Playa del Carmen Trip Report
February 2005: Includes Xel Ha, Tulum, bus, collectivo, hotel and dining information.
PLAYA DEL CARMEN
FEBRUARY 20-FEBRUARY 28
February 26
We got up around 7 AM to get coffees and get ready to meet Shar's family in front of the bus station for our big group outing to Xel Ha. I was the only person who had ever been there, so I was hoping they were all going to like it.We all walked over to the collectivo stand. It was funny. One of the guys asked how many people we had and I told him 19. He asked again how many people we had and I said 19 people. He gave me an odd look and again asked, "how many?"
"Diez y nueve".
Pause.
"Diez y nueve?".
"Si".
OK, we piled into two collectivos and were on our way. We filled one collectivo and that left four people from the group who had to wait a few extra minutes to fill their collectivo. When we got to Xel Ha the driver made us pay him 30 pesos each, even though I explained to him in English and my rudimentary Spanish that we only paid 25 pesos to go further, to Tulum, the other day. He insisted on 30 pesos, so we just paid that and saw the other group getting dropped off on the highway.
The other group's driver charged them 25 pesos. So, expect to pay 25-30 pesos to go from Playa to Xel Ha.
We decided to do all-inclusive this year which is 56.00 and includes the snorkel, fins, mask, locker, towel, and all food and beverages.
It was a weekend so the discounted rate for entrance on Saturday and Sunday is 29.00 plus close to 20 dollars if you want a towel, locker and snorkel equipment.
The park opens at 9 AM, and we got there about 9:30. There was no line to purchase tickets, but busloads dropping off the tour groups.
You can pay cash or use a credit card to pay, but you must have a photo ID to use your credit card.
We got all our equipment. You must leave either a room key or a 200 peso deposit for two people for the snorkel gear. I think we had to leave a deposit for the towel, last year, but they didn't ask us for anything this year. Which doesn't mean they won't ask you, so just be prepared.
We picked out a group of chairs as our central meeting spot between the lagoon and the buffet restaurant.
We headed upstairs to get some Piña Coladas. Yes, it was early, but we were going to get our 56 dollars worth on this adventure. They have a real nice breakfast buffet with scrambled eggs, sausages, potatoes, lots of fresh fruits and fruit juices. My favorite juice is the watermelon.
I didn't eat, because I had that upset stomach the night before. After breakfast we all hit the water to snorkel and kind of split up. I explored on my own. I saw some large parrot fish, but didn't see that super large bad boy that lives there. He's about 3 feet and just way cool. I did see two barracudas and later there was a stingray over by the floating bridge.
I didn't bring my camera to Xel Ha. There are photos of Xel Ha in my Photo Gallery
After snorkeling, I headed back to the central spot, and some people were getting lunch. Everybody was drinking Coladas and Stawberry Daiquiris. We decided to go over to the tram to the top of the river and get some inner tubes before the park got crowded and the line for tubes was longer. We got right on the tram and there wasn't much of a line for tubes, so that went very quickly. I took another jump off the cliff of courage this year, but nobody else would join me! Jump, man, it is fun.
Everybody on the net is always saying how crowded the park gets, especially on weekends, and we--all nineteen of us--thought it was not too crowded.
After tubing we hung out by central for a bit and then Shari, her sister Penny and I took a walk on the trail out to the lighthouse and natural pool and then we took a walk across the floating bridge and back.
By then it was about 3 PM, so we decided to go eat at the Mayan Restaurant I ate at last year. The waitress was great. Shari and I asked what the green drink was everybody had at a nearby table. I believe it was called the Xel Ha. It was a frozen N/A drink with pineapple and mint syrup. We didn't order it. Shari ordered a bottle of water and I ordered a diet coke. Penny got a Piña Colada. The waitress brought us a green drink, anyway, and it was very refreshing. She also brought me a bottle of water, which was good, since I probably needed it. Maybe I looked like I needed it.
For lunch I got the Grouper which is served with rice and vegetables. Shari got a steak smothered in onions and both our entrees were very good. Penny got the Mayan Sampler, but she only liked the fish-which was a smaller portion of the same one I had. Penny was really sick, though. She had a very bad cold she was battling, so maybe it would be very good if you could taste it.
We thought about snorkeling some more, but by then it was getting closer to park closing so we started packing it up and getting ready to leave the park.
Everybody in the group had a great time and really enjoyed their day at Xel Ha and everybody said they'd go back again. In fact, one of the ladies in the group is afraid of snorkeling, but ended up loving it and she later told Penny she'd go to Xel Ha every day if she could.
We walked back up and hopped right into a collectivo. It was 25 pesos to go back to Playa.
We met up with some of the group over at Pez Vela at 8 PM. Pez Vela has remodeled and has a swing bar, now and their bathrooms are nice. They used to be some of the worst in Playa. I still like the old Pez Vela (minus the bathroom) better. They do not have any live music, now.
Beers there are 30 pesos, but they don't include the tax on that, so when you get your bill the beers work out to be 33 pesos each.
Jen and Shari at Siesta Fiesta
Next we went over to Bourbon Street and watched, Pocho, the solo guitarist/singer who usually performs before the duo at Siesta Fiesta.
We saw more people from Shari's group on the street and they joined us. I took a walk up to Siesta Fiesta to see if there was room for our group to listen to the duo. Walking by I saw the Blues Band I like, Chivo Azul, playing at TGI Fridays. Fridays built a nice outdoor seating area now, and they have live music out there every night. They never looked all that busy, though. Maybe it is just because it is a Fridays. I don't know. I asked the waiter how long the band would play, since it was 10:30 PM, and he told me they played until 11:30.
We got the group together and out of Bourbon Street to go watch Chivo Azul and rearranged tables to fit us all in, and got to see the band play Mercedes Benz by Janis Joplin and then they were done for the night while we were still putting in a beer order. Sorry, but none of us really wanted to hang out a TGI Fridays in Mexico, so we did end up leaving and heading over to Siesta Fiesta where we found plenty of room towards the back to watch the rest of the duo's set. I asked them if they'd play Nirvana again, since they didn't play it every night and they played it for me. I love them.
We all headed over to the Blue Parrot, and nobody was into the techno except the younger girls in the group-so we got a table on the beach next door. I had another one of those yummy Kiwi Caipifruitas. We enjoyed the atmosphere of the night time beach for a while and then we all headed over to Tacos el Rey across from Mambo Cafe, again.
We all ordered the Pastor special which was very, very tasty and called it a night after that.
