Playa del Carmen & Mayakoba

The coast's busiest stretch – the lagoons, golf course and villas of the Mayakoba reserve just north of town, jungle resorts behind the beach, and Playa del Carmen's Fifth Avenue and the Cozumel ferry a short drive south.

First light over Playa del Carmen & Mayakoba

The collection

6 hotels

Rosewood Mayakoba

Five-star · Playa del Carmen & Mayakoba

Suites with plunge pools on the lagoons and the beach of the Mayakoba reserve – a five-star hotel with a five-star spa, Sense, to match.

From $1,300 per night

Banyan Tree Mayakoba

Four-star · Playa del Carmen & Mayakoba

Every room a pool villa on the lagoons of Mayakoba – a four-star hotel and spa, twice distinguished by the hotel guides.

From $800 per night

Palmaïa – The House of AïA

Four-star · Playa del Carmen & Mayakoba

A plant-forward, all-inclusive wellness resort on Playa del Carmen's beach – independent, and twice distinguished by the hotel guides.

From $800 per night

Grand Velas Riviera Maya

Four-star · Playa del Carmen & Mayakoba

An all-inclusive in three ambiences – beach, jungle and adults only – north of Playa del Carmen, with a spa that holds five-star standing of its own.

From $1,300 per night

Viceroy Riviera Maya

Four-star · Playa del Carmen & Mayakoba

Forty-one villas with private pools in the jungle north of Playa del Carmen – a four-star hotel and its Wayak spa, with a distinction from the hotel guides.

From $800 per night

Fairmont Mayakoba, Riviera Maya

Four-star · Playa del Carmen & Mayakoba

The lagoon resort of Mayakoba – El Camaleón golf at the door, the beach reached by boat, a four-star hotel and spa.

From $500 per night

The neighborhoods

Cancún & Playa Mujeres

The north end of the coast – the Hotel Zone's long beach between the Caribbean and the Nichupté lagoon, Punta Nizuc at its southern tip, and the quieter shore of Playa Mujeres north of the city, all within easy reach of the airport.

Kanai & Punta Maroma

Mangrove country half an hour south of Cancún's airport – Punta Maroma's old hideaway on the point and the newer resorts of Kanai raised among the mangroves, with a quiet beach in front of them all and Puerto Morelos up the road.

Xpu-Ha, Xcaret & Tulum

The south – the Xcaret parks and their coves, Xpu-Ha's long beach, the cenotes of the Tulum jungle and, past the Tulum ruins, the edge of the Sian Ka'an biosphere, the farthest and wildest end of the coast.

Luxury hotels in Riviera Maya, Cancún & Tulum