Playa del Carmen

Playa del Carmen and Campeche – charming cities

Playa del Carmen – situated south of the well known Cancún, has managed to maintain its charm, even though the population has expanded rapidly. In the evenings, the main streets change into a big stage: The Quinta Avenida changes within minutes into a piazza with Mariachi groups, jugglers, and many, many street stalls.
On the west coast is a small city called Campeche that is unique due to the colored fronts of the houses - a reminder of earlier times - the Spanish colonial heritage. It is very popular to wonder through the park, Parque de Guadeloupe, then further onto the area of San Francisco out of the city walls.

Playa del Carmen is situated south of Cancún on the Yucatán Peninsula, and has approx. 150 000 inhabitants. Until the 80's Playa del Carmen was a small village, however in the meantime it has grown into a lively city (the tourists are responsible for this growth). The Mexican culture is still very present in the people, and in the culture in and around the area, such as the Maya remains.
"Playa" is also well known for its beautiful beaches, the diving regions of Cozumel, and the opportunities to go on an exhibition in the jungle, and feel the tropical atmosphere.

An annual highlight in the region is the spectacular play of shadows by the Kukulkán pyramid in Chichén Itzá: The pyramid was built in such a way, that it receives the sunrays of the Equinoccio (when the days and nights contain the same number of hours) on the 21. March and the 23. September, and displays some amazing reflections at this time. Every year thousands of tourists flock to the pyramid to witness this phenomenon.

The are many annual events in the field of sport and culture, (concerts, fashion shows, etc.) and the Caneval. The dates of these events not usually fixed in advance.