There is a nice little shopping center directly across the street
from the RIU.
It is a 4-minute taxi ride into Playa del Carmen's 5th Avenue
Shopping District.
After the Gala, the beach continues for about a mile. Within that
mile, you begin to encounter huge rocks that break up the
beach---first intermittent rocks, then slowly turning into solid rock
as far as you can see. It also becomes more and more isolated the
further south you go. There are a few beautiful private beach areas in
between the rocks.
The main gate for Playacar is located just north of Juarez off Hwy
307. You can also walk into Playacar from Playa del Carmen either by
walking along the beach or through the mall that is at the ferry
docks. Just walk north and you hit Playacar. Playa means
"beach" in Spanish.
There are Mayan ruins located in a park in Playacar