04 Dec 2024
This tour was probably the highlight of our trip. Orlando was a delight to listen to all day long. We did a cenote, lunch, Chichén-Itzá, Valladolid tour.
Pickup from our hotel to the “meeting point” was a little excruciating. 7AM pickup, picked up 4 other groups from various nearby hotels and arrived at meeting point by 7:30AM, only to sit there for over an hour waiting on the main bus to arrive so we could get on it. At this point I was questioning the choice of our tour company.
As soon as we boarded, they really turned it around. The main bus was in good condition. AC worked very well and seats were comfortable. Also had an onboard bathroom.
Orlando really was very good and knowledgeable. His English is probably the best I heard on the entire trip and his voice is very smooth almost like James Earl Jones. On the ride to Chichén-Itzá, he gave a lot of information on the Mayan people and also several tips for when we’re there.
First stop was the Cenote Saamal. 1 hour here. I honestly would have preferred spending lunch here and skipped the lunch stop or reduced the lunch stop to 15-20 minutes. They have restaurants, the cenote you can swim in (very cold) and a zip line. No way did we have enough time to eat, zip line and swim the cenote.
2nd stop was for lunch and shopping at Real Mayab Hotel for I would say 90 minutes. Food was so-so. Shopping was good and supposedly purchased from real Mayans.
3rd stop was Chichén-Itzá. Getting the whole group through the gates and past all the vendors in the front was easy. They split us into 2 groups, Spanish tour and English tour. We got Orlando and he is very knowledgeable about the Mayans and took us around and explained everything. They then gave us an hour to explore on our own. Beware of all the vendors inside!! Every inch, 150 yards around The Castillo, has vendors all selling the same crap and every vendor is calling for you to buy from them. Both sides of the path to the Castillo lined with vendors, both sides of the path to the sacrifice cenote lined with vendors. All harassing you to buy. The vendors really took away from the experience of Chichén-Itzá, not the tours fault by any means. But Chichén-Itzá was still amazing!
Last stop was Valladolid. Quick 30 minute stop. Had enough time to walk around the square, grab a snack, snag a picture of the church and then back on the bus.
I would have left 5 star if it were not for the time mismanagement in the early morning.