Roads to go, Places to be: Cancun, Part 7, Tours

Cancun, Mexico, January 2015

Tours

You can not walk around the Hotel zone without seeing all the tourist agencies offering tours to various locations in and around Cancun. You have your trips to Isla Mujeres, Tulum and several other places. We decided that we would like to experience some history while we were there, so a trip to the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza would be our tour of choice. We took a look at a few agencies which were all basically offering the same tour, which would visit the town of Valladolid, a Mayan "village", Chichen Itza and stop for a swim in a cenote called Ik Kil.

The prices varied greatly. There were agencies that would offer the tour for quite cheap, but would also require us to participate in a timeshare presentation. I've seen the South Park episode about this, so I was less than keen on doing that! So we opted for a more expensive option and paid $50 for the tour. We did see people who had paid $40 and as little as $25 for the same tour (don't know if these prices come with the timeshare presentation though), so a little price comparison would probably be in order.

We had to wake up at six in the morning and make our way to the travel agency in downtown before seven. We were picked up by a bus, taken to the Hotel Zone, where all the people going on different tours were taken to stand in line and get their tickets before being showed to their respective busses. Reminded me of a school field trip. Where was the buddy system?

On the road towards Valladolid there is nothing to see. Absolutely nothing. So sleeping would be a good option. Sleeping through Valladolid as well wouldn't be too much of a shame either. The town, whereas it does possess some historical value in terms of the Spanish building it as soon as they arrived, for a European tourist it's basically just another town with just another church. Just in a different continent. Of course compared to the new buildings of Cancun it is a different world, granted.

Inside a Valladolid church

Commemorative plates

The next stop would be at the Mayan "village", as our guide would call it. Having tried to sell us personalised Mayan calendars for $20 in the bus we were to find out that the village was in fact a souvenir shop run by the Mayans. Fair enough, they get money from tourists this way and that is all good and well. We were also offered lunch at this location, some tacos and chicken legs. Drinks not included in the price. The stingier people among our group just swallowed their meals without having even a sip of water to go along it. And do remember to bring your own water bottles with you, it is hot in Yucatan, even in the middle of winter!

We finally arrived at Chichen Itza in early afternoon. We were told to skip the long line at the entrance and meet our guides inside the gates. At least that's what they told us. I'm pretty sure that's what we were supposed to do. Maybe. So we skipped the line and were the first ones to reach our guides. But the other were so much slower than us, that I'm not sure whether they misheard the instructions or if we did. Nah, I'm pretty sure it must have been all of the others!

Chichen Itza is probably the most well-known Mayan archaeological site and for a good reason. It was the focal point of Mayan civilisation throughout the pre-Colombian era from circa 600 to 1200, before its eventual decline, and it was subsequently left derelict until the turn of the 20th century. Today it has been restored quite nicely (the main pyramid is fully restored on two sides and left untouched on the other two. According to our guide this was because they couldn't find enough stones to restore everything due to looting by the locals).

Speaking of the guide, he was actually quite good with a lot of knowledge and some interesting stories about the site, including the most interesting stuff about the Mesoamerican ballgame. You know, the one where the losers will be killed, I'm sure you've heard of it. The ritualistic sacrifices both on top of the pyramid and in the depths of the sacrificial cenote also made an interesting tale to hear. I can definitely recommend Chichen Itza for everyone interested in Mayan history.

Chitzen Itza

The large pyramid from its better side

Some wall

So if you were naughty, you'd be thrown in here

However, it was not all just great fun. There were a couple of things that were not perfect about the pace. Firstly, we felt like we didn't have enough time to explore the entire area. After the guided part was over, we only had some 45 minutes to go and search the different parts by ourselves. In a perfect world this should have been at least double that time. Also, the massive crowds of tourists have given birth to a souvenir shack phenomenon. "One dollar, very cheap, honeymoon price!" can be heard everywhere, up to the point when it actually gets a bit annoying. And did I mention it is hot out there? We had no hats and only a small amount of water, so we definitely should have planned this out better.

So off we went to the last destination of our tour. The Ik Kil cenote. So those of you that don't speak Spanish might have been wondering what a cenote is. Well, it's basically an underground river that has collapsed and formed a sort of water-filled hole on the ground. And this one was made into a swimming pool of sorts. Of course we had to dip in to have a small swim around.

Now, a couple of things you should probably know. The water beneath you is deep. It's very deep. Not only are you some 20-30 metres underground already, but there will be further 50 metres of deep blue river water underneath your feet while you splash around. So don't drop your locker key in the water. This is also a river, so there are fish. The tickling feeling on your feet? That's a fish. Small one, granted, but a living animal nonetheless. These are the same kind of fish you might have encountered in one beauty parlours eating the dead skin off your feet. And thirdly, and this is the most important one, there are a lot of people around you. If you arrive on a tour bus, all of the people in your bus and several others will try and get a taste of the whole cenote experience at the same time, so it is very crowded. And people can panic, if they are not the strongest swimmers, given all of the abovementioned factors. They do rent out life vests, so they can be a smart idea if you have a tendency to panic in the water. That said, mere 15 minutes after the biggest bus tour rush hour, the cenote was already practically empty. So time your swim well. And do go for a swim, it is stunningly beautiful down there!