Things to do in Riviera Maya & the Yucatan
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Tulum Ruins, Cenote & Akumal Turtle Swim: Private Full-Day TourThis private full-day tour from Cancun combines three of the Riviera Maya's signature stops: the ancient Maya ruins of Tulum overlooking the Caribbean, a swim in Cenotes Sac Actun (an underground pool in the jungle), and Akumal beach where you swim with wild turtles. A professional guide leads the day, round-trip transport from your Cancun or Riviera Maya hotel is included, and lunch at a local restaurant breaks up the eight hours.Is it for me?Book this if you want a guide narrating at each site rather than self-exploring, and if a private driver lets you visit Tulum ruins, a cenote, and Akumal turtle beach in one day without backtracking between them.
Sian Ka'an Sunset Boat Tour: Mangrove Lagoon Golden HourA sunset boat tour through Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve departing from Tulum, where you sail across lagoons and through mangrove forest to watch the golden hour from the water. The tour includes a local guide in multiple languages, a picnic dinner, hotel pickup and drop-off, and runs six hours total. You'll spot resident birds, crocodiles, fish and possibly manatees as the light shifts across the horizon.Is it for me?The tour departs from your Tulum hotel, so you skip arranging a ride to the lagoon—the six-hour outing handles transport both ways, which matters if you're without a car or staying in town and want to reach Sian Ka'an at the hour it's least crowded.
Snorkeling in Akumal from Playa del Carmen: Swim with sea turtlesSnorkeling in Akumal from Playa del Carmen or Cancun pairs a guided swim with sea turtles at a coral reef with a second stop at a cenote's underground river. The 6-hour excursion includes hotel pickup and drop-off, a local guide, snacks, bottled water and park fees; children from age 8 are welcome. A guide fluent in English or Spanish leads the group, so the commentary is accessible whether you speak one language or both.Is it for me?The guide speaks English or Spanish, so choose the language you're comfortable following—either way, the group stays small enough that you hear the commentary and the turtles stay calm.
Xcaret Plus from Cancun: Water park with underground riversXcaret Plus is a full-day water park and eco-archaeological park accessed from Cancun or Riviera Maya with roundtrip transport included. The park spans over 50 attractions across underground rivers, natural pools, cenotes, a beach lagoon and Children's World for younger swimmers. Your admission covers one meal at a restaurant of your choice with unlimited soft drinks, snorkeling equipment for the underground rivers, and access to the Plus Area with private bathrooms, lockers and changing facilities. A live guide in English or Spanish accompanies the group.Is it for me?Book this if you're staying in Cancun or Riviera Maya without a car—roundtrip hotel pickup means you start and finish at your accommodation, and the 12-hour window lets you move between water zones at your own pace rather than rush through a shorter timeframe.
Merida Airport to Progreso Port: Private Transfer with PickupYou’ll step off your flight in Merida and spot your name on a sign—then ride in air-conditioned comfort straight to Progreso Cruise Port with a friendly local driver who helps with bags and handles all the details. No waiting in taxi lines or confusion—just a smooth arrival that lets you relax into Yucatán’s rhythm right from the start.
Chichén Itzá: Skip-the-Line Tickets & Mayan RuinsYou skip the entry line and explore Chichén Itzá's pyramids, ballcourts, and cenote at your own pace. The ticket includes admission and government tax, so you walk straight in and spend your time on the ruins instead of the queue. Bring water, wear sunscreen, and plan for at least three hours to see the main structures and take a cenote dip.Is it for me?Right for anyone visiting the Riviera Maya who wants to see one of Mexico's most important archaeological sites without losing half the morning to the entry queue. The skip-the-line saves you time so you can actually explore the ruins instead of standing in line.
Tulum Ruins, Cenote & Akumal Turtle Swim: Private Full-Day TourA private full-day tour of Tulum combines a guided visit to the Mayan ruins overlooking the Caribbean, a swim in a natural cenote (a limestone sinkhole fed by filtered rainwater), and snorkeling with wild turtles in Akumal. The tour includes a professional guide in English or Spanish, round-trip air-conditioned transport from your hotel, and bottled water; it runs about six hours and covers the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula. A guide leads the cenote swim and the turtle encounter in Akumal, where you enter the water to meet them in their natural habitat.Is it for me?Book this tour if you are traveling as a couple or a small family and want the three stops—ruins, cenote, turtles—without coordinating pickups or managing a shared van schedule. The private transport and guide mean the day stays on track and you move at your own pace between stops.
