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We lived in Playa del Carmen for one month with our small child. (Actually, we did it twice! Two years in a row!) Let me share with you a list of our favorite free or cheap things to do with kids in Playa del Carmen!

First, I want to add a disclaimer to our advice: With kids, I have come to believe that less is more. So my advice for traveling with kids will focus always on flexibility, affordability, and simplicity. 

You’ll find that a lot of our recommendations for free or cheap things to do with kids in Playa del Carmen are not specific activities or ticketed entertainment options. We tend to focus on more open-ended freeform ideas to cultivate togetherness and exploration of your destination. Again, the idea centers around balancing your desires with the needs of your kid(s).

With “less is more” in mind, I wanted to share my family’s recommendations for free or inexpensive things to do with kids in Playa del Carmen.  

Free and cheap things to do with kids in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico

I value working smarter, not harder. I also have to watch out for anxiety triggers. I don’t want to overwhelm myself, create unnecessary mental load, or over-schedule my family to a point of burnout.

So a lot of my recommendations are based on how much effort is required by the parents. We have personally done all of these things with our son (aged between 3-5 at the times of our two month-long stays in Playa del Carmen). These ideas are listed in order of effort, from lowest effort to highest effort.

Lots of pool time.

Chances are that no matter where you stay in Playa del Carmen, you will have access to a pool. It seems every condo complex, even the smaller, more local places include at least a plunge pool. And from some cursory trip planning in other regions, the same seems to be throughout much of Mexico. 

Take advantage of the pool as much as you can. It’s free child entertainment! And yes, while you should be alert while hanging out with your kids near any body of water, it can be pretty low effort (especially if your kids already know how to swim). 

Anytime Skyler was interested in playing in the kiddie section of our complex’s pool, we said yes because he mostly entertained himself. This gave us a chance to read, talk with other residents, or just sit quietly. 

Walking up and down Avenida Quinta.

One of our favorite ways to get to know a new city is to walk around, so our kid is accustomed to schlepping about with us. As a baby, we wore him as often as possible, and as he grew, we pushed him around in a stroller. The stroller was great because if he got sleepy, he could just nap, buying us much appreciated quiet time. Now that he’s aged out of a stroller, he walks with us (only complaining about half the time, ha).

Something that may sound boring on paper, like going for a walk, could actually be one of the most fun things you do together. You never know what surprises you’ll find along the way!

Skyler always loved being pushed around in the stroller, just looking at the world go by. We went on so many family walks after work and on weekends, not counting the twice daily walks to and from school. Even when our Threenager was in a crabby mood, he never said no to going for a ride in the stroller.

The stroller was a REALLY great way to let the kid see the sights. We never gave Skyler anything to play with when he was in the stroller. We encouraged him to look around, people watch, and point out interesting things he wants to look at. Now that he’s older, walking, we try to get him to help with navigating. “Which way do we need to turn now, Skyler?” 

During our time in PDC, we would often close out a work day by walking around the touristy Fifth Avenue, or Avenida Quinta. While the shopping and overpriced restaurants didn’t appeal to us, it was an easy way to stretch our legs, get in some steps, and entertain the child. Many of the bars and restaurants had things that were appealing to kids, like music, bright colors, and table games. It was also the *easiest* street to walk on, despite the crowds. 

The sidewalks in PDC are not stroller-friendly in the slightest. On our daily treks to and from his school, Skyler would often have to hop out of the stroller to cross a street or avoid a particular obstacle. So we often walked on the edges of the streets, past speeding traffic. By comparison, the masses of tourists on 5th Avenue were easy peasy. And honestly, it was never as crowded as we expected. 

When we were able to ditch the stroller and make him use his legs, it was so much easier to navigate the treacherous sidewalks of Playa del Carmen.

Visit the big slide just past Calle 14 on 5th Avenue.

Parents, mark this big slide on the Google map that you make for your trip with kids to Playa del Carmen. Allow this brilliant feature of the Calle Corozon shopping mall surprise and delight your children of all ages. Take a seat, rest your weary feet, and enjoy a brief respite from the heat, the crowds, your children’s whining. 

