The Riviera Maya (or Mayan Riveria) is the stretch of coastline along Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula from Cancun to the city of Tulum. Many all-inclusive resorts and boutique hotels have been built in the past few years. While the area is quickly growing, it still maintains a more relaxed and rustic atmosphere than its 'wild' neighbor to the north, Cancun.

Cities

---

Puerto Morelos

Playa del Carmen

Tulum

Puerto Aventuras

Other destinations

---

Akumal -- Condo village and great snorkeling

Understand

---

"Riviera Maya" is a tourism district following the highway 307 of Quintana Roo, Mexico. It historically started at Playa del Carmen and ended at Tulum pueblo, though the towns of Puerto Morelos to the north of Playa del Carmen and Felipe Carrillo Puerto inland are both currently being promoted as part of the Riviera Maya tourist corridor. The Riviera is generally thought to be bounded on the south by the Sian Ka'an Biosphere, south of Tulum.

The area is famous for its all-inclusive resorts located along the highway, as Mayan Resorts, and smaller boutique hotels located in and around Playa del Carmen and Tulum.

Talk

---

Most locals speak Spanish. However, some locals trace their heritage to the Mayans who settled the area before the arrival of the Spanish. The present-day Mayans tend to live inland and speak little Spanish. In the tourist areas, many locals speak some English and some locals (esp. hotel and restaurant workers) are very fluent in English.

Get in

---

By plane
The nearest international airpot to Riviera Maya is the Cancún International Airport (IATA: CUN, ICAO: MMUN) which is the second busiest airport in Mexico. Receives internationl flyers from: Atlanta, Amsterdam, Belfast, Birmingham (UK), Boston, Brussels, Buenos Aires, Calgary, Cardiff, Cincinnati, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Doncaster, Düsseldorf, Edmonton, Fort Lauderdale, Frankfurt, Glasgow, Guatemala, Halifax (Nova Scotia), Hamilton, Hartford, Havana, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Kelowna, Kitchener, Lisbon, London, Los Angeles,Madrid, Malpensa, Manchester (UK), Miami, Milan, Moncton, Montreal, Munich, Nashville, New York, Newark, Paris, Quebec City, Panama , Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Regina, Rome, Salt Lake City, San Diego, Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Santiago de Chile, Saskatoon, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa, Thunder Bay, Toronto, Vancouver, Vienna, Victoria, Washington DC, Winnipeg, Zurich

By boat
Many cruise lines, such as Carnival stop at nearby Cozumel Island. Two companies offer passenger ferry service from Cozumel to Playa del Carmen (a 30 minute trip).

Get around

---

By car
The major cities, such as Cancun and Playa del Carmen offer many car rental agencies. North American drivers will feel at home on the road here, despite some drivers' quirks. For example, on the main two-lane highway along the Riviera, it is common courtesy for slower drivers to pull over onto the shoulder to let faster drivers pass.

Rent a car at the Cancun airport. Playa del Carmen is roughly 45 minutes from the airport. Tulum is another 45 minutes. After passing through Playa del Carmen, the main highway (Rte 307) turns from a modern 4-lane highway into a "two and a half" lane highway. There are two regular lanes and an extra-wide shoulder...