Playa del Carmen, Q.R. — The mayor of Playa del Carmen has announced the extension of the city’s beach reopening project, which she says, will now be extended until September 10. Mayor Laura Beristain made the official announcement Friday citing “good social behavior” during the duration of the first trial run.
She said the pilot program to reopen the Xcalacoco, Punta Esmeralda and Playa 88 beaches will be extended from September 1 to 10, due to the positive response of citizens complying with the hygiene and safety protocols as well as healthy distancing along the beach areas.
Beristain Navarrete thanked the residents of Solidaridad for cooperating with the government effort to stop the spread of COVID-19 infections in these recreational spaces during the New Normal. She says they hope to continue to gradually open beaches while preventing new outbreaks and infections.
The mayor, along with hotels, businessmen, restaurateurs, tourism service providers and citizens, were supportive of the pilot project, taking a first step in the reactivation of Solidaridad’s tourism activity while contributing to the mental health of residents due to the stress generated during confinement.
She reported that more than 5,000 people participated in going to the three beaches during the first eight days of reopening. The initial project, which ran from August 20 to 30, will now be extended until September 10 even though the municipality, along with the rest of the state, remains in an orange epidemiological light.
The rules and regulations for entering the beaches will remain the same with only Punta Esmeralda, Playa 88 and Playa Xcalacoco being open and with the same times, from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Mouth masks remain mandatory along with healthy distancing, a group maximum of four and no coolers of food or alcoholic beverages.
All other beaches including Holbox, Isla Mujeres, Cancun, Puerto Morelos, Cozumel, Tulum and Mahahual are not part of the pilot project and do remain closed. Municipal heads say their beaches will gradually reopen when the state reaches a yellow epidemiological light.
