Chichen Itza Day Trip from Cancun

Cancun, Mexico

Spectacular Chichen Itza holds both mystery and magic. Explore the most important archaeological zone and ancient capital of the Mayan Empire on a full day guided tour from Cancun. Admire the majestic observatory, the sacred cenote, the ball court and the castle. Sample typical Mayan cuisine at a buffet lunch with folkloric dancers before beginning your tour of the famous UNESCO World Heritage Site.

During your stay in Cancun, you simply must take the opportunity to visit Chichen Itza, the most important archaeological zone in Yucatan. Explore the ancient capital of the Mayan Empire and learn why it has been designated one of the modern wonders of the world. Its extraordinary architectural beauty and geographical location are sure to leave you in awe!

Your first stop is a 50-minute visit to either the Ikil, Suytun or Hubiku cenote. The cenote visited will depend on which area is less populated on the day of your tour. You'll have free time to explore this natural wonder, so be sure to bring along your towel and swimsuit! By 10:50, you'll head up to the local restaurant and enjoy fresh salads, soups, rice, meat, chicken, fish, vegetables and other regional dishes. While eating, you'll enjoy a festive show in which the locals perform traditional dances to folklore music.

At approximately 1:00pm and once inside the world famous archaeological site, you'll be divided into English and Spanish speaking groups for a guided tour. You'll be taken on a 1.5 hour tour with a certified guide who will introduce you to the secrets of the Mayans. Your guide will explain the historical significance of all the most important sites before leaving you to enjoy the ruins on your own from 3:00pm to 4:00pm.

USD $59.99

Review by: IAN S	April 2012
GOOD BUT NEED MORE TIME AT THE RUINS.The large tour bus did not have enough leg room by Northern American and European standards.Far too cramped.A couple of rows of seats need to be removed.

Review by: Paolo L	April 2012
Good tour, wonderful cenote. Good food.

Review by: ADAM M	April 2012
great!

Review by: Nils A	March 2012
Too much talking on the bus by the guide, noisy restaurant and you only spend 2 hours on site...better rent a car to go there. Chichen Itza is a MUST SEE, the trip on the bus is not.

Review by: Marjorie B	March 2012
good

Review by: J.J.	March 2012
The reconfirmation of the trip was complicated and the agent on the phone start speaking Spanish and he left me waiting to speak with other persons... The trip itself was quite interesting, but it took more then 2 hours to get on the bus ( we were left waiting without any explanation!) and start the trip. For that reason we had only half an hour at the cenote. At noon, in the restaurant, no drinks, not even water, were included in the menu.

Review by: Yan C	March 2012
Wonderful trip and they really followed the schedule once the tour started so there were no big surprises. The only negative comment is we were picked up by a van at our hotel that droved us to where we would get on the big bus for our tour. I was surprised! I thought we would hit the road on our way to Chichen Itza when we were picked up at our hotel. Instead, from the time we left our hotel to the time we finally left for the tour, the process took 1.5 hours to drive to the bus stop, get our tickets, wait in line, etc. On the plus side, our tour guide was knowledgeable and funny!

Review by: Karen S	March 2012
As a family we enjoyed this tour. It was a long day but worth it. We were picked up at our hotel promptly, as arranged. The bus was comfortable and Ulysses (our guide) made great use of the driving time by talking about what our schedule was going to be for the day and he provided great info about what we would see. The stop at the cenote was a bit too short (there was time to either view and take photos, or swim, but not both). The lunch and entertainment was good and was included with the tour price. Chichen Itza was amazing. The guide there was very detailed with his info, this was interesting but did cut into the amount of time left to see other structures. We would have enjoyed more time to adventure around there. The bus ride back was fine, everyone was dropped off at their own hotel. Great day overall.

Review by: Chao C	March 2012
Good

Review by: Soumya deep D	March 2012
The guide was knowlegable....but lot of time wasted in doing odd things than actually visiting the pyramids. A 5hours trip was extended to more than 12 hours. Not worth the money spent.

