Playa del carmen

According to official, although not accurate, data, the population of the city in 2003 was 49,000, but by June 2004 the population exceeded 100,000. Thus, Playa del Carmen is one of the fastest growing cities in Mexico, annually increasing its population by 20%. This growth is mainly due to the influx of people attracted from other parts of the country by the booming tourism industry. At least 7% of the resident population is made up of foreigners, mainly Europeans, who have acquired real estate here. The popularity of the city among tourists was largely due to the congestion of Cancun. By November 2004, the city's hotels could offer places for more than 23,000 rooms, which made it possible to serve more than two million tourists, mainly from Europe and North America , in a year. According to existing plans for the development of hotel infrastructure will not stop in the future. The lively pedestrian Fifth Avenue, which runs parallel to the sea at a distance of one block from it, and on which most of the shops and restaurants are located, became the heart of the city. Just like Cancun’s north, the beaches of Playa del Carmen are distinguished by fine white sand and a clear blue sea.

From the side of the old residents of the city and the local administration, attempts are being made to maintain the city's reputation as a small settlement of fishermen and artists. In particular, by order of the administration in the city it is forbidden to build buildings above three floors. However, several four-story buildings were built before this order.

In pre-Hispanic times, the territory of the future Playa del Carmen was called Shaman-Ha. It was a transit point on the way to the sacred Mayan island of Cozumel .

Modern settlement began only at the beginning of the 20th century, when a settlement of fishermen and cultivators of a rubber tree appeared on this site. Until the mid-1980s, Playa del Carmen remained a village with a population of no more than 1,500 people. But after it was connected by ferry service to the island of Cozumel, tourism greatly transformed it.

In October 2005, Hurricane Wilma passed right through Playa del Carmen, which caused significant damage to the city and scared away tourists for a while. After a few weeks, the damage was mostly repaired.

Nearby Playa del Carmen there are several tourist attractions:

• Shkaret , an ecological theme park dedicated to Mayan culture.
• Cozumel , an island opposite Playa del Carmen, which is only 45 minutes away by ferry.
• Cancun , a famous resort town.
• Tulum , a coastal archaeological site belonging to the Mayan tribe.
• Sian Kaan , biosphere reserve.
• Sak Aktun, a system of underground rivers ^[2] .
• Iksplor ^[3] , an amusement park.

Within the borders of Playa del Carmen is a developed tourist complex Playacar, consisting of a chain of hotels.

The city is located on the coast of the Cozumel Strait , one of the most popular diving sites in the world.

In Playa del Carmen, several cruise liners stop.

The city is based football team Inter Playa del Carmen, which plays in the southern zone of the second division of Mexico.

• Caribbean sea
• Quintana Roo
• Mexico