Playa Del Carmen Sightseeing

[Paula Trounce]

Hi I've booked myself on a 10 day trip to Playa Del Carmen in January. (bit worried about noise but location is perfect) I'm going to be Diving the Cenote's Caverns for 4 of those days with Koox Diving.
Very excited about that!
I'm having trouble making my mind up about what to do for the 4 remeining days. Koox Diving also offer some Cozumel diving including Bull Shark diving. So maybe 2 days doing that?
What about sightseeing. Any tips for a 2 day trip? More relaxing than ziplining into a volcano type thing.
I've seen a few but they look too touristy for me. I hate over sanitised indigenous dancing or trips to places where they make/grow things only to be pressurized into a purchase.
I'm sure most of you know what i mean!

TIA!

 

[Brodydog]

For sightseeing, a trip to Chichen Itza to see the Mayan ruins.

 

[JFS]

Chicken Pizza is very touristy and lots of vendors on site selling things..... Ruins in Coba are less exploited.

 

[scrane]

The best thing about Playa is there’s a ferry leaving every hour.

 

[Paula Trounce]

The best thing about Playa is there’s a ferry leaving every hour.

I'm happy to sod off after i've done my Cenote dives

 

[Lorenzoid]

I don't know which of the Mayan ruins sites would be best for your situation, but Chichen Itza, Tulum and Coba are the three you can readily book day tours for from Playa del Carmen. None of them are "over-sanitized," and though @JFS is right that there are more vendors at "Chicken Pizza" (ha ha) than the others, it's a VERY impressive site with a lot of fascinating archaeological information. The vendors don't harrass you at all--it's not even remotely as bad as Egypt!

The cenotes are fascinating, but don't miss out on scuba diving over on Cozumel.

 

[scrane]

Coba is nice a bus trip through the jungle. On the way you can stop at Tulum, an unusual oceanside Mayan settlement.Some reasonable hotels at the site. A nice inexpensive restaurant at the bus stop. A freshwater lake full of crocodiles. Mayan ruins poking out through the jungle. Valladolid, an old colonial town not too far away. Bus from Playa. I'm going by memories a few years old.
Of course, the ferry to Cozumel brings you to some coral diving. Plenty of operators. Plenty of everything. Laid back and shady compared to Cancun and Playa. Nice people.

 

[Paula Trounce]

This is all great stuff.
Thank you

 

[Johnoly]

ALOT of shopping on 5 Avenida norte,,,with some great prices and unique items. You can walk for almost a mile, it's that big. Go at night after diving cause there's is some tasty food also.

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[Ontwreckdiver]

Chichen Itza is very sanitized and touristy. Ek Balam ruins are a lot better and not touristy and they're are close to Chichen Itza. Ek' Balam: Haunting Ruins of an Abandoned Maya Kingdom