Ek Balam Ruins and Cenote Maya Park: Discover Ancient Maya History from Playa del Carmen
4.8
24 Ratings
Playa del Carmen
Explore the Ek Balam Ruins and Cenote Maya Park on this full-day guided tour from Playa del Carmen. Discover ancient Maya history, swim in natural pools, rappel and zipline in the Yucatán jungle, and enjoy a traditional buffet lunch.
Duration:
8 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Playa del Carmen - Pick-up at hotels in the Riviera Maya, providing transportation in small groups and without commercial stops.
-
Ek Balam Village - Between 10:00 to 10:30 am is our arrival at Ek’Balam or Cenote Maya Park -according to logistics-.
Ek’Balam means “black jaguar”, is one of the most impressive ceremonial centers of the Mayan culture in the Yucatan Peninsula, you will be witness off the incredible infrastructure of temples and plazas. You will walk through remarkable buildings and get detailed explanations provided by your expert guide during the tour. -
Cenote Maya Park - Arrival at Cenote Maya Native Park at 12:20 pm approximately.
Refresh yourself in the most impressive cenote of 196 feet (60 m) diameter an almost perfect circular shape. You also can do optional adventure activities: swimming, diving and rappel down 85 feet (26 m). 120 kg or 264 lbs is the maximum weight for the rappel activity.
Participate in an authentic mayan ritual, ceremony of blessings carried out by a maya shaman of the community.
Finally you will enjoy a traditional menu made with organic orchard supplies and handmade tortillas. - Playa del Carmen - Drop-off at hotels in Riviera Maya between 5:30 to 6:30 pm approximately.
What's Included
- Complimentary hotel pickup and drop-off
- Lunch included
- Free use of hammocks, towels, and lockers
- All necessary equipment provided
- Expert guidance from a professional guide
- Refreshments available
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Alcoholic beverages
Additional Information
Discover Ek Balam, a recently unearthed and reconstructed Mayan archaeological site, with a day-long tour led by a knowledgeable guide. Wander through the ruins, which are engulfed by plant life, admire the well-preserved carvings, and climb the Acropolis pyramid to take in the stunning views from its peak. Following the exploration, enjoy a refreshing dip in the Cenote Maya Park’s natural sinkholes, and then engage in both rappelling and zip-lining through the jungles of the Yucatán. Participate in a spiritual ceremony conducted by a Mayan shaman and indulge in an authentic buffet spread.
Currently, access to our archaeological treasures is on a temporary pause for an undetermined period while we implement new health and safety protocols as mandated by governing bodies. We eagerly anticipate welcoming guests once more. Should you book the experience in tandem with access to an archaeological site, and it remains inaccessible during your scheduled visit, we will proceed with the remainder of the activities, and you will receive a refund for the portion of your expenditure pertaining to the archaeological site.
- Minimum age is 6 years
- It is recommended that you wear comfortable clothes and shoes and bring a swimsuit and sunscreen
Location
Playa del Carmen
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.8
(24 Ratings)
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Glenn_z
Jan 20, 2023
Awesome Day! - This was a fun trip! our guide, Mark, was knowledgeable and wonderful. The whole day went smoothly. We didn’t expect there to be fun activities in the cenote such as a zip line and platform for jumping. The doo was delicious. We had s great experience!