Snorkeling in Xel-Há: Private 12-Hour Park Access from CancunA private 12-hour trip from Cancun to Xel-Há aquatic theme park, where you snorkel in a natural lagoon, walk jungle trails, and eat at multiple restaurants without arranging transport or timing yourself. A minivan picks you up from your Cancun hotel with a 15-minute meet-and-greet, drives you to the park for a full day of swimming, snorkeling, and exploring on foot or by bicycle, then returns you at the end. Park entry, meals and activities are your choice to book separately; the vehicle and driver are included for the entire 12 hours.Is it for me?Book this if you want to spend a full day at Xel-Há without renting a car or coordinating your own transport from Cancun—the driver handles the route and timing, so you only decide what to do once you arrive at the park. Choose the Minivan option if your group prefers a smaller vehicle; the Minibus works for slightly larger parties.
Tulum & Coba Ruins Private Tour with Xcaret Night ShowA 12-hour private tour from Cancun combines two Mayan archaeological sites with an evening at Xcaret park and its Mexico Spectacular show. Hotel pickup and drop-off, a professional guide in English or Spanish, transport by air-conditioned minivan, and park entry are included. The day moves from the rainforest temples of Coba — where you can climb the Yucatan's tallest pyramid — to the clifftop ruins of Tulum overlooking the Caribbean, then to Xcaret's cenotes, underground rivers and the night show featuring 300 performers telling Mexico's history through music and regional dance.Is it for me?The 12-hour day involves walking the rainforest paths at Coba, climbing the optional pyramid, and standing on the Tulum clifftop — so moderate fitness and comfortable shoes matter. The tour is built for small groups (minimum two people per booking), and the fixed schedule means all three sites and the night show fit into one day without gaps or backtracking.
Snorkeling with Sea Turtles in Akumal from CancunA full-day snorkeling activity from Cancun to Akumal where you swim in the Mesoamerican reef among wild sea turtles in their natural habitat, then explore an underground cenote with stalactites and stalagmites. The trip includes snorkeling equipment, a certified multilingual guide, round-trip transport with air conditioning, water and snacks. Sea turtle sightings are not guaranteed since they are wild animals.Is it for me?Book this if you're comfortable following a guide's instructions in the water and want the reef snorkeling experience bundled with a cenote cave stop—the full day means you see two different landscapes instead of one. If you speak a language other than English or Spanish, request it when you book and the guide will be ready to explain what you're seeing.
Ziplining, kayaking & cenotes: 2 days at Xel-Ha & XenotesA two-day activity combining water sports at Xel-Ha park and four cenotes accessed via Xenotes, where you zip line, kayak, rappel and swim in freshwater pools. Round-trip transport from Cancun and Riviera Maya hotels, breakfast and lunch both days, and unlimited snorkeling gear are included; you choose which park to visit first. Minimum height of 4.5 feet and weight of 88 pounds required for zip lines; cenote roads are unpaved and cell service is unavailable in the jungle.Is it for me?Two full days means you commit to both parks without splitting them across separate bookings, which locks in the transport and meals as one package. If your schedule only has one day free, this does not fit—look for a single-park option instead.
Chichén Itzá & Cenote: Tequila Distillery Day Trip from Playa del CarmenYou start at a working tequila distillery, taste the product, then spend nearly two hours exploring Chichén Itzá's pyramid and stone temples with a guide who knows the history. The day ends with a swim in an underground cenote before returning to Playa del Carmen. Private transport, drinks, and small-group pacing mean you're not managing logistics yourself—just showing up and moving through the day.Is it for me?Book this if you want the major Yucatán highlights—tequila, pyramid, cenote—in one day without arranging transport, entry fees, or timing yourself. The fixed schedule and private vehicle mean you show up and move through the day without managing logistics.
Tulum Ruins & Cenotes Day Trip: Swim Two CenotesA day trip from Playa del Carmen visits Tulum's archaeological zone with a one-hour guided tour, stops at the Mother Nature Monument in Tulum City, swims at Cenote Dos Ojos for two and a half hours and at Grand Cenote for one hour, and includes a traditional Mexican meal at a restaurant. Round-trip hotel pickup and bilingual guides in English and Spanish are included; the order of stops may shift depending on conditions.Is it for me?This tour works for anyone who wants the Tulum ruins, cenote swimming and a full day of stops arranged without building the itinerary themselves—the fixed schedule and included transport mean the day holds together, and the two cenote swims back-to-back let you experience both the jungle-set Cenote Dos Ojos and the calmer Grand Cenote in one outing.
