When enjoying the beach, you’re more likely to think about having a good time—sunbathing, swimming, taking a walk, or playing games. What most people don’t think about is the ways in which they can clean up the beach and keep it from being polluted. On the first Sunday of every month, Kay Tours heads to the beach to clean up trash and inform others on how to prevent pollution in the first place. Whether you’re a Playa del Carmen local, or you’re visiting the area for vacation, we encourage you to join us! Keeping Playa del Carmen clean is only possible when we work together.
The tips we’re about to share don’t only apply to Playa del Carmen. These tips should be practiced on every beach around the world—and not just beaches! On all of our tours, whether to the remote Sian Ka’an biosphere reserve or to the precious Mayan ruins, we make sure to follow safety precautions to leave no trace. Leaving no trace ensures that wild animals, plants, and landscapes are left as they should be.
Here are our top tips for keeping the beach clean. The main thing to focus on is to be conscious of the waste you are producing. All single-use items, like straws or coffee cups, are bad for the environment because they are only used once before being discarded in the trash. Plastics never biodegrade and take hundreds of years to break down. Plastic straws pollute the ocean by the thousands, so we definitely don’t like seeing them on the beach. Straws commonly puncture sea life and can even block the airways of sea creatures, including sea turtles.
Forget eating and drinking on the beach and join us on a whale shark tour!
Tips for Keeping the Beach Clean
When ordering a drink from a hotel or restaurant, ask for your beverage without a straw.
If smoking, ask for an ashtray, and never throw away cigarette butts.
Bring reusable cups instead of bringing a disposable coffee cup, water bottle, or plastic cup.
Don’t bring plastic bags to the beach. Always use reusable shopping bags or coolers.
Take your trash with you instead of leaving it nearby the beach.
When walking along the beach, pick up any trash you see.
If you’re having a bonfire on the beach, never burn trash, especially plastic.
Pick up your pets’ waste.
Be physical on your beach vacation. Instead of eating and drinking on the beach, go snorkeling, kayak, or book an eco-friendly excursion with us! This is better for the environment, produces less trash, and it’s more fun!
Instead of bringing food to the beach, join us on our food tour in Playa del Carmen!
In addition to these beach-cleaning tips, here are some safety guidelines for all natural areas.
General Guidelines for all Natural Areas
Never touch animals—only observe. Avoid observing animals in large groups, in order to keep from stressing out the animals.
Avoid wearing sunscreen in the ocean so that you do not harm sea life with chemicals. If possible, stick to all-natural products when heading outdoors.
Do not share photos of animals in captivity—we do not support these practices.
Never buy souvenirs that are made out of wildlife products, including threatened natural materials like turtle shells, feathers, or ivory.
Do not ride animals that are too young or too old. Never ride animals that are pregnant or nursing. If possible, avoid riding animals. Instead, try volunteering for them! For example, bathing elephants instead of riding them.
Never interfere with breeding sites.
Learn more about how to protect wildlife on our tours here.
Love snorkeling? Discover the Island of Women! Learn more about our Isla Mujeres private tour.
Join Our Beach Clean Up
On the first Sunday of every month, you can join Kay Tours as we help clean up Playa del Carmen. We will meet at Senor Frog’s at 8:30a.m. This is a great opportunity to socialize, create awareness, and make Playa del Carmen a clean and beautiful place. Join the Facebook event here.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to write in the comment section below or send us an e-mail to: contact@kay.tours.