Two wonderful places to visit near Playa del Carmen.

If you read my previous article about my volunteer experience in Mexico https://elvinechloe.com/an-unforgettable-volunteer-program-in-a-vet-clinic/ you know I got to spend some time in in the Yucatan. It’s a beautiful part of the world and there are two wonderful places to visit near Playa del Carmen.

The first one is Cozumel Island, located about 45 min away from Playa del Carmen. You can easily access it by boat. There are many of them at least every two hours. The best is to negotiate with the different companies outside the harbor to get the best price. We paid $10 to go and return, it was not the big season.

The best if you go to Cozumel is to have a car or a motorbike as the island is quite big. We were initially going there to visit another vet clinic based on the island so we didn’t plan any activities there. But if you go for a day or more, you have to do snorkeling and tuba diving. The place is very famous for its lovely reef and marine wildlife. The color of the water is unbelievable and when I was there in March, it was pretty warm.

There are a lot of beaches where you can go to just lay down and enjoy some peace. The best ones will be further away from the city center where the ferry gets, that’s why it’s worth having a car or some type of transportation. But you can find some great ones there too, there are many options.

You can also discover a lot about the history of the island by visiting the Cozumel museum. And also, about the Maya by exploring the San Gervasio Maya site in the middle of the jungle. As it’s a massive part of the culture, it is very interesting to find out about it. A lot of tours would take you there if you want to have a guide and even if Cozumel is safe, it’s always better to be with locals. This type of website will offer some packages normally really worth it https://www.cozumel-tours.com/

Then, of course, the ‘capital’ of Cozumel is the food place, you can find all the classic traditional meal. But also, some great local specialties. You can spend either just a day in Cozumel or a full week, depending on what you’re looking for. It’s a preserved place which is amazing as it’s far enough from the craziness while bringing you everything you need.

The second place I loved is Aldea Tierra Nueva Cielo Nuevo. It’s a cenote, I had no idea what a cenote was until I did some research on things to do in this region. It’s not common, the definition is a natural pit, or sinkhole, resulting from the collapse of limestone bedrock that exposes groundwater. There are a lot of them in the Yucatan as ancient Maya used it to supply water.

They are protected and to keep them as pure as possible if you visit them, you have to take a shower before to make sure you won’t populate them with sun cream… It’s awe-inspiring, and there are many of them in this region. Some are very famous and can get a crowd like the one in Chichen Itza.

The one I’ve been to, Aldea Tierra Nueva Cielo Nuevo is new, not open all year to preserve it. It’s in the middle of the forest. To get there you can take a bus from Playa del carmen or go by car, it’s about 30 min away. You can find out about it on their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Aldea-Tierra-Nueva-Cielo-Nuevo-107151704196437/.

When I went there, the woman at the entry took us in a jeep into the jungle. There were some restaurants ad gift shops. We all took a life jacket, a mask, and a tuba and went to explore the 5 cenotes. They were all incredibly impressive. The color of the water is turquoise, you can swim in it, but it’s freezing. No matter how warm it is outside the water is always very cold.

This place is perfect for a full day or just an afternoon. You can get there start exploring, have some lunch, and keep exploring or do it all at once. It’s definitely worth it, I went there with locals that seen a lot of cenotes before, and they were all blown away by this one.