Moving to playa del carmen

[Sean Mathes]

A friend and I are going to move to Playa Del Carmen for 6 months on September 5th. Looking for any and all advice related to diving or living.

Should I bring scuba gear or can I find deals locally?

Any recommendations on how to find a long term lease. We need at least a 2 bedroom and something nice. We have been looking at places on Craigslist so far.

Thanks for any info and please feel free to contact me if you want to chat.

Sean

 

[DjDiverDan]

While I believe that there are opportunities for diving all up and down the mainland coast, from Isla Mujeres and Cancun, to Playa Del Carmen, Akumal, and Tulum, including Cenote Diving, all of the reviews I have seen confirm that nothing on the mainland can touch the quality of diving available on Cozumel. The mainland coast just does not have the coral reefs or the reef structure that Cozumel has. I've been going to Cozumel for 24 years now, and I love it. I've done the Cenote diving once, and to me it was barren and boring. The good news is that it is easy to get to Cozumel from Playa Del Carmen - a 45 minute Ferry ride puts you right on the Plaza in San Miguel, the main (only) real town on Cozumel. Check out Cozumel forum for recommendations on Dive Ops - Cozumel has well over a hundred, with lots of choices and budget levels. Most will gladly rent you Dive Gear, but if you dive a lot, that gear rental will add up; I always bring my own gear. There's also the benefit of knowing where it has been and how it has been maintained. In general, you are going to get better deals on Dive gear in the U.S. I would at least bring your own Regulator, Mask, Fins and Snorkel, and a computer. If you are looking to do a lot of diving, invest in your own wetsuit or skins plus. Water temps are usually warm enough to dive for one day in just swimsuit and T-Shirt, but if you plan to dive two or more days in a row, or more than 2 dives in a day, you WILL get cold. I find that the 0.5 mil Henderson is enough for me to dive 3-4 days in a row, but I know a lot of people that are more sensitive to cold that use 2 mil or 3 mil wetsuits.

 

[adampax]

Should I bring scuba gear or can I find deals locally?
Sean

I would bring any gear you need.

Any recommendations on how to find a long term lease. We need at least a 2 bedroom and something nice. We have been looking at places on Craigslist so far.
Sean

There are a few other classifieds sites with housing: Vivastreet, Trovit, Segunamano. There is a lot of junk postings on them, but they should help get you an idea of prices for different areas. Some real estate agents also deal with clients looking for rentals. I'm not sure if they would do a 6 month lease, 12 months might be the minimum.

Another idea is to find a cheap place for a few weeks, then when you are here, get in touch with an agent, or start making calls directly. Good luck!

 

[rick00001967]

A friend and I are going to move to Playa Del Carmen for 6 months

i am soooooo jealous.

 

[driftwood]

I would take all the gear you think you will need. As an example, on our last trip to Coz the divemaster showing the three of us around preferred to have my dive lights over a cash tip.

Regarding a long term rental, I would check with Michelle on playa.info. Good real estate agent who can at least point you in the right direction. Easy to find her on their forum under the real estate tab.

 

[scubamarketing]

Our writer lived there for a while, and I’ve visited plenty for the cave diving, so here’s my (supplemented with her) $0.02:

September is starting to look like high season (landlords keep imagining high season starts earlier and earlier every year), so if you can find and lock down somewhere earlier, that would be beneficial.

Definitely take your gear if it’s appropriate for the types of diving you want to do. Gear there is absurdly expensive compared to the US. I have friends who own a Hollis-authorized dealer and their dealer cost is almost what we sell the same gear for at retail on Leisure Pro. Rental gear can be hit-or-miss and adds up quickly.

Everyone who lives in Playa says to walk the street and have a native do your negotiating for you. It’s not a modern rental market at all, which is a real pain. Craigslist seems to have more scams than legit listings. There are a few expat groups on Facebook that are fairly active and people are super helpful for finding rentals. Our writer lived at Rinconada del Sol, not super cheap, but furnished, 2 bedrooms, did 6 month leases, and right in town.

I personally am bored of diving Cozumel, so I always base out of Playa when I go. I can go up to Cancun for the underwater museum or whale sharks (when in season), do the caves on the Playa side, dive the reefs on the Playa side (honestly not that much worse than Cozumel), go do the reefs off Pamuul, or do a day trip to Cozumel if I feel like it. I couldn’t imagine living in Cozumel for even 6 months, it’s too sleepy for me. As DjDiverDan said, it’s easy to get to Cozumel, so stay in Playa for everything Cozumel doesn’t have, then go to Coz for the diving (the only thing they have that the mainland doesn’t)

Feel free to ask me any other questions, I’ve probably cumulatively spent a year in Playa over the past 10+ years now and can ask my writer anything I don’t know

 

[Sean Mathes]

Thanks everyone for the great info.

 

[MMM]

Playa del Carmen is hugely overbuilt with TONS of condos, rentals etc. If it were me, I would find a cheap place to rent for a couple of weeks and then look around for a longer-term spot while there once you have the lay of the land and can negotiate in person. Don't be afraid to bargain or walk away. It's a buyer's market. One other thing to keep in mind...electrical rates are crazy and the AC bill can be a killer (although you won't be there when it is essential). So make sure you factor that into everything you are negotiating. As others have said, there are NO deals as far as scuba equipment goes.

 

[Sean Mathes]

We are still trying to find a place. Have found some things via Andale but nothing I really love. Budget will probably be about $1500 / month.

 

[rick00001967]

pls forgive me as i know nothing about the rental market in playa. but it boggles my mind that for $1500/month a person cannot find an amazing place to live in mexico. i must be crazy or just completely out of touch with reality. i would have thought a decent place could be had for half that amount or less. its mexico for cryin out loud. whats goin on down there ?? i actually met a fella in playa almost two years ago who told me basically the same story as you. he couldn't find anything either.