Review provided by Viator
Savvytraveler1511
May 16, 2022
History and adventure in one day - My wife and I went to the ruïnes and the cenote and the Mayan blessings. One word. Awesome. The cenote is so beautiful. You can climb down or take a zipraft. You also have stairs but they were not possible that day. The lunch after the cenote is real mayan food. Yummy 😋
The blessings is a experience you have to have when being in Mexico. The ruins are breathtaking. Throws you back in history. They were and are great people and builders. Take my word for it. If you are in Mexico in Quintana Roo, take the tour. You won’t regret it👍👍
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Crowdedfalafel
Dec 22, 2019
A remarkable place - First Cenote I have ever been to - tall cavernous rocks with deep mildly cool water - refreshing in the heat of Mexican summer. The cavern has ledges from which one can jump or dive. Families with kids of all ages enjoyed it. A nice restaurant/bar adjacent.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
James
Mar 27, 2019
Informative but fun too! - A wonderful trip from our resort with Mathieu - Alltournative. Stopping at the ruins first, our guide was informative and answered all our questions, giving us a great insight in to the Mayan culture. Our next stop at the Cenote was exciting with the rappelling and zip lining. The water in the cenote was clear and refreshing.Our group of five consisted of a range of ages - from 26 to 69. But we all enjoy it very much. Mathieu took his time and was patient with our qualms about rappelling, but in the end we had a blast. The lunch they served was very good as well, with lots of variety for us to try. Thank you Mathieu! and Alltournative.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kellydu8629ks
Feb 5, 2019
Vacation excursions - What a wonderful trip!! Gerry was an amazing tour guide, love there's No language barrier!! The Cenote was beautiful and the view from the top of Ek Balam pyramid was gorgeous and worth the Once in a lifetime climb up and down. Quite steep getting down but it must be done. Gerry was an amazing tour guide. He's extremely knowledgeable about the Mayan culture, Ek Balam and Mexican culture. No question was too much. Would definitely recommend Alltournative tours and Gerry as your guide. I would take another tour with him.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mireille
Feb 4, 2019
Trip of a Lifetime - We were recommended this tour by our travel agent and I'm so happy we took it! Our tour guide was Christian and he was fantastic. Extremely knowledgeable and helpful, and a safe driver (a rarity, I've learned, in Mexico).
Ek Balam is incredible; it's not a huge tourist trap like some of the other popular archaeological sites in Mexico, so the place wasn't packed and we got plenty of time to explore. Just be ready for a bit of vertigo after you climb the 106 stairs to the top of the acropolis, and realize you have to get back down!
The Mayan Cenote that afternoon was breathtaking, and repelling down into the sinkhole is so much fun! Once inside the cave, there's zip lines and other fun activities for the adventure seekers, but it's also a quiet place to float in the water and cool off a bit if that's more your cup of tea. Bonus: the food on the Mayan orchard is amazing.
Would 100% do this tour again!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jack
Jan 4, 2022
Enjoyable trip - Trip was very enjoyable and I’d definitely recommend it.
Only 4/5 because the description says towels are included, so I didn’t bring one. Use of towels is NOT included and I had to put clothes back on while still wet from the cenote.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Marinarq5192uj
May 7, 2019
Recommended - This is a smaller complex than Chichen Itza, but it is definitely worth seeing, particularly because there are not that many tourists, so the atmosphere is better. It is a relatively short, but a pleasant visit.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Paul
Apr 14, 2019
Amazing Excurion!! - My girlfriend and I this past week while visiting the Grand Bahia Principe Coba went on this excurion and had a great time and learned quite abit about the mayan ruins and the cenotes. Meeka our tourguide from alldaytours was excellent and very informative. Its a bit of a hike to the top of the ruins but once up there you can see for miles. They are still resorting what they can there and the work is amazing. Now cenotes is an amazing site to see and be in. You can rappell down into the water or walk down the stairs into the cave. Once down there you can swi, zip line , walk across by the 2 rope line they have and for the adventurous ones jumping off the 2 platforms they have, onr at 10 ft the other at 20 ft. I did miner off the 10 ft one and had a great time!!! Good lunch as well. It is a full day so be prepared!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sandra
Apr 18, 2018
Word of Warning - The tour we were on was full and we were the last to be picked up. The last seat in the van was a hard bench style seat and there were three people crammed in, with little leg room. Both people on the ends had a sliver of view from the window of the person in front of them. The person in the middle had no view as the van was stadium seating and all that was seen was the road. The trip was about and hour and three quarters into the middle of the Yucatan which would have been interesting to see. Our guide, after speaking for a few minutes, said it was a good time to catch up on sleep. I felt there must have been something more of interest to tell us about the area, its people, its history.
The tour of the cenote grounds, rapelling and the Mayan ruins were excellent. The tour was professionally organized, with adequate timing for all activities.
I contacted the company about my concerns, through the hotel booking group and through the website but did not get any response.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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