Playa del Carmen, Mexico travel

[slimzone]

Just won a mystery auction to Playa del Carmen and have never been. Any tips, advice, suggestions - they're all welcome. We also want to check out Merida.

Which month is best for visiting - May, Jun, or Jul?

[kyshel]

Congrats!! Was it an all-inclusive?
Get a cheap rental car--manuals can be had for $15--Alamo, Budget etc. IMHO, I'd avoid the local companies. Check personal credit cards/car policy for insurance coverage, too--you can insure it thru them instead of car company. Watch out for cop banditos--more info can be found about that one on tripadvisor. UNless your pkg comes w/transfers and you want to go places outside of your hotel, it will say you bunches to rent.Unless you want to walk some, then hop a collectivo bus to get around.

I personally don't like the town--particularly when cruise ships come in at the port south of Playa.
I'd say May is always best bet--some pools can be a little cool. Not much of a crowd--we usually go early May and stay Hacienda Tres Rios and never leave. The ruins at Tulum are interesting and the beaches way south at Akumal are very nice!!
If you aren't doing AI, there is a Walmart where you can provision your condo/room etc.
If you don't want to say the property, send me a PM and I can add what might apply to your needs.

[ngallag]

I'd recommend May also. The late summer months are really hot and humid. It's not pleasant to be outside then. I'd second Kyshel's recommendation for the ruins.

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May, June and July are very hot - I was in Merida last year in May and the temps got to 104F - no humidy on the Merida side. Very humid on the Playa/Cancun side. Even though it was hot in Merida, we loved it - lots of places to see on the Merida side - Uxmal - great Mayan site about 1 hour drive south of Merida, Progresso - nice beach town about 1/2 hour north of Merida - all sorts of neat little beach towns around Progresso - Progresso has lots of nice little restaurants. Merida has great shopping - love it very much and in fact it is one of the places we are considering moving to for our retirement. Easy to rent a car and driving in the Yucatan is very easy. You can do the Mayan archaeological site loop, the old convent and monastery loop. Drive to Isamal - great town west of Merida. We also drove to Campeche which is also a great town. Much to like on the Merida side. Not too crazy about Playa area - very touristy but nice beaches. North of Cancun you can go to Rio Largatos which is a national park area with lots of flamingos (not sure if summer is the flamingo nesting season) You can also drive south of Playa and go to the Sian Kian reserve - very beautiful natural area.
Hope this helps.
Be sure to check with car rental companys - Mexico does not recognize American car insurance and some companys do not recognize the insurance that comes with your credit cars - so check very carefully. Also when renting a car in Mexico - make sure you take pictures of all dents, dings, etc. on the car and make sure the company notes everything on the sheet - they will try to blame any of these things on you and want payment. If you have to add Mexican insurance it will jack the total price up for the rental!