The Fives Downtown Hotel

This is a four-star city hotel for divers who want more than a bed between boat trips. The Fives Downtown Hotel is part of the Curio Collection by Hilton and brings together a rooftop terrace, several places to eat, a spa and the bustle of Playa del Carmen outside the door. English and Spanish are spoken by the hotel team, so you can sort out the practicalities without resorting to underwater hand signals in reception.

The mood is urban rather than barefoot resort. You can come back from the sea, shower, take the lift upstairs for the view, then walk out towards Quinta Avenida when the town starts to wake up for the evening. With 133 rooms across four floors, it has the scale of a proper hotel while keeping the focus on food, drinks, recovery and getting out to see the Riviera Maya.

You'll find the hotel on 10th Avenue at 2nd Street in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. The Caribbean is two blocks away on foot, with Playa del Carmen Main Beach and Mamitas Beach Club among the nearby reference points. That makes the sea part of the daily plan without putting you directly on a beach resort compound.

Quinta Avenida brings restaurants, shops and nightlife close to the hotel, while excursions can take you further afield to places such as Xcaret Eco Theme Park and the Maya pyramids. Cancún International Airport is 34 miles away. The location suits you if you want the option of walking out for dinner or a drink rather than arranging transport every time the sun goes down.

The room choice is mainly about how much space you want around the dive bags and whether the view matters. Couples can keep things simple with a double room or choose a junior suite or one-bedroom suite for a little more breathing room. The ocean-view suite is the obvious pick when you would rather look towards the Caribbean than a courtyard, while the whirlpool suites add a more private wind-down after the day's salt and sun.

Families and small groups have larger options, including two-bedroom suites and residences. A mezzanine residence gives a couple a different layout, while the larger residences are aimed at staying together without turning every suitcase into a piece of furniture. Several room categories include air conditioning, Wi-Fi, a fridge or minibar, microwave, safe, shower, television and tea or coffee facilities. Those are the details that matter when you return tired, dehydrated and unwilling to hunt down ice.

The suite categories also come with useful extras such as a coffee machine, bathrobes and a fridge. Daily life is straightforward rather than theatrical: air conditioning for the warm return from the coast, a private bathroom, towels, toiletries and somewhere safe for valuables. Room service is available, which is handy when the body votes for an early night and the rest of Playa del Carmen votes for another round.

Breakfast is included as part of the hotel stay and is served à la carte at Marley Coffee. The menu also covers coffee, soft drinks and pastries, with the venue built around Bob Marley's music and legacy. It is a practical starting point before a morning departure, provided you are the sort of diver who can make decisions before the first coffee.

For lunch and dinner, Mercatto works with fresh regional ingredients in international dishes. El Tigre serves Mexican food and draws on the history of Playa del Carmen's first cantina, giving the hotel a more local angle than a generic all-purpose dining room. Both serve lunch and dinner, so you can eat on site without committing the entire evening to a formal outing.

Fives Rooftop is the evening option, with international cuisine served on a terrace overlooking the Caribbean and the lights of Quinta Avenida. The hotel also has a bar, a snack bar and a café, so there are several ways to deal with the post-dive appetite. The dining offer is varied, but the practical advantage is simpler: breakfast, a proper meal and a drink can all happen without leaving the building.

The rooftop is the natural place to spend the afternoon when you are finished with the sea. The hotel has infinity pools and a sun terrace, giving you somewhere to cool down without organising another excursion. From up there, the Caribbean and Quinta Avenida provide enough scenery to keep a coffee company for a while.

The Spa by The Fives is the more purposeful recovery option. Treatments include massage, facials and hydrotherapy, with a sauna and steam room for the part of the day when your shoulders have had enough of carrying kit. The hotel also has a gym and fitness equipment, although after a full day underwater, the sensible programme may consist of moving only as far as the nearest lounger.

When you want to leave the hotel but not plan the expedition yourself, the excursions service can arrange outings to the pyramids, diving and snorkelling. Families have a games room and babysitting services, while the concierge can help with local arrangements. The rooftop, spa and walkable town make this a workable base for a couple where one person wants more than another day in the water.

The Fives Dive Center, the hotel's own dive centre, is an SSI centre that caters to English-speaking guests. The dive centre is close enough to make the morning routine pleasantly short: breakfast, kit, and the boat without adding a transfer to the day. Its status as an Instructor Training Center gives it a training-focused character, while the hotel's partnership keeps the diving option tied neatly to the stay.

For broader choice, nearby centres cover instructor-level operations, nitrox and night diving, and one local team speaks English, Spanish, French and German. The hotel therefore works well as a base for comparing the day's diving options, rather than being a place where diving is merely added to the brochure.

Check-in runs from 3 pm to 11 pm and check-out is at midday. Express check-in and check-out are available, and the hotel has a lift, accessible facilities and wheelchair access. Wi-Fi is free throughout the property, with a reception desk, luggage storage and concierge services for the small jobs that become surprisingly complicated after a long travel day.

Airport transfers and shuttle services are available through the hotel, and car hire can be arranged. Parking is available on site, with additional parking nearby. Laundry and dry-cleaning services are also available, which comes in handy when swimwear has started to occupy more of the room than the furniture.

The hotel accepts cash, Visa, Mastercard and American Express, as well as PayPal and bank transfer. Air conditioning runs throughout the property, and the rooms include safes. Pets under 5 kg are accepted. The hotel also has a business centre, conference room and event facilities, although most divers will be more interested in the lift to the rooftop than in the conference arrangements.