LDS Tour to Ek Balam + Cenote

We did our first tour with Alma's 8 years ago, and when we brought our whole family back to Mexico last week for the Christmas holiday, we knew we needed to go with Alma's again. Our group of 7 was picked up right on time at our condo on the day of the excursion, and we were the only ones in our group. Our guide, Luis, was amazing! Friendly, enthusiastic, and knowledgeable, our day with Luis was the best tour we've ever had. The van was plenty roomy and had lots of ice-cold bottled water. He made sure we could stop at restrooms along the 2.5 drive from the Hotel Zone to Chichen Itza for our first stop. He helped us zip right through the line (he picked up tickets for us while we took a bathroom break). He took us around the ruins to spots where there were no other tourists or vendors and showed us some very cool points of interest before making our way to the pyramid and ball court. Next, we went to a beautiful spot for a buffet lunch with traditional Yucatan fare before the drive to Ek Balam. Same great experience with Luis at Ek Balam where he did a masterful job explaining the history and significance of the Mayan civilization. He then drove us to the cenote Xcanche nearby the ruins. We practically had the place to ourselves! Never did Luis make us feel rushed, and he answered every question our kids asked during the day. He told us people rarely go to Ek Balam and the Cenote Xcanche when they book with Alma's but we'd highly recommend it. No crowds there and it's the only ruin you can still climb! He got us back to our condo safely and with the same enthusiastic spirit as he started the day with. At the end of the day, our teenagers even asked Luis to be in a selfie with them, something they've never asked their parents to do! If you're thinking of an excursion, book with Alma's and ask for Luis to be your guide (unless it's the same day we do our next excursion with them because we call dibs).

Ek Balam with Christian was incredible! The site was amazing and the information during the tour was awesome. We have done Tulum and Chitzen Itza with other non-LDS guides and they don’t compare. This trip was by far our favorite. Again Christian was a joy to be with and a wonderful guide. Ek Balam was not crowded at all like the wall to wall people we experienced at Chiten Itza, very enjoyable. We also did the lunch and cenote swim. The lunch was very good authentic Mexican food. The smoked pork was to die for. The cenote was beautiful but very cold water. We still had fun swimming with the fish, just be mentally prepared for a shock when you jump in.

We LOVED our experience at Ek Balam and Hubiku cenote. Germán Rosales, our driver and tour guide was fantastic! He shared a lot of interesting info about Mayan culture and connected it to specific verses in the Book of Mormon, but was very good to speak in terms of theories and let us draw our own conclusions. We climbed 105 stairs to the top of the temple, and saw where more ruins are still being uncovered. Hubiku cenote was super fun and surreal. Enjoyed Jumping 20 feet into the water, then swimming in the cave with catfish and water falling from 100+ feet. They had life jackets for those that needed it. The food was buffet style and was tasty, just be careful to stick with the bottles drinks. We loved the horchata but we paid for it later :) Everything was on time, safe, fun and we made great friends with the other family in our van and with Germán Rosales. Definitely recommend Alma's LDS tours and especially Ek Balam.