Plaza Caracol

This mall seems to be mostly empty now. We were here about 15 years ago and this place seemed to be full and lively. Now it has lots of empty store fronts. The most interesting thing we found was a grocery store and I used that as an opportunity to try some things you can't get in the United States. Overall this was an ok stop but it does not have a lot to offer.

This "mall" is very run down. 90% of the shops are either closed or souvenir shops. The rest consists of pharmacies and a Starbucks. The shop owners are very aggressive. We walked through the mall and they kept following us. The upper floor is completely shut down. Some of the better pictures are from the Riu Cancun Hotel nearby. (The place where we're currently residing)

I didn’t read reviews. But the pictures had me thinking this was an okay place to visit. It seemed sketchy as heck walking too, and it felt abandoned. A few souvenir shops with good deals but it feels kind of eerie. I wasn’t feeling a good sense of safety. Luckily I was with my boyfriend but if it was me and a girl friend. I don’t recommend.

This place is closed to 90% - only a few souvenir shops and the starbucks. Not much to see or get in this place. It's even a but spooly to walk around because it seems like a lost place and every know and then is a guy standing randomly in a corner.

Vintage shopping mall for souvenirs and to take a tour around . The store owners were really nice. This place was really hot with no AC but tolerable for a short period. Older ladies who owned the store in the further back were kind and shared the story about turtles because she sold miniature glass ones . I thought it was a good place just to take a tour.

Small and quiet mall, especially JR jewelry 💍 store has more options. Storekeeper Jamie was very honest and friendly. After 6 years in February 2024 I wanted to see Sir Jamie. I went the sore, but I shocked what I see is like ghost mall. 99% stores are out of business. 😞

Nice mall with mostly small jewelry, art, and souvenir shops. Very friendly shop keeps. Unfortunately a lot of things are permanently closed and it looks a bit dated inside and outside. Which is sad, because the remaining stores are all nice! I suppose the location makes it difficult to stay in business. I think if they posted a map of the mall outside it would help a lot.

I really liked this mall and it deserves way more customers. I wandered in after getting a drink at Starbucks and was absolutely surprised how large it was! I see many comparisons to the Flea Market in the reviews, but I vastly prefer this mall. It is much less noisy and chaotic and I didn’t find the shopkeepers here nearly as pushy and annoying. It’s a bit sad since many of the storefronts are empty, but they have turned the mostly empty second floor into an art gallery. (All affordable art (under ~$500 USD for original paintings) but I don’t really want to figure out how to ship a painting home) Some reviewers say it’s all just souvenirs, but there were a few really nice shops in there too. There was also a photographer who had a storefront with absolutely gorgeous photos of Mexico. I took his card to order something shipped to me at a later date. There was another shop with beautiful amber jewelry. A “natural” store with nice beach covers and carved hair combs. From one of the jewelry shops, I bought a pearl bracelet and earrings for $20 USD which is a price I’m perfectly happy with. Prices seemed in line with other shopping areas and I felt the staff was friendlier and would probably be happy to haggle (the man I bought the earrings from admitted that I was his first customer of the day and he came down $5 on the set when I seemed most interested in the earrings) This mall definitely deserves more customers!

I remember when Plaza Caracol was outdoors and THE place to be! I was there when they built a wall around it and finally when they enclosed it. There were so many shops and places to eat! Now, it is pretty much an empty relic of former times. There are seller stalls facing the street which seem to all have the same merchandise. The sellers beckon you to come "look look," but there is no reason. I really expect on a future trip to see this structure being demolished to make way for a modern attraction.

Beware. This mall is completely dark inside. Most stores are closed. Looks like the stores were abandoned years ago. If you enter be careful; it feels more like someplace to be robbed than a place to shop.

We were doing our usual sight seeing through the hotel zone, when we got hit with a down pour. Lucky for us, we were in close proximity to this mall, so we ducked in to get out of the rain. I was pleasantly surprised that the mall was nice inside with all the typical stores one would expect in the tourist area of Cancun. Even though we were not so much in the shopping mood, I couldn't help but check out several stores along our travels from one end of the mall to the other. For me, I enjoy browsing just in case I spot something unique that might catch my eye. Although there were many souvenirs here and there, it seemed that I couldn't find anything that I really needed. Prices were not that competitive, and we kept getting employees desperately trying to bring us into their shops. When I start feeling the pressure to make a purchase, I clam up and move on. It didn't take long for us to find the exit and we decided that walking in the rain was not that big of a deal after all.

Plaza Caracol is part of the downtown tourism scene. From the outside it looks like a mall with a bit of promise but from the inside it is a ghost town with stores catering to tourists wishing to bring back cheesy trinkets to people in their lives that they don't have a lot of regard for. I mean, you will definitely be disappointed if you don't fall into that category. I say go and look around for yourself. My mum and I walked through since we were just going for a walk downtown and in five minutes we had made the complete loop through the plaza. Be prepared to be approached by several vendors calling you to view their wares. I just feel they would do a lot better being outside with more exposure.

This shopping area is a former mall that has been converted into a series of booths with separate vendors. There is no air conditioning, and the vendors are politely pushy. Many shops have similar/repetitive items. But, If you are looking for some souvenirs, this is a pretty good choice. The prices are low, and you can pay in dollars, pesos, or with a credit card at most booths.