Tren Maya from Playa Del Carmen to Merida

Starting today, travelers will be able to enjoy a new transportation option between Playa del Carmen and Merida thanks to the Tren Maya, without the need to make long stopovers in Cancun. It is said “This new route promises to transform the travel experience in the region, offering greater comfort and speed to passengers.” A detailed look at this though might have you planning differently though. (See below).

The Tren Maya service offers daily departures from Playa del Carmen to Merida at 5:30 p.m. (local time), allowing users to reach their destination directly. Likewise, those who wish to travel from Merida to Playa del Carmen will be able to do so with scheduled departures at 7:00am (local time), facilitating travel between these two important tourist and cultural destinations. The trains between Playa Del Carmen and Merida will still make stops in-between.

This new connection of the Tren Maya. It is part of an ambitious project that seeks to improve the transportation infrastructure in southeastern Mexico, promoting the economic and tourism development of the region. Passengers will be able to enjoy a comfortable and little more efficient trip, with the opportunity to explore the various destinations along the Tren Maya route. The implementation of this direct route represents a slight improvement to the scheduling of the trains.

Tren Maya Station Playa Del Carmen — This is the most iconic thing about the train station in Playa Del Carmen.

Why the Tren Maya does nothing for the Riviera Maya now

Currently the Tren Maya is operating from the Cancun Tren Maya Station to Playa Del Carmen. That might sound great, thinking the area is connected to the other parts of the Tren Maya and also to the Cancun Airport. But as we commented in our article and video about the Tren Maya between Playa Del Carmen and the Cancun Airport, it is not efficient and cost more. Because both stations, in Playa Del Carmen and the Cancun Airport, are outside of the center or airport, it takes longer to make the journey. There are also only three trains going in each direction between Playa Del Carmen and the Cancun Airport. So, this makes it even more limiting because people do not want to wait a long time for the next train.

What about taking the Tren Maya from the Riviera Maya to Chichen Itza?

One of the largest tourist attractions in the southeast of Mexico is Chichen Itza. Thousands of people daily leave from the Rivera Maya to visit these ruins. The Tren Maya has a station at Chichen Itza (You can see more about taking the train now to Chichen Itza and how it is not as efficient now. None of the tour companies are changing from the buses to the Tren Maya for tours of Chichen Itza. Buses are still more efficient in picking people up at multiple hotels and transporting a group to Chichen Itza. Buses also allow tours to visit a second location and then return home at the hour of choosing.

But what about this new route between Playa Del Carmen and Merida?

Well, at first you might think, “Nice, a new connection to Merida and an easier route”. But let’s look at some details.

First of all, the Tren Maya will take 5 hours and 1 minute traveling from Playa Del Carmen to Merida Teya Station. Google maps says it takes about 3.5 hours to drive from Playa Del Carmen to Merida center. So driving is attractive option to save time. The ADO bus from Playa Del Carmen to Merida takes about 5 hours from the station to the center of Merida. So, the bus and train look similar on paper when we look at transportation time, but you need to consider where the Tren Maya Stations are. See more in our article about the Merida Teya Station and connections.

In Playa Del Carmen the Tren Maya Station is about 20 minutes from the center. There is a connecting bus to the train station that adds about 30 minutes to your journey. Then when you arrive by train to Merida Teya, you need to take another bus to the center. So, this adds another 30 minutes, so in total an extra hour in transportation.

Merida Tren Maya Station — These are the buses that connect the Teya Ten Maya Station in Merida to the center.

What about cost differences between the train and bus?

The trip from Playa Del Carmen to Merida Teya will cost locals 588 pesos and international tourists 1174.50 pesos. The ADO bus does offer some discounts if you buy in advance, but in general the price from Playa Del Carmen to Merida is 410-710 pesos. Some buses are more direct, and some are their platinum service. The ADO bus also does not charge tourists differently, so the bus is about 600-700 pesos cheaper.

Schedules for Playa Del Carmen to Merida

As mentioned above the Tren Maya will have one train a day leaving Playa Del Carmen at 5:30pm. Most people do not like arriving to a place they don’t know later in the evening. When taking the train, you will arrive in Merida Teya around 9:30pm (depending on the season, Yucatan State is one hour behind Quintana Roo half the year). This means you will get to your hotel fairly late in the evening.

The bus however offers 18 buses a day between Playa Del Carmen and Merida giving you more options of how you want to plan your day.

Conclusion

This latest news from the Tren Maya is not that exciting. It does offer a comfortable way to travel between Playa Del Carmen to Merida, (except for the two bus transfers you need to make). But as we have been saying all this time, it needs to be efficient, cost effective and have value for customers. The Tren Maya is slowly improving and getting up and running. The last portion from Playa Del Carmen south to Chetumal and over to Campeche is still under construction. By the end of the year, we should see some good improvement of the Tren Maya and service. However, as we have been saying for a long time now, this is more of a long trip train that offers better options and value to longer distances and not so good on shorter distances.

Thanks for reading our article and we will keep you updated on the Tren Maya as new things happen.