Ek Balam and Valladolid Private Tour

With a private tour the guide can make or break the experience and Ana knocked it out of the park. She's an open water swimmer and educator so she and my wife hit it off straight away. As our Boys said (ages 15 & 20) she talked a lot without being intrusive. She was very informative and had a lot of graphics and insights to share in the van as we traveled and was completely hands on when we arrived at each locale. Ek Balam allows visitors to climb all over the buildings and we enjoyed the stunning views from both the Acropolis and the Oval Palace. We've visited each one of the iconic pyramids in the area now as we return to Cancun for vacation annually and this was by far our best tour experience of them all. The climb to the top of both structures is fairly straight forward and not taxing for someone who is relatively active. Ana was the first guide we've had who made the extra effort to climb with us and share insights along the way as well as take some great pictures for us. We also enjoyed our time at the Cenote Saamal where our Boys got to jump from the 15 foot platform and we all cooled off after being at the hot archeological site. The buffet lunch there was both delicious and plentiful with lots of authentic dishes and choices. Ana went with us to the shops as well and pointed out a tequila that is only available in the Yucatan and is similar to Baileys Irish Cream. She made sure we got a fair price as well. The Selva Maya photographer took pictures of our family and for $30 US we were given about a dozen digital copies via email and got to choose our favorite two to have printed on the spot. Lastly, Valladolid we had been to once before but that time we'd been left to wander the park area on our own. This time Ana took us to a fun sign of the city by the convent and then into city hall where she thoroughly explained the meaning behind each of the murals displayed there as well as offering us the opportunity to explore some of the shops. We thoroughly enjoyed this experience and will look to use this tour company again. Gracias Ana!

We had a wonderful tour with a tremendous amount of historical and cultural information from Alex. Our driver was Fernando and he made the almost 2 hour drive easy and comfortable. Thanks to them both.

We hired a private car with drivers to take us to Ek Balam, Cenote Maya and Valladolid. The trip was five stars from start to finish. The drivers were polite in the extreme and gave us a safe, comfortable ride. Upon arriving at Ek Balam, they introduced us to our English-speaking guide whose name I wish I could remember because he was amazing. A native Mayan speaker, he spoke both English and Spanish fluently. He was an expert on the archaeological site, providing in-depth explanations of what we were seeing, including the Mayan hieroglyphs. It was truly impressive. This is a lesser known site but all the more special because of the quality of the tour and the fact that it was not overrun with tour groups. We proceeded to the colonial city of Valladolid for a little walking and shopping and then to Cenote Maya. We opted not to swim but enjoyed photographing the site. The lunch buffet that was included in our tour was superb. The drivers told us the food was excellent and they did not exaggerate. I could tell they were really looking forward to the meal. Frankly, it was some of the best food we had during our week-long stay in the area. Loved this tour. Highly recommend.