Where can I find a place to vacation in Mexico, without spending a lot of money on tourist type places,?

Question

I like beach areas, like La Playa small towns,

Answer 1

Well here is what I am going to tell you. You can either spend the money and stay in a touristy area where it is guaranteed to be SAFE, or spend close to nothing in a DANGEROUS area. Playa del Carmen is an absolutely wonderful area to vacation. There is a stretch of eight or nine hotels gated with armed guards at the front. If you want to get away from the hotel area buzzing with tourists relaxing and soaking up the sun and waves [virtually all hotels are going to have that!], then you can step outside the gates [which really isn't all that dangerous anyway, they just want to guarantee the guests' safest circumstances available] and venture into the little, native town of Playa del Carmen. Although there are some touristy shops, most of them stay native to Mexican culture. There are vendors selling colorful food and drinks [nice to look at, but dont purchase any!], and a fair share of restaurants. There are also some places to stay, but I wouldn't stay there if someone payed me to. They are really old places and I wouldn't want to be in the town at night in a hotel [actually I wouldn't even call it a hotel] with stairs leading down to the street from my room where someone could just climb them and break in. I dont know, I guess you could call me paranoid, but if you are traveling with a family I wouldnt recommend it. There is a wide range of hotels behind the gates of Playa del Carmen, so you can sort of pick your hotel according to how much money you would like to spend. Of course, you arent going to find any Motel 8's or anything. They are all lavish, 4-5 star, all inclusive resorts. The Riu chain has several hotels there, and I highly recommend them. The Riu Palace is wonderful for the higher end stay [I stayed there, and I felt like royalty!]. Everything is lush and tropical with palm trees and fountains and such. There are 3 [maybe 4, don't remember] pools with snack/drink bars you can just swim right up to. Hammocks between palm trees adorn the beach with several more snack/drink shacks. There is ping pong, volleyball, an excercise room, golden sand and vibrant, turquoise blue water. There are many restaurants to choose from [I recommend the buffet, the best food I have had in my life, biggest variety, anything you could want, all inclusive {but so are all the other restaurants}]. I can't even describe this resort. It is to wonderful for words! Here is the link to the website http://www.riu.com/index.php . You can go to the top and click hotels, and type on your destination to view the other hotels in Playa del Carmen or anywhere else Riu has hotels. Playa del Carmen has absolutely wonderful beaches and the town is charming, abuzz with nightlife! I hope I have helped you with your vacation ideas, and have a fun time!

Answer 2

i like playa del carmen the best. its an hour from cancun. has good nightlife and really nice beaches. i would suggest the viva whyndam azteca or the reef. those are nice all inclusive hotels but affordable. i lived in manzanillo for 4 months and that is also a nice small place...with a lot of nice hotels and awesome beaches and waves. nightlife not so good! depending on where you live in the us might make your choices easier. im from boston and wouldnt go all the way to manzanillo just for a vacation because its pretty far, but if your from the west coast that might be better for you.

Answer 3

puerta vallerta

Answer 4

Well if you want something nice and cheap go to Puerto Escondido, at  Cicatela beach, it is beautiful and cheap, is in Oaxaca state, in the pacific and is a Surfers Paradise, but fly to the place DO NOT TRY TO DRIVE TO IT, since the highway is the worst of  all Mexico from Oaxaca city to this resort....