Chichen Itza Cenote Ik Kil and Coba Small Group

This tour was absolutely fantastic and I cannot recommend it enough! It does start very early in the morning but that was so worth it to beat both the crowds and the heat at Chichen Itza. Our tour guide, Tonantzin, offered a lot of great insight about the Maya and their history. And I loved both the cenote and Coba as well. A more detailed review about each aspect below: Logistics of pickup- One of the biggest selling points of this tour was that it was a small group and would pick us up at our hotel. The hotel pickup made the early morning much better. We stayed in Tulum and were the last pickup at 6:50am. I have no idea how early some of the other folks staying in other parts of the maya riviera were up but probably much earlier. I would recommend packing a light breakfast for the ride if you are someone who needs morning fuel. We brought bottled coffee drinks and protein bars with us to eat on the ride over. Chichen Itza did have some type of coffee shop (maybe even a starbucks?) at the entrance that we didn't need to use, but you could upon arrival. Chichen Itza. Truly a wonder of the wonder and must-see. It is such a vast site you honestly could spend much more time there and I have a feeling we will someday return to check out more of it. We got there just before park opening and missed a large portion of crowds and vendors, which was really nice. You spend about 1.5 hours on the initial tour and then are given 30-45 mins of free time. We opted to follow Tonantzin during the free time portion to a different section of the site to learn more about it rather than wander. It did mean we had limited time to shop for souvenirs and there were chunks of the park we only saw from a distance and didn't have time to go and look at, but we managed to snag a quick souvenir on the way to the exit. We payed for the souvenier in pesos but many of the vendors would have taken credit card or dollars. My only regret is not having more time at the site, but that would have meant sacrificing time at anther location, so to get in all 3 activities you have to stay on the move. Chichen Itza was just starting to get stiflingly warm as we left (around 10:15am) so I was so thankful to be there early and even at the early hour Tonantzin did a great job of keeping us in the shade. The tour does provide bottled water, we also packed our own. If you just use theirs I would grab 2-3 bottles to be on the safe side. We easily killed 2-3 bottles each just wandering around because it is hot and humid. Cenote Ik Kil- The cenote is gorgeous and again I only wish we had more time there. We started by swimming first and then did the lunch. We did not pack either snorkeling gear or a towel and I slightly wish we had both. This particular cenote was at least deeper than standing so I liked having the required life jacket and again the snorkeling gear might have been nice to get a sense of depth, but was also not necessary for it to be enjoyable just floating around and looking at the beautiful environment. The towel I feel you could forego because it is so hot and you do dry off relatively quickly anyway, but might have been nice as well. We did opt to buy chaco sandals before the trip and I am so glad we did. I would recommend purchasing some type of sturdy sandal for this tour. That way your feet have some airflow in the heat as you walk the sites and additionally you can just leave them on going into the cenote, which was really nice because the stone steps down to it seemed slightly slick with water. The lunch provided was average. It is a buffet and some dishes were better than others. The restaurant was air conditioned though and that I was a big fan of. Coba- I was really glad we saw Coba. It was very different from Chichen Itza and I almost felt like we were Indiana Jones going through the jungle finding these archeological sites. Everyone in our group paid for the bike shuttles (limozina maya as our driver called it) so bring some pesos for that as well as tipping the driver after. I was nervous that Coba would be really hot in the afternoon heat, but because it is more jungly it is more shaded and was manageable. And again would bring or grab extra water bottles because you work up a sweat. Would 10000% percent recommend this tour and would go back to all these sites again.

Seeing Chichen Itza and then Coba was a great contrast in understanding how preservation is important. Of course having a refreshing dip at Ik Kil between the two was perfect. Lunch buffet leaves something to be desired in quality but the cenote itself was worth it. Fun to get to jump from up high into the deep clear water. Very smooth operation. Our guide Tonantzin and our driver were both amazing and highly skilled. The private van was comfortable with AC and water. Tonantzin was so energetic, friendly, and knowledgeable about Mayan culture, and history, and she took great photos!

Such a great experience! So happy we had this opportunity! Enjoyed our guide, Nancy; so knowledgeable and good energy! Marcela did a wonderful job of driving! Thank you!:)