun, and the towns' services seem geared towards this type of tourist. But Cozumel is a mecca for scuba divers, with many beautiful offshore reefs to explore, as well as much interesting wildlife and bird life. Travellers looking for a beach holiday with some nightlife will find the island disap¬pointing compared to Playa del Carmen. There is only one nice beach, on the west side, and the eastern, Atlantic coast is
Hurricane Wilma slams into mainland Mexico
Ocean waves surged over the narrow strip of land that holds Cancun's resort hotels as Hurricane Wilma slammed into Mexican mainland, where some 30,000 tourists huddled in hotels and shelters amid shrieking winds and shattering glass.
The eye of the category 3 storm, which had already killed 13 people, first slammed into Cozumel Island _ the worst-hit, and now cut off _ and then headed north-northwest onto the mainland near the beach town of Playa de Carmen, south of Cancun.
The howling winds caused severe damage in Playa de Carmen, flattening dozens of wood-and-tarpaper
Akumal
A luxury resort, 102 km south of Cancun, 20 km north of Tulum, Akumal is reached easily by bus from there or from Playa del Carmen (30 minutes). There is a small lagoon 3 km north of Akumal, good snorkelling.
Sleeping and eating L Hotel Club Akumal Caribe. One of many luxury hotels, villas and condos which can be booked in the US through Caribbean Fantasy, PO Box 7606, Loveland, Colorado 80537-0606, caribbfan@aol.com, accommodation is all LL-AL.
Attractions in Ciudad del Carmen
The attractive, cream-coloured Cathedral (Parroquia de la Virgen del Carmen), begun 1856, is notable for its stained glass. The Palacio Municipal and Library, stands on the Plaza Principal, or Plaza Zaragoza, a lush square laid out in 1854, near the waterfront, with wooden gazebo (free band concerts Thursday and Sunday evenings), Spanish lanterns, brick walkways and elegant wrought-iron railings from Belgium. There is a modest Archaeological Museum in the Liceo Carmelita showing locally excavated items. La Iglesia de Jesus (1820) opposite Parque Juarez is surrounded by elegant older houses. Nearby is the Barrio del Guanal, the
UPDATE 1-Hurricane Wilma 'clobbering' Mexico's Yucatan
Massive Hurricane Wilma clobbered Mexico's Caribbean beach resorts on Saturday, threatening heavy damage and loss of life as it meandered slowly into the Yucatan peninsula.
Winds of 125 miles an hour (220 kph) howled in off the sea, knocking over houses, upturning trees and trapping thousands of tourists in cramped shelters. The storm was downgraded to a Category 3 on the Saffir-Simpson scale, from a Category 4 on Friday and a record-breaking Category 5 earlier this week.
The calm of the storm's eye settled over Playa del Carmen early in the day but the storm's north eye
Playa del Amante
Playa del Amante/Lover's Beach
West of downtown
Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Attraction Type: Monuments and Landmarks
Playa Medano
South of downtown and the marina
Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Attraction Type: Rivers and Lakes
