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PlayaBueno

About

A beach directory that tells you what it knows

PlayaBueno maps 2,600+ beaches, cenotes, towns and hotels along Mexico's coasts, sorted state by state, so you can find the right stretch of sand without wading through ads.

Why it exists

Planning a beach trip to Mexico usually means twenty tabs of listicles that all name the same five places. We wanted one place that covers the whole coastline — the famous strips and the fishing villages — and is straight with you about each one.

Where the information comes from

  • Locations, ratings and review counts come from Google Places. Ratings are always shown with the number of reviews behind them, and rankings weigh the two together so a 5.0 from three people doesn't outrank a 4.7 from thousands.
  • Photos are from Wikimedia Commons, matched to each place by location and checked by hand. Every one is credited. We don't use stock or AI-generated beach photos.
  • Guides and descriptions are written by the PlayaBueno team from that data and from public sources. Where a listing has little information yet, the page says so rather than filling the gap with filler.

How rankings and listings work

  • Rankings use the Google rating weighted by how many reviews back it up: every rating is pulled towards the catalogue average (4.55) as if it came with 25 extra average reviews. A 5.0 from a handful of people settles near the average; a 4.7 from two thousand barely moves. Ratings from fewer than 25 reviews are marked as early.
  • Collections (snorkeling, family beaches, quiet coves…) only list places whose own data backs the label, and a collection needs at least 5 places before we put it in front of search engines.
  • Thin listings stay out of search. Every place gets a page, but we only ask Google to index the ones with a real description and something behind it: reviews, a photo or known facts like parking and water. The rest are still here for you to browse.

Editorial independence

Nothing in the directory is paid placement. If we ever work with a partner, it won't change what we say about a place, and anything sponsored will be labelled.

Spotted something wrong?

Beaches change and data goes stale. Email hola@playabueno.com or use the contact page and we'll fix it.