Airports:
- Cancun International
Airport; code CUN.
- Cozumel Airport may also be considered for
international access to this region-code CZM.
- Playa del
Carmen (code PCM) offers no international
service, but there are flights
from both Cancun/Cozumel via Aero
Caribe.
From the Cancun Airport your best option
is to rent a car or jeep to get from spot to
spot. There is also private cab service to
the region, and some properties may
include transfers as part of their packages.
Around the area, cabs are available
although expensive. There is also frequent
bus service along Mexico 307. (Bus terminal
in Cancun: tel. (98) 868610.) Several
companies, (Inter Playa and Playa
Express are two choices), operate shuttletype
service between Cancun and Tulum
with stops at several spots along the way.
Rates are affordable, though service is
somewhat irregular. The cab fare from
Cancun to Playa del Carmen is currently
$50 US per vehicle; the return journey is
$15 US from the Playa del Carmen bus terminal.
Inquire upon arrival.
The highway connecting Cancun to the
Riviera Maya region is a modern, four-lane
divided highway that now stretches all the
way to Tulum. From Tulum the road is
being widened from its narrow two lanes.
Playa del Carmen is undergoing a
transformation the likes of which few
Mexican towns have experienced. Once a
sleepy Caribbean outpost, Playa has
evolved into a major tourist destination
and hub for Riviera Maya visitors. With
daily cruise ship arrivals, easy access to
Cancun's airport (a 50 minute drive), frequent
ferry departures to Cozumel Island,
and several mega-resort developments, the
city (polulation 20,000) is beginning to
seriously compete with Cancun and Cozumel
in attracting visitors. The city proper is
a fairly typical Mexican town. Many
streets are still unpaved, construction projects
and vacant lots abound. However,
spend a few days here and you'll see that
Playa has a surprisingly cosmopolitan
ambiance. |
