Active Pursuits

If you need a break from lounging on the beach, you can find plenty of activities up and down this coast. The following is a brief list to help you consider your options.

Day Spa

To relax after all that exertion, try Spa Itzá. It's in downtown Playa between calles 12 and 14 in a retail area called Calle Corazón. The phone number is tel. 984/803-2588.

Deep-Sea Fishing

The largest marina on the coast is at Puerto Aventuras, not far south of Playa. Here's where you'll find most of your options for boating and fishing.

Fly Fishing

The Boca Paila Fishing Lodge (www.bocapaila.com) specializes in fly-fishing, with weeklong all-inclusive fishing packages.

Golf & Tennis

The Playacar Golf Club (tel. 984/873-4990; www.palace-resorts.com/playacar-golf-club) has an 18-hole golf course designed by Robert von Hagge. It's run by the Palace Resorts hotel chain, which offers golf packages. Greens fees are $180 (£90) in the morning (including tax and cart) and $120 (£60) after 2pm; club rental costs $30 (£15). The club also has two tennis courts, which cost $10 (£5) per hour. If you stay at one of the Mayakoba resort hotels, you'll have access to a course designed by Greg Norman, which hosts a PGA tour event. See www.mayakoba.com.

Horseback Riding

A few places along the highway offer horseback rides. The best of these, Rancho Punta Venado, is just south of Playa, past the Calica Pier. This ranch is less touristy than the others, and the owner takes good care of his horses. It has a nice stretch of coast with a sheltered bay and offers kayaking and snorkeling outings. It's best to make arrangements in advance and tell them you're a Frommer's reader, so that they can schedule you on a day when they have fewer customers. E-mail (ptavenado@yahoo.com) is the best way to reach them; sometimes they don't answer their office number tel. 984/803-5224. Another option is to call the ranch's cellphone from Mexico (tel. 044-984/116-3213); there is a charge for the call. Talk to Gabriela or Francisco; both speak English. Or try dropping by. The turn-off for the ranch is 2km (1 1/4 miles) south of the Calica overpass near Km 279.

Scuba & Snorkeling

In Playa, Tank-Ha Dive Center (tel. 984/873-0302; www.tankha.com) arranges reef and cavern diving. Snorkeling trips cost around $40 (£20) per person. Two-tank dive trips are $70 (£35); resort courses with SSI and PADI instructors cost $110 (£55). The area around Akumal has a number of underwater caverns and cenotes that are popular scuba and snorkeling destinations. The Akumal Dive Shop specializes in cavern diving and offers a variety of dives. But the easiest way to try cavern diving or snorkeling is through Hidden Worlds Cenotes, which is right on the highway, 15km (9 miles) south of Akumal. They provide everything, including wet suit.

Swimming With Dolphins

In the two nature parks south of Playa, Xcaret and Xel-Ha, you can interact with these intelligent creatures. Also, there's an outfit in Puerto Aventuras called Dolphin Discovery that is quite good.