Where To Salsa Playa Del Carmen

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Wondering where to salsa Playa del Carmen? I’m a big fan of salsa dancing and it’s been something I’ve used when solo traveling to help me meet people and quickly integrate into life in a new place. When I arrived in Playa one of the first things I did was look for salsa and bachata classes in Playa del Carmen and it was pretty difficult to find.

But over the past few years, salsa dancing in Playa del Carmen scene has grown. As I’ve gotten to know the teachers, active social dancers, and DJ’s my nights have been filled up with classes and invitations to socials.

I wanted to put this blog post about dancing salsa and bachata in Playa del Carmen to help people new to the area or visiting on vacation who want to salsa. Playa del Carmen has a vibrant dance scene, but it’s not so easy to navigate unless you know where to look!

Where to take Salsa Lessons Playa del Carmen

First up, you might want to learn to salsa. Playa del Carmen has plenty of teachers and classes. The Playa del Carmen salsa class timetables can change often, but I’ll try and keep it as up-to-date as I can. But especially with COVID right now things are changing constantly! One of the dancers made this awesome GoogleSheet though which is generally the most up-to-date information about where to dance Salsa in Playa del Carmen.

Encubate

Encubate is the best place to learn salsa dancing in Playa del Carmen both for beginners and intermediate dancers. They have classes Monday to Thursday evenings at the Deportivo Mario Villanueva ( the stadium off 10th Avenue between calle 32 and 34. Just walk in and go up the stairs to the Palapa. Since I’ve been here the timetable hsn;t changed much, but the teacher changes pretty often. Currently, the timetable is:

Monday and Wednesday
8-9 pm Beginners Salsa on 1 9-10 pm Beginners Bachata

Tuesday and Thursday
8-9 pm Intermediate Salsa on 1 9-10 pm Intermediate Bachata

You can check their Facebook page for the most up to date information about salsa dancing in Playa del Carmen. The cost is $400 for one style and $700 for 2 styles. I take the intermediate Salsa and Bachata so I can do 16 classes per month for just $700 pesos!

Selina Wednesdays and Fridays

Wednesdays and Fridays at Selina are my favorites! All of my favorite teachers teach here and after the classes, there is always a great social.

Normally it’s just an open-level bachata class from 8 pm until 9 pm (cost $50 pesos). But sometimes they do salsa too and start at 7 pm. The best place to check is Facebook for the times of that week’s classes. It’s a big friendly crowd here so don’t feel shy coming alone, you will quickly meet people and make some new dancing friends!

Other Regular Classes

Monday

WHERE – On Stage Dance Studio – With teachers Pau & Mariano

Salsa @ 8Pm Bachata @ 9Pm 

WHERE: 10th avenue and 6th bis – With teacher Aldebaran

7-10 PM Salsa, Bachata Cumbia 

WHERE: Riviera Maya Suites – With teachers Ramon & Daniel

Salsa @ 8PM Bachata @ 9PM

Tuesday

WHERE: 10th avenue and 6th bis – With teacher Aldebaran

7-10 PM Salsa, Bachata Cumbia 

Wednesday

WHERE – On Stage Dance Studio – With teachers Pau & Mariano

Ladies Styling @ 8Pm Bachata @ 9Pm 

WHERE: 10th avenue and 6th bis – With teacher Aldebaran

7-10 PM Salsa, Bachata Cumbia 

Thursday

WHERE – near On Stage Dance Studio – With teachers Pau & Mariano

Beginners Salsa @ 8Pm Bachata @ 9Pm 

WHERE: 10th avenue and 6th bis – With teacher Aldebaran

7-10 PM Salsa, Bachata Cumbia 

Friday

WHERE: 10th avenue and 6th bis – With teacher Aldebaran

7-10 PM Salsa, Bachata Cumbia 

Did You Get Travel Insurance Yet?

If 2020 taught us anything, it’s that you need to be prepared for anything!

The Insurance companies I personally recommend are Hey Mondo, Passport Nomads, Safety Wing, and Travel Insurance Master

Hey Mondo is great if you are looking for a great value flexible policy. They offer single-trip cover, annual multi-trip cover, and long-term travel cover.

Passport Nomads provides the most comprehensive cover for Digital Nomads. If you find yourself in need of medical care you just contact them and they will pre-load your card with the funds to cover your treatment, meaning you won’t need to pay out of pocket and then put in a claim later.

Safety Wing is great value with monthly cover starting at $39. It’s super easy to use and it just renews each month. I currently use them as they offer me free cover for my son as part of my policy.

I also use Travel Insurance Master for short trips.

Read my full travel insurance post here where I go into detail about all 4 companies. 

The Best Salsa Teachers in Playa del Carmen

I’m sure there are a lot of Salsa teachers in Playa del Carmen. But these are the teachers that I know personally and recommend. All of them their first language is Spanish, but they can speak enough English to be able to teach if needed.

I would recommend taking classes with all of these teachers. They all have their own style and it’s great to keep things fresh by changing teachers. I personally take classes with Martin, Tonio, and Chino each week. 

Please let them know you found out about them through this post when you contact them!

Tonio 

Teaches salsa and bachata. He runs the Latin nights at Selina and is super active in the community. He also speaks very good English.

WhatsApp +52 1 984 118 0094

 Facebook 

Martin 

Teaches salsa and bachata. He also takes the classes at Incubate if you want to take a few before committing to privates with him.

WhatsApp +52 984 145 2655 | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube

Pau & Mariano

Teacher bachata, salsa, and styling. They are the only professional couple (that I know of) currently teaching in Playa. They have a whole load of professional accolades and have won a lot of international competitions. They are also super super nice!

WhatsApp +54 9 11 3569-310 | Instagram

Chino

Teaches salsa, bachata, and reggaeton. He is available for classes most days and he can either come to you, or for an extra fee you can take classes in a dance studio with mirrors.

WhatsApp +52 1 984 807 6453 | Instagram | Facebook

Salsa teaching in Playa del Carmen? Get in touch if you have classes and want to be added to this post.

Where to Social Dance Salsa In Playa del Carmen

There are a lot of different places to social dance salsa and bachata in Playa del Carmen. These are just my personal favorites and the ones most popular with the dancers and teachers I know.

Friday

Selina 
Classes from 7-8 pm Social dancing from 9 pm

Saturday

MDR Social at Encanto Beach normally from 8 pm until late

If you want to join the Salsa dancing Playa del Carmen WhatsApp group click this link this is just for students and it has all of the most up-to-date information. It’s the best place to stay up to date with all of the weekly salsa socials in Playa del Carmen.

QUICK TIP: Book your tours, rental cars, and transfers through my local contact

I’ve been working with Turismo Channel in Playa del Carmen for years and they are who I send all my family and friends to when they visit the Riviera Maya. I really can recommend them enough for tours, private airport transfers, and rental cars. Vanessa and Oliver are personal friends of mine and I have 100% faith that you will have a wonderful time with them.

You can check out their tours by clicking here and using the following discount codes when booking online to save $$$ clairecaroff (car rental), claire10off (for 10% off group tours), claireprivate (for a discount on private tours).

You can also send her a WhatsApp message quoting the above codes to receive the discount.

Looking for somewhere to stay in Playa del Carmen?

I wrote a whole guide to Accommodation in Playa del Carmen you can read here. I also recommend booking one of these Airbnb’s. They are all in great locations and are super reasonably priced. 

Budget Airbnb Studio on 5th Avenue

Stunning Studio Close To The Beach In Playa del Carmen

Stylish Apartment with Parking Close to the Beach