What is the best way to get to chichen itza from playa del carmen?

i was reading that you have to go through tulum or cancun to get there and possibly pay tolls. isn't there a road that goes straight from playa? or is it just a really bad way to go?

Chichen-Itza is almost in the middle of the peninsula and there are not that many roads that go to it. The main one is the Interstate road that runs from Cancun to Merida. Chichen Itza is almost two thirds of the way from Cancun to Merida.

That "road" has two versions. The toll road and the "free" road. The free road runs through towns and can take you twice as long to go there. This is due to the conditions of the road and due to the fact that the speed limit (enforced by huge speed bumps) reduces signifantly on every town.

There are some "minor" roads that go from different places in the coast to the main Interstate road that goes to Chiche Itza. One of them goes from tulum and goes through Coba. From there you can go to Valladolid and from there eventually to Chichen Itza. From Playa del Carmen there is only a very small road that takes you to the main Interstate that I refer before. It is so small and slow that from Playa it is more efficient to drive north towards Cancun and then take the Interstate. The small road might save you some miles but stickying to the main roads will save you time.

From playa it will take you over two hours to get to Chichen-Itza. That is four hours easily. Chichen Itza can take a few hours to visit properly. Time is going to be more important than miles.

Like somebody recommended before. It might be better to take a tour. Especially if you are planning to stay for the light show at the eveninig. You finish dead after the trip and visit and the last thing you need is a 2.5 hours drive home tired.

You can check the roads and general maps ate the following site. I think you can even request driving directions:

http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&ss...

Good luck

My best advice is toTake a tour bus, with a guide. It should only cost about $30-60USD per person.
If you want to go it alone in a car, yes, you will have to pay tolls.

Go north on the highway, leaving Playa. After about 20-25 minutes you鈥檒l get to Puerto Morelos, where you should fill up on gas if needed. You won't pass another gas station for almost 200 kilometers. Keep going towards Cancun and about 20 minutes later you'll get to the exit. Turn towards M茅rida and Chich茅n Itz谩. you'll have to pay to use it. After 90 kilometers of jungle you get to the border between the states of Quintana Roo and Yucat谩n, where there's a toll booth. There are also restrooms and a kiosk. And customs, but very rarely do they stop anyone. The toll for the car is 145 pesos, about $14usd. After the border keep going for another 105 kilometers. About halfway there's a gas station. By the next toll booth, follow signs to Chich茅n Itz谩/Pist茅 to the right. The toll here is 40 pesos, $4usd. After about 10 minutes you get to Pist茅, a little town right next to Chich茅n Itz谩 and a good place to eat. In Pist茅 you go left to reach the ruin, there's a sign. It's only a few minutes to the ruin; keep right in the Y-crossing. And you're there! Parking is 10 pesos, about $1usd. From Playa to Chich茅n Itz谩, it's about 280 kilometers.

The best way to get to Chichen Itza is definitely by tour bus. We ended up getting our tour for $35 per person. This way you don't have to worry about driving. They give you a lot of historical information and you can rest on the way back. It is so beautiful there! Enjoy!

Thumbs up to Mad Mex for a great answer. The only thing that I want to chime in with is that I have found tours to Chichen Itza to generally be more expensive than the prices quoted here. - but maybe I got ripped off :)

Do a bus tour to Chichen Itza, if you still want to see more ruins then rent a car and drive to Tulum, Coba, Ek Balam and or Muyil they are all closer to PDC than Chichen Itza.

Bus station is on th 5th ave. just downtown. tickets cost 30 o 40 dlls, once you are there, the entrance cost 10 dlls.Chichen Itza speaks for itself but would be nice to hear more information, so buy a visit guide maybe it cost 20 or 30 dlls.
or
buy a tour as the others recommend you but will cost you more.

good luck and good choice!