On our recent Mexican trip, we had fun exploring cenotes and haciendas in the Yucatan Peninsula. What a great way to spend an afternoon or two: eating as much Mexican food as you want, enjoying a cold cerveza, and then going for a refreshing dip in a limestone cave’s fresh mineral laden water! Some have rope swings to take you out over the pool to make an even bigger splash, so have just a platform to jump from.
Many of the cenotes in Yucatan are located on the grounds of haciendas, which means they offer the opportunity to have a meal along with a swim. Many are also not as developed, and are in a more natural state, meaning you can enjoy them as they have existed for centuries. Try both for the best of both worlds.
Exploring Cenotes in the Yucatan
In addition to deciding whether to go to a cenote within the grounds of a hacienda, you also can decide whether to go to an open cenote or an enclosed cenote. But before we talk about that, I want to give you a little geology and history lesson (you know me, right? I can’t pass up the opportunity to share some random facts).
A little history and science
The word cenote comes for the Mayan word ‘dzonoot’, which means abyss or hole with water, and that is exactly what they are. For centuries, these holes or caverns in the limestone which makes up much of the Yucatan Peninsula have accumulated rain water, which often trickles down through the porous limestone, accumulating minerals along the way. This is one of the reasons many cenotes have stalactites (the dripping columns coming from the ceiling or walls). These pools were, and remain, the main source for fresh water for the entire Peninsula.
The cenotes were sacred for the Mayan people as they represented a doorway to the underworld or ‘Xibalba’. The underworld was where people went when they died, and they entered through the cenote.
Knowing both of these facts gave me a better appreciation for the cenotes, and I approached them more respectfully than I might a public swimming pool in my own city.
Cenotes are also located inside caves and caverns, and are then fully enclosed. Those are generally suitable for trips with trained guides, and often require scuba experience, and no fear of enclosed spaces.
The easiest ones to visit for a pleasant swim are the open and semi-enclosed, which pretty much refers to the comparative size of the open air above the water. It also directly affects the amount of light that reaches down to the water, and to some degree, the water temperature.
Cenotes to Explore
Here is a list of some of the open cenotes suggested by the Yucatan Travel Board:
And here are some enclosed cenotes they suggest:
- Balmi
- Canunchen
- Chihuan
- Sambula
- Samula
- San Ignacio
- Santa Rosa
- Suytun
- Tsukan
- Tza Ujun Kat
- Xkeken
- Yaal Utzil
We visited two different cenotes, both on the grounds of haciendas. At both we enjoyed a buffet of Mexican food, and a beer or two. Both cenotes had changing rooms, and lockers and towels to rent. All cenotes require that you shower before entering the water to get sunscreen, lotion, perfumes, etc. off of you (remember these are the water source for people).
Haciendas in Yucatan
Haciendas in the Yucatan were developed to process sisal or Henequen. We learned about that during our daytrip to Merida. They were basically small factory towns, with housing, a chapel, storage facilities, and processing areas. Many are now luxury hotels, spas, and resorts. Some are museums. Some are in ruins.
Here is a list of some haciendas recommended by the Yucatan Travel Board:
- Hacienda Chaka
- Hacienda Chenche de las Torres
- Hacienda Mucuyche
- Hacienda Museo Yaxcopoil
- Hacienda San Antonio Millet
- Hacienda San Pedro Ochil
- Hacienda San Jose Cholul
- Hacienda Santa Lucia Kantonya
- Hacienda Sotuta de Peon
- Hacienda Temozon
- Hacienda Teya
- Hacienda Xtepen
- Hacienda Yunku
- Hacienda Zamna
Exploring Cenotes and Haciendas in the Yucatan Peninsula
Some Haciendas also offer half day packages or lunch/swim combo packages. We enjoyed two different hacienda with cenotes that way.
Oxman Hacienda
On our drive from Valladolid to the Chichen Itza area, we stopped for lunch and a swim at Hacienda Oxman, which has an on-site cenote.
We had a full Mexican buffet and Jamaica tea (which is tea made from hibiscus flowers, and which I adore). Then we changed, showered, and started down a loooong flight of stairs carved through the limestone down to the cenote. And I mean through the limestone. It was basically a vertical tunnel, like an elevator shaft, with a circular set of stairs, down into, well, the abyss. I don’t have any pictures of the stairs, but this picture from ground level shows you how far down they went.
When we got down there, the air temperature was probably 10 degrees cooler than on the ground (it was in the mid 80s that day and sunny). They gave you a life jacket and you had a choice of whether to swing out on a rope, jump, or climb down a set of wooden stairs into the water. I opted to swing. I did swing, but not gracefully. However, my brother made a picture perfect entrance into the water on his attempt. Our friends also were much more graceful than I was.
The water was cool and so refreshing, and the walls of the cenote were dripping water and covered with small plants.
Hacienda Selva Maya
On our return trip from Ek Balam to Mayaland resort, we also stopped for lunch and a swim at Hacienda Selva Maya. Here they also had a huge buffet, and we had a beer for the swim. We also had a beer for the ride back to the resort. The mole at Selva Maya was quite good, and I highly recommend it.
This dressing area was larger, and there were more showers. They were also much stricter about showering here. The stairs were less steep and were not in a vertical shaft, but rather along the interior walls of the cenote. There was no rope swing here, but you could jump from the platform, or take the stairs into the water. Many of our friends took this opportunity to cannonball into the water to see who could make the biggest splash. The water here was a little cooler, but just as clear and fresh as you could imagine.
Hopefully, the next time you get to Mexico, you will have fun exploring cenotes and haciendas in the Yucatan Peninsula.
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