Anyone travelling to Mexico should not miss a visit to a cenote! During our trip through southern Mexico, this was definitely one of the highlights. In southern Mexico, especially on the Yucatan peninsula, there are thousands of cenotes. Some more beautiful than others and some hidden dozens of metres underground. What they have in common is the crystal-clear water, making them the ideal place to cool off, snorkel and enjoy the Mexican sun!
General information on Mexico
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Cenotes, southern Mexico
What is a cenote?
Good to know
Cenote visits in southern Mexico
South Mexico's most beautiful cenotes!
1. Cenote Xcanahaltun
2. Cenote Secreto Maya
3/4. Cenote Samula & Cenote Xkeken (Dzitnup)
5. Cenote Ik Kil
6. Cenote Suytun
What is a cenote?
A cenote is a cave or pool of clear fresh water. They are created by underground currents and can be impressively large! Cenotes were sacred places for the Maya because they believed they were the entrance to the underworld. Consequently, in Mayan times, sacrifices, including sometimes human sacrifices, were brought to these places. Fortunately, this was thousands of years ago and today they are beautiful natural phenomena that you can safely visit. What you do find there now are fish and sometimes even turtles!
Good to know
Life jackets: At most cenotes, it is compulsory to wear a life jacket if you want to swim. Especially at the popular cenotes you won't escape this. Sometimes this is included in the entrance fee, sometimes you pay 25 pesos (€1.35) extra for it. Don't want to swim? Then indicate this and you won't have to pay for it either.
The guide: At some cenotes, you walk onto the grounds and there is immediately a man ready to walk with you. He shows you the way and starts telling you all kinds of things about the cenote. Super fun, but afterwards this friendly man tells you that you have to pay 100 pesos. Don't want this? Then immediately politely indicate that you can find the way yourself.
Best visit time: The same rule basically applies to all cenotes: the earlier you get there, the fewer people you will encounter.
Cenote visits in southern Mexico
All the cenotes in this blog can easily be visited from Valladolid but there are a thousand more. Cenotes are sometimes far apart or far from the ‘inhabited world’. The easiest way to visit the cenotes is with your own hire car. This allows you to go from place to place and not depend on expensive taxis or touring buses. This is because most cenotes are not accessible by public transport.
We ourselves toured southern Mexico and had rented a car from Sunnycars. We always rent our car from Sunnycars, because you are all-in insured here which means you don't have to worry.
Do you want to use your own transport but a car does not suit your travel needs? Then opt for a scooter or bicycle. Although we absolutely do not recommend the bike with the extreme heat, it is an option. If you want to rent a scooter, check out Scooter Valladolid. You rent a scooter here for about 600 pesos (€32.45). Here they have cute blue Vespas that you can enjoy touring around on.
South Mexico's most beautiful cenotes!
Through our trip through Yucatan and the many tips we gathered, we have compiled this list of the most beautiful cenotes. The 6 cenotes in this article are worth visiting, although some are similar. So if you don't have long and need to make choices, it's best to see which cenotes fit into your itinerary.
Tip: Visit the cenotes during opening hours or a bit later in the afternoon. Due to Instagram and others, cenotes have become incredibly popular and are often crowded. Going in the morning? Then you are most likely to be there all alone!
1. Cenote Xcanahaltun
You may never have heard of it, and that's exactly the point! This cenote is fantastic and is definitely at the top of our list. It is located underground, and through a narrow spiral staircase you walk down into the cenote. Once down, you look into a huge space with crystal-clear blue water and an opening through which sunbeams shine. In the cenote swim countless small fish, but you can swim just fine here!
The cenote is a bit remote and not that discovered yet, making it, in our opinion, the coolest cenote on the list. We visited the cenote at the end of the morning and were here all alone. We also recommend having a drink and a meal at the small local restaurant. Although they may not speak English well, with some gestures and improvisation, you'll come a long way!
