Playa del Carmen is one of the most famous and therefore quite touristy coastal towns in Quintana Roo. Americans in particular like to travel here for their holidays meaning it is cheap and easy to get to Playa del Carmen, but everything on site is quite expensive.
Playa del Carmen is known for sun, beach (more on that in another post) and parties. And to be honest, there is not much more to it. The centre is quite cute, but the town itself is not very big and the centre mainly consists of souvenir shops, bars and clubs, which blast different kind of music from all sides at night/in the evening.
One of the main attractions is Coco Bongo, a party that is only found here and in Cancún and, in my opinion, even though being expensive is actually worth the money (Coco Bongo).

Go or not? Playa del Carmen is not my favourite place, but it is definitely nicer, somewhat cute and has a more pleasant atmosphere than Cancún. So I would say you can go, but you don’t have to. It just depends on what kind of traveller you are and what kind of holiday you want to have.