Playa Pelícanos
- Blue Flag certified
- Erosion-prone, has been closed before
- Popular for sunrise
- Mostly local, rarely busy
- Free public access
- Few facilities on the sand
- Shops and food on Avenida CTM
Overview
Playa Pelícanos is the public access at the end of Calle 44 Norte, reached from Avenida CTM in the northern half of Playa del Carmen. It is Blue Flag certified and free to enter, and it draws a largely local crowd: people who come for the sunrise, walkers, and families from the surrounding blocks rather than visitors down from the hotels.
The reason to read about this beach before visiting is not sargassum but sand. This stretch is among the most erosion-prone in the town, and the municipality closed the access outright in February 2026 after weeks of strong onshore wind stripped the beach back and undermined a building at the waterline, part of which gave way. Passage in front of that structure became impossible for a period because there was no dry sand left to walk on.
Erosion on this coast is episodic rather than permanent, and sand returns as wind and current shift. But a beach that has needed a closure sign once can need one again, and the width of dry sand here varies far more between visits than it does at a stabilised access such as Playa 88.
Our current condition score for this beach is .
Our photographic record
Each photograph is published unedited and in date order, and is retained so the record builds rather than resets.
No photographs of this beach have been submitted yet. The grid below fills in as contributors send them.
Position relative to the Atlantic sargassum belt
Playa del Carmen faces east into the Yucatán Channel with no barrier reef offshore, which is why this coast receives sargassum while Cozumel, sheltered in the island's lee, largely does not. Pelícanos shares that exposure with the rest of the town.
Where this access differs is in what a mat does once it lands. On a wide beach, arriving weed sits on sand and can be raked; on a narrowed one it comes ashore at the waterline against whatever structure is behind it, which is harder to clear and slower to break down. The same volume of sargassum therefore reads worse here after an erosion event than it would in a normal year.
The northerly stretch also sits closer to the outflow at Punta Esmeralda, and the freshwater and current movement around that point influence how material drifts along this part of the shore. Conditions at Pelícanos and at accesses a kilometre either side can differ on the same morning.
The sargassum season
The Caribbean season runs broadly from spring into late summer, heaviest between April and August, easing through the autumn. The belt sits far out in the Atlantic and what arrives at any beach depends on the wind and current of the preceding days rather than the calendar.
The compounding factor here is that the erosion season and the sargassum season do not coincide. The February closure followed winter northerlies, not a sargassum influx, so this beach can be difficult to use in months when the water is at its clearest. Checking a recent photograph matters more at this access than at most, because two separate things can spoil a visit.
The regional pattern is set out in our guide to sargassum season in the Riviera Maya.
Choosing a hotel on this stretch
The blocks behind Avenida CTM are residential and working rather than resort: apartment buildings, local shops and small hotels, with the beach a few minutes' walk east. It is a practical base for a longer stay and considerably cheaper than the centre, but it is not a stretch where a hotel maintains the beach in front of it.
Anyone whose plan depends on a reliable width of sand and a lounger should look at the centre or at Playacar instead. Anyone content to walk to whichever access looks best on the day is well placed here, with Playa 88, Punta Esmeralda and the Calle 72 access all within reach.
Access and getting there
The access is at the junction of Calle 44 Norte and Avenida CTM. There are shops and small restaurants on CTM itself, which is the nearest place to buy food and water, as there is little on the sand.
Street parking is the only option and is free. There is no Uber service in Playa del Carmen, so a street taxi or the colectivos along Avenida 30 are the alternatives to driving. From the centre it is a short taxi ride or a walk of around half an hour.
Because this access has been closed before, it is worth looking for municipal signage at the entrance on arrival, and being prepared to walk to the next access if the sand has narrowed.
Check live conditions before you go
Both the sand and the water at this access vary more than most. Our live card for Playa Pelícanos carries the current condition score and the most recent contributor photographs with their dates, which is the quickest way to see what the beach looks like now.
See live conditions, photos & cams →