Can cun or Playa del Carmen?

Question

My girlfriend and I have just bought a kick *** deal for a flight to can cun but we have not booked a hotel, I have been doing some reserch regarding activities and we are interested in doing a few things, 1 chichen itza 2 Cenote snorkleying 3 Xcaret 4 get waisted at some boom *** club.

So far, playa seems to be cheaper but im not sure if its really better than can cun, i mean there must be a reason why cancun is more expensive, my girlfriend and I are both fluent in Spanish so getting arouind is not a challenge but i just dont want to spend hours in a bus/car/taxi getting places.

To go into more detail we are both college graduates so we still party but we've been 21 for a while... any advice will be gladly appreciated or why do you think ones is better than the other. (budget is important but we are on vacation so we know we are going to spend some cash)

Answer 1

I think it depends on what you are looking for. Cancun has high rise hotels, big night clubs, more American fast food than Mexican restaurants.  PdC and the Maya Rivera is more laid back, the resorts tend to be more spread out usually they are several two or three story buildings as opposed to one or two big towers like you'd see in Cancun.

Both have great beaches though I'd give Cancun a slight edge in this department. PdC has more of a Mexican feel about it than Cancun, though both areas are touristy, Cancun is nothing but touristy, PdC still has a Mexican flavor to it. ("What's the difference between Cancun and Miami? In Cancun they speak English" tour guide joke)

I saw someone's answer to a similar question and they answered If you are under 25 Cancun, if you are over 25 then Playa Del Carmen. I think that about sums it up.

Answer 2

I prefer Playa Del Carmen over Cancun. It's a little less crowded/. I was just there last week. The beach erosion from DEAN was very apparent, but the water and beach is still beautiful. If you can afford it, my favorite hotel in the area is the Occidental Royal Hideaway. It is absolutely the best, but be prepared to pay about $550/nt (for two). It is all inclussive so that helps and all the food is great...also no cheap liquor. They use all premium brands. Compare hotels on traveladvisor.com and check prices on bookit.com. have fun....

Answer 3

Rent a car - don't use the taxis.  Chichen Itza is about a two to two and half hour drive.  You also might want to throw in Tulum.  Cancun is more expensive because that is where everyone goes.  Playa Del Carmen is only about 30 minutes down the road.  So stay cheap, drive into Cancun for the nightlife if you want.  Hope that helps!

Answer 4

For couples who want to party, Cancun is a great place.  Went there several years ago and stayed at Jack Tar Village which was awesome.  Chichen itza and xcaret are great too

Answer 5

I would say go to Riviera Maya, Mexico and stay at Iberostar Paraiso Del Mar which includes all your meals and lots of activites.  Google it to look at the hotel.  It is half way between Playa Del Carmen and Cancun.  Playa Del Carmen is more family oriented and Cancun is all partying with not that many all inclusive hotels.  Everything you want to do, I have done in both vacations that I was there.  We were not too far from any of the excursions so it wasn't an all day affair on a bus.  If you want to budget money, an all-inclusive is the way to go.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask me.

Answer 6

Cancun the weather is better.

There are about 140 hotels in Cancún with 24,000 rooms and 380 restaurants. Four million visitors arrive each year in an average of 190 flights daily. The Hotel Zone of Cancun is shaped like a backwards 7 with bridges on each end connecting to the mainland. Hotels on the vertical or long side of the 7 tend to have rougher beaches and beach erosion can be a problem. Resorts on the horizontal or short end of the seven tend to have more gentle surf because the waves here are blocked by the island of Isla Mujeres which lies just off shore. The Hotel Zone offers a broad range of accommodations, ranging from relatively inexpensive motel-style facilities in the older section closest to the mainland, to high-priced luxury hotels such as the Ritz-Carlton in the later sections. Many of the hotels are time-share condominiums with kitchen facilities. Some all inclusive hotels where all meals, drinks both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, hotel activities, entertainment, non-motorized water sports, tips and taxes are included in the price of the hotel rooms. There are also upscale private residences and lavish condominiums for rent that cater to the rich and famous. Restaurants, bars and shops in the hotel zone tend to be rather expensive compared with the downtown area and other Mexican resorts. Travelers will find many well-known theme restaurants and clubs here. Although the Hotel Zone is frequently described as "posh" or "exclusive" the main Cancún tourism market is middle- and upper-middle-class, according to government statistics, which also report that more than 37% of Cancún visitors are Mexican.

On the opposite side of the island from the Caribbean Sea is the Nichupte Lagoon, which is used for boating excursions and jet-ski jungle tours.

Downtown is home to less expensive places to shop, including supermarkets such as Walmart, Comercial Mexicana and Soriana, not to mention several flea markets like the one in the Hotel Zone.

Good luck :)

Answer 7

Cancun is more of a mini U.S. resort, it has that college atmosphere, so if you want that club atmosphere every night I suggest Cancun. You can take all of the tours from either of the two areas. Playa is closer to most of the places you may want to visit. I would suggest that you stay a few days in Cancun and get your party on and when you get tired of the party and just want to relax move over to Playa for the rest of the vacation. (Bus runs from Cancun and Playa, is fine to take) Cozumel is located directly across from Playa and there are ferries that run every hour. Cozumel is a great place to snorkel. Xcaret is only 5 min. taxi ride from Playa, so take a taxi  and buy your tickets at the gate, if you stay in Playa.

Playa is great because it has one main street 5th Ave. and everything you could want to do is on the Ave. Playa has a small bar type atmosphere.

Chichen-Itza is an all day tour, do it all-inclusive you will have a good time, it is about the same distance from either Cancun or Playa. If you stay in Cancun take the Jungle tour it is a great place to snorkel. As far as cenotes, check out theserveral zip-line tours. (playatrips.com) I also recomend checking out the Xel-Ha/Tulum tour. Tulum is very nice and the snorkeling at Xel-Ha is great.

I have stayed all over the Yucatan, I would suggest you stay in an all-inclusive hotel. The Palace hotels are great, but a bit pricey. Iberostars are a very good hotel and less expensive. I would suggest that no matter where you stay you should make sure you are staying in the Hotel zone in Cancun and close to town in Playa. Many of the Hotels are 20 to 30 min. away from either. Just be sure that the hotel is in the Zone or in Playacar or Playa itself. Take lots of $1's and $5's for tipping and taxis.

Just got back from Playa and Cozumel last week, just watch out for all of the time share guys thay are everywhere. At the airport just walk straight outside to get to either your transport van or taxi and don't stop to talk to all of the time share guys inside. Just tell all of them your only 25 and they won't bother you too much. Check out tripadviso.com to find out some information on hotels.

The Beaches got messed up by the hurricane last month, not bad enough not to go, but they are not as nice as they were before. The hotels nor the travel agents will tell you about this.

Answer 8

Stay in Playa del Carmen. Why, you ask, closer to everything you want to see and do. 5th Avenue has plenty of places to party.

check out these sites for deals on hotels

http://www.funjet.com

http://www.applevacations.com

http://www.travelocity.com

http://www.libertytravel.com

have fun. Take a ferry to Cozumel. Rent a car and tour the east side of the island. Bring your camera. Some awesome photo opportunities