This is the trip that clears the group chat in 20 minutes. Cheap flights, locked-in weather, all-inclusive math that doesn't require a spreadsheet, and golf that's actually gotten good.
El Camaleón at Mayakoba hosts a PGA Tour event for a reason — it's a legitimate course built through mangroves, jungle, and limestone cenotes, not a resort layout dressed up for tourists. The newer El Tinto next door gives you a second high-end round on the same property without leaving the gate. Iberostar Playa Paraíso adds depth to the rotation, and on the off-day Tulum and Playa del Carmen are 30-60 minutes away when the group wants ceviche and a beach club instead of another tee time. The all-inclusive resort model means food, drinks, and lodging are one number, which keeps the captain sane.
Dogleg's Pick Courses
Where to Play
In order of conviction. Every course on this list was chosen deliberately.
El Camaleón at Mayakoba
$175+Greg Norman routed this one through mangroves, jungle, and actual limestone cenotes — the 7th plays over an open cenote that's there long before Norman showed up. It hosts a PGA Tour event for a reason. Wind off the Caribbean is the defense; the course itself isn't long, but the corridors are tight and miss in the wrong spot means lost balls in vegetation you can't walk into.
El Tinto at Mayakoba
$100–$175Tom Weiskopf's design sits a mile from El Camaleón and gets a fraction of the play, which is the whole point. More elevation change than you'd expect this close to sea level, wider corridors, and several genuinely memorable par 3s built around the jungle and water features. If you're playing 36 on the Mayakoba property, this is the better second round.
Iberostar Playa Paraíso Golf Club
$100–$175P.B. Dye design with the family's usual bag of tricks — severe contouring, false fronts, and greens that punish anything not hit clean. It's the most demanding course in the rotation if you're playing it from the right tees, and the only one where local knowledge actually matters. Cart-path-only most of the year.
Grand Coral Riviera Maya
$50–$100Nick Price's only design in Mexico and it's a fair, playable resort layout right in Playa del Carmen. Won't blow you away the way El Camaleón does, but it's well-conditioned, easy to get on, and a smart third or fourth round when the group wants a break from premium pricing. Practice facility is one of the better ones in the area.
El Tinto at Mayakoba — the newer Tom Weiskopf design on the Mayakoba property gets dramatically less attention than El Camaleón and is the better walk of the two.
Where to Stay
Lodging Picks
Ranging from splurge to smart. Pick based on what the group wants and how much time you'll actually be at the hotel.
Fairmont Mayakoba
$$$$The play if you want to walk to the first tee at El Camaleón. Cart paths and lagoon canals connect the resort to the course, food is genuinely good, and the property is huge enough that you can disappear when the group needs a breather. Not all-inclusive, so plan accordingly.
Andaz Mayakoba
$$$Same Mayakoba complex as Fairmont and Rosewood, lower price, better for a guys' group that doesn't need butler service. Modern rooms, beach access, and golf-cart access to both Mayakoba courses. Pool scene is more active than Fairmont if that matters.
Moon Palace Cancun
$$$The all-inclusive math king — green fees at the Nicklaus course are bundled in along with everything else, and 'everything else' includes a lot of bars. It's enormous and corporate, but for a four-guy room with a fixed budget that includes golf, food, and drinks, nothing else competes on price-per-day.
Iberostar Selection Playa Paraíso
$$$All-inclusive with on-property golf at the P.B. Dye course. Beach is one of the better stretches on the Riviera Maya, food is fine for AI standards, and it's a 25-minute drive to Mayakoba for tee times there. Smart middle-ground choice for groups splitting the difference between golf-focus and beach-focus.
Thompson Playa del Carmen
$$$In-town Playa del Carmen on 5th Avenue, walking distance to restaurants and bars instead of trapped behind a resort gate. Right call if your group wants nightlife and ceviche on the off-day more than they want a swim-up bar. Drive 15-20 minutes to Mayakoba for tee times.
Playacar Villa Rental (VRBO)
$$For a group of 6-8, renting a 4-bedroom villa in Playacar runs cheaper per head than any resort and gives you a pool, kitchen, and zero check-in drama. The Playacar gated community is right next to the course of the same name and a 10-minute taxi from 5th Avenue. Bring someone who'll cook breakfast.
Where to Eat & Drink
The Right Restaurants
9 picks across the full range — the big dinner out, the post-round decompress, and the morning before an early tee time.
Hartwood
wood-fire / destination dinnerTulum's most-hyped restaurant and the rare one that earns it. Wood-fire only, no electricity, menu changes daily based on what came in that morning. Reservations are a battle — book the day they open the window — and it's an hour drive from Playa. Worth the trip once.
La Cueva del Chango
Mexican breakfastPlaya del Carmen breakfast institution tucked off the main drag in a jungle-y open-air setting. Chilaquiles, huevos divorciados, fresh juice — the move before an early tee time. Cash preferred, no reservations, expect a 20-minute wait on weekends.