Review by: Paul P	March 2012
At the end of this day trip, we finally made it to Chichen Itza. It was a very long day that started at the hotel at 7 am._br/_ We started with a long wait at the "mall" for a transfer to a bus. Then we stopped on the highway for a bathroom break. Finally we arrived at our first stop -- Cinote for a 25 minute swim and a show. This was very very cool. The cave was full of people and there was a steady stream going up and down the stairs. Next stop was a market next to the lunch restaurant. A 1/2 hour wasted on seeing the same junk that was not worth taking home, even though our guide assured us that it was authenic Mayan stuff. Lunch was all you can eat -- but did NOT include drinks. Pop was $3 and beer was $4, bus driver sold it for $1 and $2. There were performers that expected tips on the way out. Waiter also asked for tips. Food was good though and there was lots of it._br/_ Finally we arrived at Chichen Itza and got inside. The place is packed with vendors. Every pathway had people selling more junk. The guide as awful. We could hardly hear anything and his English was pitiful. We should have ditched the tour. HINT -- download some info to your ipod and listen to it, rather that the guide. Luckily we were there at 4:30 which is a very special time at CI in March. _br/_ Ok, back on the bus at 4:45 and hit the road back to the hotel by 7:45 since were were the last off the bus. _br/_ The worst part of the entire trip was our guide on the bus who never shut up.

Review by: Kshama P	March 2012
Had a wonderful time, our tour guide Antonio was by far the best tour guide I've ever had. Talk about being knowledgeable on the subject, made the trip very interesting, and we learned so much. Great time and absolutely loved it! Highly recommended, hopefully you'll get Antonio as your guide.

Review by: Constance B	March 2012
We felt like we were hijacked on this trip. We did like our staff but not the tourist traps along the way. It was a 13 hour trip and we only had about an hour to walk around Chichen Itza only to be acosted by natives trying to sell you something. It was rather sad. I think the whole thing could have been shortened to give us more time at Chichen Itza and less bus driving with all the stops.

Review by: Tracey S	March 2012
Chichen Itza is a must do and all the tours are the same but I found it a very long day and unnecessary stops. First you go to the Cenote cave to swim, then stop for lunch (which includes almost 1 hour at the mayan shops), finally get to Chichen Itza at 2pm and spend 3 hours there (too long). We left the guide because he was so annoying and he basically spends the whole day trying to get you to buy a Mayan calendar and other Mayan craft. Got back to downtown Cancun at 9pm. The whole trip could be a lot shorter and shouldn't have to put up with a hard sell all day after paying for a guided tour

Review by: YITING L	March 2012
LIKE THE TOUR GUIDE IN CHICHEN ITZA

Review by: Mike I	March 2012
Wonderful staff, charming,friendly,and reasonably efficient, yet the experience as a whole was disappointing. I had hoped to get a good tour of Chichen Itza, but what transpired was nothing but a sales pitch for average food at a tourist shop and a pitch for cheap trinkets manufactured in China! Long bus trip, yet only two hours on the site of the most ancient city on the continent. Next time I go, I will find my own way there and hire a guide on site.

Review by: bljdr	February 2012
Worth the money. Very nice and informative guides.

Review by: Laura H	February 2012
The first stop at the cenote was interesting and we could have spent a little more time there. The next stop at the co-op market and lunch was a good experience also. The food was great and the deals could be had (you can haggle for much better deals here than any of the other places we visited). We could have spent the whole day at Chichen Itza. Our tour guide was great and knew the history very well. Over all this was well worth the time and money.

Review by: Sriram S	February 2012
It was great and hectic day

Review by: Peter T	February 2012
This tour was quite well organised, however there was too much free time to do shopping and not enough Chichen Itza exploring time. Whilst it was great to be able to get to Chichen Itza and back to Cancun within a day, we felt there was lots of unnecessary parts of the day that we weren't expecting. I would have preferred to not start as early (7am pickup) and get back earlier (8.15pm drop off) and just go straight to Chichen Itza.

Review by: ANNA K D	February 2012
Very nice! I would recommend.

Review by: Lori C	February 2012
5 stars to Viator for the bus trip, lunch and tour. 0 stars to Chichen Itza as it has been ruined by the many vendors that hound you all day and who are all over the place. They used to be only at the entrance some 20 years ago when I first went there. I'll never go back.

