Beach is basically what Playa del Carmen is known for besides partying. When I was there, the entire coast of Quintana Roo had a serious algae problem. Means that most of the beach in Playa del Carmen was completely covered in algae – so don’t be surprised when you see the photos.
Although this is/was bad for tourism I found the photos actually way more interesting and probably took more pictures than I would have otherwise. 😀 Because the scenery changes completely with so much seaweed.
The beach itself is quite nice though and you can really walk all the way along the sea in Playa del Carmen. I love it when you can do that. Plus it means that at the end of my long beach walk, I was basically back near the hostel 😀

Go or not? With the seaweed problem, no, because it was really bad and clearly visible. I mean, you can of course go just for Coco Bongo and the town itself, but… Playa del Carmen is not without reason a place where most people go for the beach (there’s not much else). 😉 Without the algae problem it’s fine and you can chill here. People who aren’t into beaches or partying should stay away though. And people who don’t like tourist spots can also skip Playa del Carmen. (PS: for beaches and parties, there are other cool places in Mexico, such as Puerto Escondido).