First time to Yucatan Peninsula
 

We will be visiting Playa del Carmen in November '10. This will be our first time and we will probably want to spend at least 10 days in the area. If we fly into Cancun, would it be a good idea to check out Merida for a few days and then drive down to Playa for the remainder of the time? We are checking out condo rentals, on the beach, for our time in Playa. Thanks for any suggestions to acquaint us to this area!

I would definitely recommend checking out Merida - it's a very nice city to visit. It'll give you a totally different experience from what you will get in Playa del Carmen.

Thank you... how is the drive from the Cancun airport to Merida? When booking a hotel is there anything we should consider, i.e. areas to avoid or areas that are good?

It's been a few years since we were there, and we took a bus rather than renting a car. We stopped in Valladolid for a couple of nights (it's not far from Chichen Itza) and then continued on to Merida. You might want to check Tripadvisor re hotels.

IMO, Merida is worth it. If possible, include a Sunday in your time there (and maybe Sat. evening, too) - the heart of the city is closed to traffic then, there are vendors around, people dance in the streets (literally!), etc. Lots of fun!

That is great! We love street fairs. Any word on distance to and from Cancun airport? Is it an easy drive or shall we hire a driver?

It is an easy drive on the toll highway. The tolls are expensive though. It will take about 4 hours more or less to Merida. We stayed at Hotel Dolores Alba in December and liked it. It worked out with the exchange rate to $37/night. You can walk to the city center from the hotel. We took the bus there from Playa del Carmen and then a taxi to the hotel. If you take a bus there and back make sure on the return you go to the right bus station...there are two.