Review by: Deanna C	February 2012
Overall, there were a lot of positives about this trip. The guides were great and getting to see a bit more than just Chichen Itza was nice too. It would have been better if we had been given more accurate information about departure and arrival- the lack of information caused some inconvenience for us. Additionally, at the end of our tour, our guide explained that he had an agreement with the tour company that his only compensation was from folks taking the tour. He was a great guide so I didn't mind giving him money, but it was unexpected and not really in the spirit of having paid for an 'all inclusive' tour.

Review by: Lawrence C	February 2012
Top tour, got to visit a nice cenote and of course the pyramids. 1 lunch stop was a bit long in a souvenir place but that is to be expected I guess.

Review by: TESS P	February 2012
Our trip to Chichen Itza was GREAT!! From the time we were picked up from our hotel till the drop we were treated like "royalty"! Antonio our guide was great, very informative and took his time to explain to us the history of the Mayan people! The stop at the "Cenote" was remarkable...what an opportunity to witness part of the Mayan culture. Also the stop at the restaurant was good, food was fresh and delightful. _br/_ The Chichen Itza experience was worth the drive there. To actually see the arena where the "games" were played in the old days and again the pyramid...._br/_ I would highly recommend this tour!

Review by: george t	January 2012
Chichen Itza was well worth the trip. Our guide, Juan Carlos, was good and shared lots of information with us. Having said that, here are some additional comments:_br/_ 1. There was not enough time at Chichen Itza. Could have used two more hours. This would have meant getting there earlier and I understand it is a long trip from Cancun, but we could have left earlier, made a shorter stop ( or none ) at the cenote ,a shorter lunch stop and leaving a bit later. You do need at least one rest stop coming and going._br/_ 2. The bus had very little legroom for a 6'-3" , 175 lb. guy. It got very uncomfortable in short order._br/_ 3. Our guide, Banda, at Chichen Itza was superb and totally fluent in English._br/_ 4. Another idea might be a tour directly from the hotel to Chichen Itza, with a box lunch in a smaller bus or van, providing maximum time in Chichen Itza. the guided tour is good and a couple of hours on your own would br highly worthwhile._br/_ 5. You might consider selling some guides to Chichen Itza when boarding the bus in the morning.

Review by: Jeffrey G S	January 2012
To many commercial side trips, very bad lunch, $8 USD for a beer, not enough time at Chichen Itza. LESS THAN 2 HOURS. Returned home at 9PM. I would say DON'T GO ON THIS TRIP ! ! ! !

Review by: Ryan E	January 2012
Absolutely perfect in all areas from pickup to dropoff. My only suggestion would be to increase by 1 hr. minimun private time onsite at the Ruins. There was MUCH I did not get to see, including the Museum. My wife and I will be taking another trip with a rental car to ensure we get to take it all in. Great job though!

Review by: CARLON H	January 2012
is a good trip but it is a bit longer then i expected_br/_ if they can skip other activities (just sightseeing for Chichen Itza), will be better for me to do others thing for the trip.

Review by: Andre H	January 2012
Beautiful site, but the worst tour ever!! NOT as described in this website.I was really interested in seeing the ik kil cenote, its one of the most beautiful cenotes in Mexico, but this tour wont take you there as described, they will take you to a small ugly privately owned cenote instead for about 20 minutes and then back to the bus! And that was not the only problem we had, the tour guide was clueless about chichen itza and Mayan history half of the time he was concerned in convincing everybody to shop at the Mayan village where the restaurant is located. we Felt like we were in a timeshare tour!! By the way Don't buy anything at the shops they will take you to, I found out that the exact same sculptures are for sale in chichen itza for less than half the price they had. Overall a bad experience. I have purchased tours with Viator before with no problems, I'm very disapointed that Viator would sell such a poor quality tour.

Review by: Zach G	January 2012
Should have spent more time at Chichen Itza. With all of the rigamarole we only had 2 hrs there. the tour was facinating and really worthwhile. Needed more time on our own to explore the rest of the site. _br/_ Too much selling on the bus, but did include a good amount of information as well.