Alux
destination / experienceRestaurant built inside an actual cenote cave system in Playa del Carmen. The food is good but secondary — you're paying for the room, and the room is a 10,000-year-old cave with stalactites and candlelight. One-time dinner that the whole group will remember.
El Fogón
taqueriaLocal taqueria in Playa del Carmen where you eat al pastor cut off the trompo at the front door. Three locations, all good, none fancy. This is the post-round, ten-tacos-and-a-beer dinner when nobody wants to dress up.
Porfirio's
modern MexicanMexican fine dining with multiple locations in Cancun and Playa. Mole, chiles en nogada, the classics done right with a view. Better play than the steakhouse-at-the-resort move for a real dinner out.
Taboo Tulum
beach clubBeach club / restaurant on the Tulum hotel zone that does the boozy long-lunch thing as well as anyone. Ceviche, grilled fish, rosé, DJ. Off-day move when the group decides golf can wait.
La Chaya Maya
Yucatecan / regionalYucatecan food — cochinita pibil, sopa de lima, papadzules. Different from the Tex-Mex Mexican food most groups know, and worth the education. Original location is in Mérida but the Playa outpost is solid.
La Perla Pacífico
seafoodSeafood-focused, right on 5th Avenue in Playa. Tuna tostadas, aguachile, whole grilled fish. Quality is better than the location suggests and it doesn't get destroyed by cruise-ship traffic the way some neighbors do.
Chambao Tulum
Argentine steakhouseArgentine-style grill on the Tulum beach road. Big steaks, big wine list, big check, but the room and the food back it up. Sister to the Madrid original. Reserve a week out.
Beyond the Course
When the Group Needs a Break
All of these are mandatory.
Cenote Day (Dos Ojos / Gran Cenote)
The Riviera Maya sits on a limestone shelf full of freshwater cenotes — Dos Ojos and Gran Cenote near Tulum are the easiest entries, with snorkel gear rentals on-site. An hour each and you're back. Even non-swimmers in the group will get the point.
Book this experience →Tulum Ruins
The only major Mayan ruin built on the coast, perched on a cliff over the Caribbean. Smaller than Chichén Itzá and a fraction of the drive — combine with a beach club lunch in Tulum and you've got the off-day handled. Go early, it gets brutal by 11am.
Book this experience →Chichén Itzá Day Trip
Two and a half hours each way from Playa, so this is a commitment. But it's one of the new Seven Wonders, the scale is genuinely impressive, and the cenote stop at Ik Kil on the way back is built into most tours. Skip if anyone's hungover.
Book this experience →Cozumel Reef Dive / Snorkel
Ferry from Playa del Carmen to Cozumel runs every hour, the dive operators are right at the dock, and the reef wall is one of the best in the Western Hemisphere. Snorkel works if not everyone's certified. Full day, but a real one.
Book this experience →Quinta Avenida (5th Ave) Crawl
Playa del Carmen's pedestrian strip — bars, taquerias, rooftops, and the inevitable group of guys getting pulled into a mezcal tasting. Not high art, but it's the easy late-evening move and beats anything the Cancun hotel zone offers.
Book this experience →Pro Tips
Before You Book
El Camaleón at Mayakoba is the PGA Tour venue and the anchor round: Greg Norman design, jungle and lagoon holes, and a proper championship layout.
El Tinto at Mayakoba is the Tom Weiskopf design on the same property — newer, longer, and usually less crowded than El Camaleón. Play both.
Stay at a Mayakoba resort (Andaz, Rosewood, Fairmont, Banyan Tree) for the cleanest golf logistics and the best beach and pool infrastructure.
November through April is the dry window. Hurricane season runs June through October.
Cancún hotel zone is entertainment infrastructure without much soul. Consider Playa del Carmen or Tulum as a base for a more interesting experience.
Dogleg's Advice
Most groups book El Camaleón twice and skip El Tinto — wrong move. The Weiskopf design is the better walk, sees a fraction of the traffic, and you'll actually remember the holes. Also: stay on the Mayakoba or Playa del Carmen side rather than central Cancun. The hotel zone is louder and further from every course worth playing.
What to Know
November through April is the window — summer brings heat, humidity, and hurricane season, in that order. Passports are mandatory and CUN immigration can be slow on weekends, so build a buffer. Courses are cart-only and spread out, so you're driving or shuttling between properties; don't expect to walk anything.
Who This Trip Is For
✓ Best for
- →Groups who want beach resort infrastructure alongside legitimate tournament golf
- →Mixed groups where non-golfers want an all-in resort experience
- →Anyone who wants to play an active PGA Tour venue
- →Groups who want tropical golf without the logistics of an international destination
✕ Not for
- →Groups chasing design pedigree over experience: this is resort golf first
- →Anyone who wants off-resort cultural immersion alongside the golf
- →Budget groups: Mayakoba is luxury resort pricing
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