Heck, buy a drink from one of the nearby bars and enjoy a cool beverage while you sit and watch your kids ride the escalator up and slide down forty two times in a row. It is open from 11 am to 11 pm, 7 days a week.

I couldn’t begin to tally up the time we spent here during both of our trips to Playa del Carmen. I am grateful for this wonderful tobogán. Can more places include unexpected, kid-sized fun features in their design? Please?

Hang out at Palacio Municipal.

The Palacio Municipal (City Hall) is one of my favorite spots in Playa del Carmen. This massive public square (renovated in 2023) regularly hosts events like food festivals, concerts, and makers markets. The surrounding public space includes fountains and commemorative sculptures, a small amphitheater, a dog park, adult exercise equipment, and TWO playgrounds with inclusive, accessible equipment. We have spent MANY hours at this plaza.

There was ALWAYS something going on at the public square. Kids learning to ride their bikes or rollerblades, dance clubs and self-defense classes taking advantage of the free space. Every Friday and Saturday night, the vendors all set up their tents selling delicious street food, snacks, baked goods, artwork, jewelry and other goods. In the amphitheatre, someone usually had an awkward karaoke/dance setup going on, a man on the mic trying to entice others to get on stage to sing and dance with him. The police were always present, in multiple spots surrounding the plaza, and the crowd favored families, so it always felt safe and welcoming.

These are the only two playgrounds within the Centro area of Playa del Carmen, so parents, plan to spend a lot of time at the town square!

Eat dinner at the taco carts next to the Mega.

This sounds sketchy but hear me out: the best taco stands in PDC are next to the parking lot of the Mega on Calle 14 at Avenida 30. 

Every night, you’ll find between 2-5 taco stands, each blasting their own music and offering cheap delicious eats. We never paid more than $20 pesos for a taco. So 7 tacos between the three of us would cost us $140mx, which at the time we were there came out to just under $8 USD. Can’t beat that. 

In addition to the low price tag and good food, the atmosphere is so lively! There seemed to be a good mix of locals and tourists, with lots of languages being spoken. Skateboarders would practice along the side of the parking garage. People would bring their dogs. Kids would stumble around dancing to the music or chasing the dogs. The constant activity is a great distraction for everyone in the family. 

Keep in mind that there’s no bathroom to quickly access so make sure everyone goes potty before you come! Or plan to run into the Mega when nature calls! 

The beach (Parque Fundadores, Playa Encanto, Playa Mamitas, Playa 88, Punta Esmeralda, literally any street).

The beach goes pretty high on my effort list for a number of reasons but the worst is SAND. I love looking at the beach but I don’t love dealing with the beach. 

But my kid loves playing in the ocean, despite his protests of not liking the beach. Every time we asked if he wanted to go, he’d say no. Then the times we would take him without his swim trunks, he would end up soaking wet from having fun in the waves. Unpredictable to say the least. 

However, from what I understand, other children consistently enjoy the beach. And there’s no shortage of beach access in Playa del Carmen. Just follow nearly any Calle east, until you hit water. 

Fair warned: On the larger beaches, like the one near Parque Fundadores, there is not much shade to be had, and it’s claimed early in the day. So it can be hard to find a good spot to set up if you don’t plan ahead. You can also sit at any of the beach clubs, which often have a minimum spend that is easy to meet for the convenience of shade, bathrooms, and dedicated beach access.

There’s also the schlepping factor. You have to take a lot of stuff to the beach. And for us, it always felt like the days that we intentionally set out to hang out at the beach, prepared with bags of stuff, were the days we spent the least amount of time actually being there.

But when the kid enjoys the beach, he enjoys the beach. So it always felt worth it in the end.

There are many pros to making the effort and going to the beach with your family. The beach is a cheap place to relax. You can BYOB or purchase it from a beach club or bar. You can bring snacks. You can bring beach toys or outdoor games. There’s always something interesting to see, whether it’s performers of traditional dance or a man lugging a tuba around in the 85 degree sun. Plus, the ocean water is just stunning. 