Review by: Heloisa Helena Z	January 2012
the tour iniciated at 9 am but we just arrived at Chichen Itza at 2 pm !!!! this ocurred because se stopped at too many shopping stores ( really poor souvenier and very expensive) and to a mexican restaurants with horrible food!!!!! the only good thing was our tour guy, who seemed to know a lot of the whole place' s history !!!!!!

Review by: uznam89	January 2012
Everything was fine except it was not enough time left over for main event-Chichen Itza.Good food .Well done guys

Review by: Jeffrey G S	January 2012
To many commercial side trips, very bad lunch, $8 USD for a beer, not enough time at Chichen Itza. LESS THAN 2 HOURS. Returned home at 9PM. I would say DON'T GO ON THIS TRIP ! ! ! !

Review by: Andrew M	January 2012
A must for cancun visitors

Review by: Yi-Chin C	January 2012
Very nice. An unforgettable tour!

Review by: Jan Niklas B	January 2012
The trip was really good and we enjoyed it!

Review by: Mao C, United States of America	July 2010
Service was pretty good and the tour guide was great. Only problem is it rained a lot at Chichen Itza during summer time. Bring an umbrella.

Review by: Christopher C, United States of America	June 2010
Amazing experience. Pictures do not do justice.

Review by: Ronald C, United States of America	May 2010
Wonderful! This is our second time and we learned more this visit than the first with a different tour company.

Review by: Marilyn W, United States of America	May 2010
If you're close enough to take a trip to visit this site, you must! It is awe inspiring. Although it takes about 2 hours from Cancun, it's worth it. If you take a tour bus, make sure it's one with a bathroom as they don't stop for a bathroom break for a long time. This was my favorite activitiy I did on my trip with the beach side massage being close second. It's absolutely amazing and the tour guides are great. They both were bilingual and easily understandable. Loved this! Please be aware this will take most of your day, but it's worth the trip.

Review by: Jeanine C, United States of America	May 2010
A very pleasant and informative tour. Our tour guides really made the trip for our group. They told us the good places to shop and other helpful information to make the most of our adventure. We really felt cared for. They put in 110% of effort. We also felt very safe with the bus drivers. Thanks to you guys our trip was a memorable one!

Review by: Peggy A, Canada	April 2010
This was a great tour mostly because of our informative tour guide. He wa very knowledgable but also funny. The bus ride out to Chichen Itza is 2 hours each way from Cancun, so it is a bit long, but this tour is well worth the money.

Review by: Chris F, Canada	April 2010
We were the first ones picked up and the last ones dropped off. This made for a very long bus ride, approximately 4 hours each way. Seeing Chichen Itza and the cenote was well worth it, and I would do it again, but if you can't handle sitting in a bus for a long period of time, you might want to pass on this. Service and tour guide were very good. Our transportation was a very nice Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van. Very clean and comfortable.

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	March 2010
Fantastic Mayan ruins, wish I could have spent more time at the sight!

Review by: Rafael R, United States of America	March 2010
Great!

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	March 2010
Everything was great. The bus on time and tour guide extremely knowledgeable. He included history and information on the sites on our way to and from Chichen Itza. I was so very impressed with his range of knowledge.

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	March 2010
Definitely worth going to Chichen Itza. The tour is well thought out. The guide was excellent. Great experience overall. Definitely would recommend Viator and the location to anyone headed to Cancun.

Review by: Param Y, United States of America	February 2010
Very happy with the tour. The guide was very friendly, the food was good. Overall highly recommend it.

Review by: Sarah N, United States of America	January 2010
This was a great trip! The guide was absolutely fantastic and shared a wealth of information with us. We also enjoyed all the side excursions, the food at the restaurant was delicious, the cenote was beautiful and the water inviting and easily accessible. Even the obligatory stop at the local craft outlet was interesting. A word to the wise for fellow travelers though don't buy anything at the market, everything that is there is also being sold at Chichen-Itza for much cheaper prices. Also, be prepared with tips for various people along the way, dancers at the restaurant, waiters, bathroom attendants, etc. We took a similar trip when we were in Cancun last year, but I enjoyed this one much better, both because the guide was so good on this trip but also because I knew what to expect and so I wasn't surprised at all the people I had to tip.