Hello!

My fiance and I are getting ready for a weeklong honeymoon to Playa Del Carmen in September, and I'd like to book a (really) good day trip as a surprise for his birthday. I had read on this forum that YukaTreks is a good tour company, but they are on holiday during our entire visit. I'm looking for new recommendations.

I know we could rent a car, but I don't really want to plan anything other than picking a tour out and getting on the van. Plus, I love a good tour guide! We'd like to look at some ruins, swim in some cenotes, and, if possible, see some natural beauty instead of heavily touristed spots.

There are dozens upon dozens of tour operators in Playa. If you walk down 5th ave, (la quinta) you will be reminded every 10 minutes that there are good deals to be had. First, you need to decide what tour you want as there are so many. Once decided, you can compare pricing and what days are available. Some excursions are available on certain days only so you need to find out if it coincides with your timetable. You will probably be away for the whole day so you need to know how many people will be in the van, is it air conditioned, does it include lunch, is the guide fluent in english and do they pick you up at your hotel or on a street corner. We have used Easy tours in the past and feel quite comfortable in recommending them, They also brought the cost down as we had found the same trip cheaper elswhere. You are in the right city and certainly in the right region for the type of tour you seek...

Thanks for the info! I guess I'm being a little bit snobby, though, and looking for a company that puts some thought into the tours that they offer, and some recommendations for companies that hire good guides and have good vans, etc. A place that might include stops in places that most other tour operators pass by for the sake of volume.

We have been to that area many times and I've used this company in Playa, Cancun, Cozumel and Cabo with no issues.

http://www.playadelcarmentours.com/

I've also used Lomas Travel.

http://www.lomastravel.com/tours/Riv...nation=Riviera Maya&TourId=0#

We have done the speed boats, both ATV tours and the sunset sail lobster dinner cruise with them.

I'm weary of using unknown tour companies located on 5th Avenue as many are time share sharks in disguise.

Edventure Tours is fabulous. They have set tours, but will also build a day around what you want to do.
http://www.edventuretours.com.mx/index.php/about-us

Another vote for Edventures. We are quite familiar with the area as we own aa place in Playa, but when we wanted a guided tour we used Edventures. we wanted a guide for Dos Ojos cenote, as it is not recommended that you snorkel that cenote without a guide. The guide was fantastic. They will do custom tours and take you to Tulum or Coba, whatever cenotes you want to go to, Akumal for snorkeling with the sea turtles, etc.

I booked an excellent van tour to Rio Lagartos and Ek Balam through this website (they do playa del carmen, not just cancun).

http://www.cancun-discounts.com/

this was the tour http://www.cancun-discounts.com/tour...r-ek-balam.htm

I cannot actually remember the name of the company that was actually doing the tour but it was really good. The group was small, the guide was excellent and just a really nice guy, and the itinerary was good, also.

Edventures has a good rep and I met Eddie and his wife Bonnie 4 years ago at the Lol-Ha in Akumal.
Also some stuff you can get to on your own via taxi or colectivo. Cenotes for example, there are 4-5 near Puerto Aventuras, almost across the street from the Barcelo resort.