City overview
The Riviera Maya runs about 130 kilometres of Caribbean coast from Puerto Morelos south through Playa del Carmen, Mayakoba, Puerto Aventuras and Akumal to Tulum, and packs white sand, jungle cenotes and Maya cities into a single stretch of Highway 307. Playa del Carmen is the heart of it, a walkable beach town built around Quinta Avenida, and it is also where Jewish visitors will find the region's kosher scene. Two Chabad houses operate in Playa del Carmen and a third serves Tulum, between them running a synagogue, a mikvah, Shabbat meals and more than a dozen supervised kosher kitchens, bakeries and shops. It is one of the densest concentrations of kosher food anywhere in Latin America outside Mexico City, and it sits within walking distance of the beach.
Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve
Riviera Maya · Federal entrance fee approximately MX$225 per person, paid in cash on arrival
A vast UNESCO biosphere reserve of lagoons, mangrove channels and reef south of Tulum, where visitors float the ancient Maya canals cut between the lagoons.
Time needed
A full day
Tips
The Muyil entrance, twenty minutes south of Tulum on Highway 307, is the easiest way in on a paved road. The Boca Paila coastal road takes two to three hours and is rough going after rain. Bring cash — there is nowhere to pay by card.
Neighborhood
Tulum south
Activity providers
Kosher map of Riviera Maya
Pick a place on the map or search an address or hotel to see what is kosher around it.