How to get to Cenote Xcanahaltun: This cenote is about 30 kilometres from the centre of Valladolid. By car, this is about a 30-minute drive. The road to it is easy and parking is free. Unfortunately, there is no public transport available towards the cenote.
Entrance fee: Admission is 175 pesos (€8.40) per person
2. Cenote Secreto Maya
Completely unexpectedly, we ended up at Cenote Secreto Maya during our visit to Cenote Xcanahaltun. This cenote is also not very well known yet, so you won't meet many people there. However, that doesn't stop them from making it something wonderful! A beautiful landscaped garden surrounds Cenote Secreto Maya, with a small restaurant and several ‘chill’ spots. The cenote is already visible from outside and can be described as a huge hole in the ground. They also call this an open cenote. Vines hang everywhere, and the place impressed us a lot.
You can walk all the way down via a long wooden staircase, or choose to jump down from various platforms. You can also swing on a rope here, rent various inflatable tyres or take a boat to the middle of the cenote. Are you a real daredevil and is nothing too crazy for you? Then they allow you to jump all the way from the top to the bottom. However, we do not recommend this to anyone, especially since you have to sign documents stating that they are not responsible. But if you feel like an adrenaline rush, this is the place to be!
Note: The jump from top to bottom is about 19 metres. This is really incredibly high and it can go well wrong. During our visit, 2 men jumped down, one of whom landed wrong. Let's just say this did not look pleasant.
How to get to Cenote Secreto Maya: This cenote is about 30 kilometres from the centre of Valladolid. By car, this is about a 30-minute drive. The road to it is easy and parking is free. Unfortunately, there is no public transport available towards the cenote.
Entrance fee: Admission is 200 pesos (€9.65) per person
3/4. Cenotes Samula & Cenote Xkeken (Dzitnup)
Don't feel like covering a lot of kilometres? Then go to Cenote Samula and combine it with Cenote Xkeken (Dzitnup). These two cenotes are on the same property and you can visit at the same time. Both cenotes have a small opening through which the sun shines. The water is incredibly clear, so you can see the fish swimming around you.
How to get to Cenote Samula & Cenote Xkeken: The cenotes are about a 7-kilometre drive from the centre of Valladolid. By car, you can get there in 15 minutes and the road there is easy. Unfortunately, there is no public transport available towards the cenote.
Entrance fee: Admission is 120 pesos (€6.50) per person for a combination ticket.
5. Cenote Ik Kil
Want to combine a cenote with another attraction? Then this is the cenote you want to visit. Near Chitzen Itzá is Cenote Ik Kil, one of the most famous cenotes in all of Mexico and very popular among tourists. And by ‘very popular’ we mean really very popular; here you will see tour buses full of tourists. If you want to experience the cenote in peace and quiet, go in the morning, when most people are still at Chichen Itzá. But despite the crowds, this is a really cool cenote to visit. You descend steps to the cenote and imagine yourself in a completely different environment.
How to get to Cenote Ik Kil: The cenote is about a 40-kilometre drive from the centre of Valladolid. You can get there in 45 minutes by car and the road to it is easy. Unfortunately, there is no public transport available towards the cenote.
Entrance fee: Admission is 180 pesos (€9.72) per person.
6. Cenote Suytun
This cenote should not be missing from the list, even if it is not our favourite. Cenote Suytun is best known thanks to Instagram, and for good reason. In the middle of the cenote is a plateau where you can take beautiful photos. If you are there at the right time of day, a beautiful beam of light also shines in.
So why is it not our favourite? It is very busy here and there is usually a long queue of people wanting to take a photo. In the morning, although it is quieter, the sun does not shine in as beautifully then. As a result, we find this really a different experience from the other cenotes.
How to get to Cenote Suytun: The cenote is about an 8-kilometre drive from the centre of Valladolid. You can get there in 15 minutes by car and the road to it is easy. Unfortunately, there is no public transport available towards the cenote.
Entrance fee: Admission is 200 pesos (€10.80) per person.
We hope this information helps you plan your trip to Mexico. Do you still have questions? Then you can always send us a message via Instagram.
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