Ek Balam Community Visit: Cenote Exploration and Pyramids Tour
5.0
4 Ratings
Ek Balam Village
Discover the richness of the Mayan communities by visiting the community of Ek Balam. Learn how to weave a hammock, sew, and prepare tortillas by hand. Discover the impressive X’Canché Cenote and the archaeological site of Ek Balam.
Duration:
10 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
1 day
learn more
Highlights
-
Ek Balam Village - Start the tour with an 8:30 AM pick up in Merida. Set off on a 2-hour drive towards the small village of Ek Balam where Mayan is the most spoken language.
Enjoy a relaxing visit to the village in the company of a local guide. See how this community brings together traditions and modernity, using tourism in a new way to reinforce its identity and improve the quality of life of its community while safeguarding the natural and cultural richness it possesses. Get to know the traditional way of life and households of the Yucatecan Mayan population. Participate in workshops as you learn how to prepare handmade tortillas, how to weave hammocks, and make machine embroidery. - X’Canche Cenote - Then, continue on to the X-Canché Cenote, located within the archaeological site of Ek Balam, making it the ideal place to rest before or after visiting it. To reach the cenote, take a 2-km ride by bicycle or trici-taxi (tuk tuk) through the jungle. Refresh yourself and rest while appreciating the biodiversity that revolves around the body of water. Before leaving, enjoy a traditional Yucatecan lunch at the cooperative’s restaurant.
- Ek Balam - The final stop on the tour is at the Ek Balam archeological site, famous for its stunning Mayan architecture and its importance in pre-Hispanic times. Admire the incredible views from the top of the pyramids. Finally, at about 5 PM, return to Merida where your tour concludes.
What's Included
- Private transportation
- Entrance to the X’Canché Cenote and access to its facilities
- Community tour with tortilla, hammock and embroidery workshops
- Lunch
- Admission fee to the Archaeological Site of Ek Balam
- Accompaniment of a local guide during the tour
What's Not Included
- Guided tour in the Archaeological Site of Ek Balam
- Gratuities
Location
Ek Balam Village
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(4 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
F5048ncrobertag
Feb 26, 2023
Well worth it. A terrific trip. - This was a full day of interesting experiences. Ek Balam is probably my favorite Mayan ruin , as it is beautiful and not crowded. You can feel as if you are exploring the ruins by yourself. We loved being guided by Manual At Tuz through his village of Ek Balam and trying different crafts. The tortillas we made were pretty good and hot off the grill. Our main guide, Eyder Pacab, did such a good job. It turned out that there were only 2 of us on this tour. He explained a lot of things in excellent English and took good care of us throughout the tour. There was a lot of driving involved,
so a short nap in the car was a good thing. I have been coming to Merida for several years, and this was a chance to spend time in a Mayan village. I always enjoy cooling off in a Cenote. This one even offered several extra possibilities, like zip line, repelling, etc. As usual there were steep stairs with handrails. Water was a perfect temperature. Highly recommend the tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Roberta_g
Feb 25, 2023
Learned a Lot! - We really enjoyed visiting the Mayan village to take part in making tortillas and weaving and sewing. We liked seeing where they lived and meeting the villagers. The local guide, Manuel Ay Tuz explained everything so well.
Our driver/guide, Eyder Pacab was great. He took good care of us and was fun to talk to. His English was excellent. The trip involved a lot of time in the car to 3 very different experiences, all of which we enjoyed.
Highly recommend!learned a Lot
Review provided by Viator
Tomcantiteau16
Feb 22, 2022
AN AMAZING MAYAN EXPERIENCE - What a wonderful experience discovering the Mayan Community of Ek’ Balam !!!
The guide was really interesting and passionate, was a really good day.
All the mayan we met were really friendly, and they love to share their customs and arts with us.
Besides, the lunch was excellent.
I recommand the expérience 100% !!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