Tulum Ruins & Akumal Sea Turtles: Guided tour with snorkelA 10-hour guided tour from your hotel combines the Tulum archaeological zone with snorkeling alongside green sea turtles at Akumal and a swim in Cenote Nohoch Nah Chich. The tour includes hotel pickup, a bilingual guide, breakfast, a restaurant lunch of your choice, snorkel gear and all entrance fees. Not suitable for travelers with spinal injuries or cardiovascular concerns.Is it for me?Choose this shared tour if you want three stops—Tulum ruins, turtle snorkel, and cenote—on a set schedule; pick a private tour if you need flexibility to linger at one site or skip another.
Private Romantic Tour in Akumal: Turtle Beach & CenoteA private 2-hour guided tour of Akumal with a professional local guide in English or Spanish, visiting the cenote where fresh water meets seawater, Akumal Beach where you can swim with giant sea turtles, and the coral reef at Yal-Ku. The guide shares the historical love stories woven through the city's streets and buildings. Beach and cenote entry fees are optional add-ons at checkout.Is it for me?Book this if you're spending an afternoon in Akumal and want someone who knows the place to shape the stops around what you care about—the history, the turtles, the photo spots, or just the quiet bays. A private tour means no schedule but yours, and no group deciding what matters.
Snorkeling in Akumal with Tulum Ruins & Cenote from CancúnThis 11- to 12-hour guided tour from Cancún visits three sites across the Riviera Maya: the Tulum Ruins perched on the Caribbean coast, a snorkeling boat ride in Akumal to swim alongside sea turtles in their natural habitat, and Cenote Nohoch Nah Chich, an underground freshwater sinkhole with limestone formations. The tour includes box breakfast, snorkeling equipment, a bilingual guide, entrance fees, one meal at a restaurant in Akumal, and round-trip transport with a vehicle change at a central meeting point so all participants travel together on the final leg. A Tulum preservation tax of $25 per person is payable locally.Is it for me?Book this if you want three separate experiences—Mayan ruins, sea turtle swimming, and cenote diving—in one day with scheduled pickups handling all the logistics and transitions between sites.
Pink Lagoons & Rio Lagartos Boat Tour from TulumThis 13-hour boat tour from Tulum combines Las Coloradas' pink lagoons with a guided boat ride through Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve, where you spot flamingos and crocodiles, then apply mineral-rich white clay in a traditional Mayan exfoliation ritual before eating lunch at a local restaurant. The tour includes round transportation from Cancún or Playa del Carmen, a bilingual guide, breakfast, the boat ride, and your choice of a dish at the restaurant; a preservation tax in Río Lagartos is optional at checkout.Is it for me?Book this tour if you're arriving in Cancún or Playa del Carmen with a full day free and want to see two ecosystems in one trip without arranging your own transport or navigation. The shared group format and fixed schedule mean the whole day holds together—you don't piece it together yourself, and the early start gets you to Las Coloradas before the afternoon heat peaks.
Xcaret Plus Tour from Cancun: 12 hours, 50+ attractionsXcaret Plus is a full-day tour from Cancun that combines a water park, cultural attractions and eco-archaeological sites in one admission. Roundtrip transport from your hotel, a meal at a park restaurant, and access to the exclusive Plus Area with private facilities and snorkeling gear are included. The tour runs 12 hours and covers more than 50 attractions across underground rivers, cenotes, beach areas and lagoons, ending with the México Espectacular live show.Is it for me?This is a shared tour with a fixed 12-hour schedule and a live guide in English or Spanish, which works well if you want the day structured and transport handled — you show up at your hotel and the park, meals and return are all arranged. If you prefer to move faster through attractions or stay longer at specific sites, the self-paced nature of the park itself gives you that flexibility within the tour's timeframe.
Tulum to Cancun: Private Driver & Flexible Sightseeing StopsYou get picked up from your Tulum hotel and have 3–4 hours to visit your choice of stops — cenotes, Akumal, Playa del Carmen, or the archaeological zone — with an English-speaking driver handling all the navigation and timing. Hotel drop-off is included, so you only need to decide where you want to go and how long you want to stay there.Is it for me?Book this if you want to explore the area around Tulum without renting a car or negotiating transport each time — the driver handles the route and timing, which frees you to decide what you actually want to see and how long to linger.