It’s also worth noting that this area of the Riviera Maya can suffer from loads of stinky sargassum seaweed. In fact, when we were there in 2023, the area was experiencing a massive bout earlier than usual. There was so much seaweed, crews could not keep up with it. And it smelled like sewage. This was far less of a problem on the larger, more spread out beaches. These tended to be the more populated beaches where the crews focused their efforts, so the stench wasn’t too bad up by Parque Fondadores. 

If you’re feeling a little adventurous and have an easy way to get there, I highly recommend checking out Punta Esmeralda. A stunning large white sandy beach with free facilities, tables with umbrellas, and lots of shaded hangout spots, this beach features a fresh-water cenote that creates a mini river for everyone to play in. It’s definitely more of a locals spot than for tourists (we heard little to no English during our weeknight visit) and is so peaceful.

Parque la Ceiba

Skyler and I ended up spending a couple hours here one Saturday, and it ended up being one of my favorite activities. Parque la Ceiba is beautiful, peaceful, shaded, and just a lovely respite from the hustle of the city.

The entrance to Parque la Ceiba is located on the corner of 60 Avenida Sur and 1 Calle Sur. From Avenida 15, it was about an 18 minute walk, a 6 minute drive, or a 5 minute bike ride straight up Avenida Benito Juarez. Not technically far from Centro, but far enough that it’s not a heavily touristed park. 

Getting to this park can be simple but I understand if the trek up past the highway seems too far for those with a short trip. If you plan to drive a car, keep in mind there’s no dedicated parking. So you could search for street parking, or you could do what we did and park in the Super Chedraui parking lot. We walked the two blocks to the park entrance.

The park is less of an open space and more of a beautifully shaded meandering pathway with multiple possible routes. One side has a playground that Skyler didn’t want to leave. Another side contains a large tree where they host aerial yoga classes. 

Also: public restrooms! Yes, Parque la Ceiba has public restrooms easily accessible in the middle of the park. There you will also find a little cafe and a bookstore, and a large covered platform where we saw a yoga class underway. On Saturdays, there’s usually some sort of market and the Park often hosts fairs and festivals.

One of the other things I loved about this park was its educational nature. There were tons of signs throughout the park reminding you of the importance of recycling or pollination. And there was a bee colony!

If I lived in PDC or frequented this town, I know we’d spend a lot of time in this peaceful corner of town. If you are coming to town with kids, venture north of the highway one afternoon and do as the locals do. You won’t be sorry to miss the crowds. (For context, we stayed in Playa during the peak of high season, February and March. And this park felt rather empty mid-day on a Saturday.)

Visit cenotes in the surrounding areas. 

If you rent a car, can wrangle your family onto a tour bus, or feel like braving a collectivo, then you’ve gotta get out of town and check out a cenote. There are SO MANY in the Yucatan region near Playa del Carmen that you can’t really go wrong in choosing one. Most of the entrance fees that we saw were all under $15 USD, some less popular cenotes having a lower entrance fee. Many cenotes will offer free entrance to small children. 

The cenote we chose to exert the effort to visit on a Saturday was Cenote Azul and it did not disappoint! 

We chose Cenote Azul near Playa del Carmen because it was less than 30 minutes away, the entrance fee was pretty low compared to some of them, and it looked the best for our kid who is still a bit wary of water. 

It’s one of the biggest and most spread out cenotes I read about, with tons of areas to explore and plenty of shallow entry points if your kids are up for getting in the water. For the more adventurous of spirit, there’s cliff jumping. We went up to the cliff to check out the view, but it was way too high for us to try jumping, ha!

Another bonus of visiting Cenote Azul turned out to be the rampant wildlife! We saw so many iguanas and a brood of coati, an adorable raccoon-esque animal who will certainly steal your snacks! 

Visiting a cenote is high on my list of effort because you need to plan ahead and likely get up early to beat the crowds. Pack like you would going to the beach, bring snacks, and plan to get wet!

Also note: if you’re chasing littles around, you’re going to be on high alert to make sure that they don’t fall and crack their skulls open on all of the rough rock and coral. 

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If you find yourself in Playa del Carmen with kids anytime soon, please tell me how it goes. Add a few of these things to your list and share your experiences. Other parents will appreciate your advice!