Chichen Itza Deluxe from Riviera Maya

Posted By : KatiePotatie85
I've tried to summarise the Chichen Itza Deluxe day out we went on, so you can decide if it's for you!

Itinerary (yours may differ!)
- Hotel pick up at 7.50am sharp, with light food and coffee on the bus.
- 2 hours or so on a bus then a shopping stop disguised as a loo break. You spend an hour or so here being encouraged to buy tat.
- 5-10 minute drive to Chichen Itza and you spend 2 hours here (1 hour guided and 1 hour free time)
- Off for lunch (basic Mexican buffet but nice) with dancers who expect tips. Spend approx 1 hour here.
- Drive 45 mins to the cenote (1 hour spent here)
- Drive 35-40 minutes to Valladolid, and spend 5-10 minutes here.
- Drive back to the hotel (2.5-3 hours and may involve a transfer if you're in Serenis hotel or the Grand Palladium). Returned 8.30pm.

PROS:
1. The tour staff are amazing. Clearly passionate, very knowledgeable and super helpful, they're the stars of the day in my opinion. Victor, who guided the English speakers around Chichen Itza was so knowledgeable and very interesting to listen to. Noe (our overall day guide) has a wicked sense of humour that entertained us all day long!
2. Plenty of drinks and snacks available. It was lovely to be treated to a light continental breakfast (fruit and pastries with coffee) on board, and to have a few cold beers after the heat of Chichen Itza.
3. The bus we were on was clean, comfy and well air conditioned, a welcome break from the intense June heat.
4. Chichen Itza is obviously the stand out star of the visit. Absolutely magnificent and well worth the visit. This made the whole day worth while. You're also not harassed by the sellers in there, a polite "no, gracias" and they leave you alone.
5. The lunch at a Mexican restaurant was nice, basic, but nice and delicious. It's a buffet style with typical Mexican food in offer, so if you don't like tacos, refried beans etc then this won't be for you. You also have to pay for your drinks there as they're not included.

CONS:
1. From Riveria Maya, it's a VERY long day. We started at 7.50am and didn't get back to the hotel till 8.30pm. The journey time from our hotel to Chichen Itza was around 3 hours each way, so if long periods of time sitting on a coach isn't your thing then this tour is not for you!
2. The tour was disjointed at times. For example, we were picked up from the Grand Palladium in a mini bus and were told we were going to the main bus...they neglected to tell us we had a 1 hour journey to the main bus, so we spent 60 minutes on an overfilled mini bus being driven FAR in excess of the speed limits.
3. Chichen Itza itself is an absolute hot box...it is so incredibly hot and humid. No amount of fans, water or shade can protect you from the heat. So 2 hours here is physically draining just because of the heat, it is not exaggerated. Make sure you DO take a hat, water, sunblock etc.
4. Mosquitos are an issue at Chichen Itza, seriously, take industrial strength deet.
5. You spend a LONG time shopping during the "toilet break stops". You're effectively herded into a large shop that sells all sorts of tourist tat and you spend a good hour there having a "loo break". This annoyed us because Valladolid at the end of the would have been a far better place to spend an hour shopping.
6. Not enough time spent at Valladolid, we literally got 5-10 minutes which was not anywhere near enough to see the town or shop. This was the most disappointing element of the day, as the town is beautiful and bustling...we so wanted to stay longer and shop.
7. The shops you stop at are hella expensive. $7 for a fridge magnet that you can get at Chichen Itza for $3...seriously, save your money for Chichen Itza.
8. The cenote visit wasn't worth it IMO. You have an hour to get in and out and honestly it was so chaotic and over run with people. Plus the water wasn't crystal clear and there were lots of bugs, so if critters and chaos are not your thing then swerve the cenote dip. Oh, and you need a minimum of $5-6 to rent a locker and the mandatory life vest.

Overall, I'm glad we did the trip as seeing Chichen Itza was a joy. There are things that could be improved to make the day better, but overall it was a good day, just very long and tiring!
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Posted On : 2024-06-26 15:24:44

Posted By : O315UWkylek
It was a great trip!! Our tour guide and other staff on the bus were amazing! Our tour guide (Carlos Gonzalez), was great. He has been doing this tour for a very long time, he really cares about his work, and he shares lots of great information about the Mayan history and culture. I can’t recommend him enough! Our bus driver with the nickname (Jacky Chan) was great as well. Great safe driving. Also the last staff member Phillipe was very kind and courteous. Making sure we were all comfortable on the bus providing food and drinks.
These 3 make a great crew and I highly recommend them if you want to have a seamless amazing trip!!!
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Posted On : 2024-06-15 12:08:50

Posted By : cmartdvm
We had an amazing time. The tour guides were great and they shared lots of wonderful information about Chichen Itza! The lunch was excellent and everyone enjoyed it. The cenote at the end of the day really hit the spot. The spot to leap into the pool was a hit for the teenagers and young at heart. We can not say enough about the great time we all had. We whole heartedly recommend the experience. Beto, Philepe and Israel were wonderful to spend the day with.
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Posted On : 2024-06-04 19:32:05

Posted By : FrequentFlier814953
My family and I had a wonderful time on the tour to Chichen Itza and the Cenote. Our tour guides Paul and Josue were engaging and provided a wealth of background history about the Maya Temple and culture. The Cenote is also a “must do”. The waters are refreshing and the experience is one of a kind. The tour company picked us up from the resort and provide beverages and continental breakfast if you purchase the deluxe package. We also had a lovely buffet lunch in between excursions that suited all eating habits. Freddy our driver made sure we had a safe ride and Luis made sure everyone on the bus was well taken care of. Overall this was a 10!
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Posted On : 2024-06-04 19:12:12

Posted By : R551RBhannahm
It was amazing!! Beto was incredible at explaining the story of the Mayans, he was interactive with it and made it so much fun! Plus, Philipe was super on top of making sure everyone was well taken care of! I highly recommend going with this company, they do a great job of making sure you get your money worth!
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Posted On : 2024-06-04 18:16:10

Posted By : Z7500BMemmah
Beto was a great tour guide. Very knowledgeable, personal, and funny. He made the trip great! He also is a great photographer if you are needing photos.

The bus was comfortable and cool. A great spot to rest in between stops.
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Posted On : 2024-06-04 18:13:28

Posted By : peytont211
Very amazing experience! Beto was a fantastic tour guide! Would totally do again some time in the future! Thank you for everything!
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Posted On : 2024-06-04 18:11:34

Posted By : davidaL3113MK
The tour guides were very knowledgeable and the sites we visited were amazing. Seeing the feathered snake temple showed the complexity of its des
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Posted On : 2024-06-03 18:27:16

Posted By : B1061FEaleksandrab
Very good organized trip. Very tasty Mexican lunch which was included. Very nice guides, a lot of information related to Chichen Itza and about Mayan
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Posted On : 2024-05-27 19:15:37

Posted By : Passport53339776084
Overall a great experience. The bus staff and service was excellent and the places visited were awesome. My only gripe is that your first spot is at a tourist trap with super inflated prices. For reference my friend bought a bracelet there for 25 dollars while at a street vendor in Chichen Itza that same bracelet we bought for $4. Lesson learned is to haggle everywhere, whether there are sticker prices or not.
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Posted On : 2024-05-27 19:15:15