Spanish lessons are usually held in the mornings, which leaves
the afternoons free for social and cultural activities, trips,
workshops, excursions, or leisure time to relax or explore on
your own. The Playa del Carmen schools offer some fun and interesting
options which allow you to make new friends among your international
classmates, experience the enchanting Mexican culture, and practice
your language skills in real-life situations. Just some of the
activities available include cooking, arts and crafts, salsa
classes, movies, music, fiestas and picnics.
Below are a few examples of the excursions offered in Playa
del Carmen.
Cancún
Cancún perches on the western tip of the
Yucatan peninsula and boasts some of the most spectacular
beaches in the Caribbean. The resort zone, built
on a 14-mile-long barrier island just off the peninsula,
is the center of tourist activity, with hotels,
nightclubs, air-conditioned shopping centers, and
restaurants.
But the
beaches in Cancún are the primary draw, and
the water sports are unlimited, including scuba
diving, windsurfing, and sailing.
Fishing
and Diving
Cancún, Playa del Carmen, and the surrounding
area offer some excellent sportfishing and deep
sea fishing for sailfish, marlin, dorado, wahoo,
grouper, and bluefin tuna. The many nearby inlets,
flats, and lagoons give anglers a chance to try
their luck at catching tarpon, snook, permit, and
some hard-fighting bonefish. If diving or snorkeling
is on your agenda, you have certainly come to the
right place.
The waters
of the Caribbean are noted for their clarity. Some
of the world's most famous reefs are just a short
distance from the coast of Mexico. There are underwater
national parks and many dive sites that are easily
accessible from nearby beaches and islands.
Isla Mujeres
Isla Mujeres (Island of Women) is a small island,
just a 45-minute ferry voyage from Cancún.
This is a great place to kick back and revel in
beach living. Rent a motor scooter and tour the
island, get a massage, dive or snorkel in the national
park, take in a dolphin show, visit the turtle park,
or just relax on a beach and read a book.
Cozumel
Mexico's largest island is also the scuba diving
and snorkeling paradise of Mexico. If you're a diver,
this is where you will want to go to experience
some world-famous underwater spectacles. But the
island offers much more—great shopping, open-air
bars offering up colorful tropical drinks, Mayan
ruins to explore, and endless miles of deserted
beaches, all of which play a part in the mystique
that is Isla Cozumel.
Xel-Ha
Xel-Ha (pronounced Shell-Ha) is a national park
that seems more like a private aquarium. Swimming
and snorkeling in the warm protected lagoons and
canals offer even the novice a chance to enjoy thousands
of brightly colored tropical fish and other underwater
animal and plant-life. Xel-Ha also has several walking
trails and a museum to visit.
Xcaret
Xcaret (pronounced Sh-Caret) is an all-day family
adventure park built around natural grottos, fresh
and saltwater pools, and underground rivers that
run to the sea. It is packed with dive sites, horseback
riding trails, an exotic zoo, museums, and archeological
sites. You can walk around on the bottom of a Caribbean
lagoon with a dive helmet or glide down a jungle
river, both above and below ground.
Other
attractions are turtles, monkeys, dolphin shows,
snack bars and palapa-style restaurants with roving
musical groups. A spectacular Mayan-themed light
and sound show starts at dusk and fantastically
tops off a day at Xcaret.
Tulum
Tulum is the only oceanfront city built by the Maya.
It is also the only one that is walled. Located
on an incredibly beautiful Caribbean beach, Tulum
is small, and can be toured in about two hours,
but offers some incredible insight into the life
of the Mayan culture. The ruins contain 60 buildings,
which are thought to be about 10% of the original
city.
Coba
Coba is the largest of the Yucatan's archeological
sites. It contains 20,000 structures, and was once
home to as many as 40,000 Maya. Coba, which means
"Ruffled Water," was built along the shores
of five shallow lakes.
Chichén
Itzá
Chichén Itzá is undoubtedly one of
the wonders of the archaeological world, and a famous
symbol of the remarkable Mayan culture. Approximately
two and a half hours from Cancún, Chichén
Itzá has been meticulously restored, and
this incredible site, with its columned structures
and warrior images, is reminiscent of ancient Rome.
The entrance
to Chichén Itzá features a large visitor's
center and museum where you will find many of the
best-preserved sculptures and artifacts on display.
The ruins of Chichen Itzá are well-grouped,
so despite the impressive size of the complex, it
is easy to get around and see most of the attractions.
On the other hand, you could easily spend a week
in Chichén Itzá and not have seen
everything!
BridgeAbroad | 915 S. Colorado Blvd., Denver, CO 80246 USA
Toll-Free: 1-866-574-8606 (US & CAN) | 0-808-120-7613 (UK)
BridgeAbroad is a division of Bridge-Linguatec, Inc.
Search by language
