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Costa Maya: Chacchoben Mayan Ruins & Mayan Experience with Lunch

5.05 reviewsDay trips

  • 5h 30m
  • Free cancellation up to 24h before
  • 2 languages
  • Instant confirmation

Highlights

Travel through Maya history — then discover how that history lives on today. Explore the ancient city of Chacchoben with your certified guide before meeting a local Maya family, descendants of the civilization whose temples and traditions you’ve just discovered. Step into their daily life as your hosts share traditions and knowledge inherited through generations. Learn about everything from handmade tortillas to traditional home remedies, then make your own tortilla alongside the family. Gather around the table for a home-cooked traditional lunch, prepared with fresh local ingredients, Maya spices and ancestral techniques passed from generation to generation. It’s a chance to experience the authentic flavors of Maya family life while sharing stories, food and laughter with your hosts. You’ll arrive curious about Maya history and leave having experienced a little of Maya life today.

Inclusions

What's included

  • Bottled water
  • Home-cooked traditional Maya lunch with fresh local ingredients & family recipes
  • Traditional tortilla-making experience with your Maya hosts
  • Certified Tour Guide
  • Visit with a local Maya family in Chacchoben village
  • Guided tour of the Chacchoben Mayan Ruins
  • Entrance fees to Chacchoben Archaeological Site
  • Roundtrip transportation from Costa Maya in an air-conditioned vehicle

What's not

  • $5.00 USD copyright fee for the use of cameras at Chacchoben. This is paid directly at the site.
  • Souvenirs
  • Gratuities

Itinerary

  1. our adventure begins one hour after your cruise arrives at Costa Maya Port. Enjoy the 50-minute drive to Chacchoben, one of the Maya region’s lesser-explored archaeological sites, dating back to around 200 BC. Follow your certified guide through ancient plazas and ceremonial grounds and be amazed by monuments rising among the tropical jungle. Discover the history, beliefs and secrets of this ancient city as you walk the same paths once traveled by Maya priests, nobles and rulers. Discover the Gran Basamento and Temple One as your guide brings the ancient city to life through its architecture, traditions and legends. Along the way, discover native flora and keep an eye out for tropical birds and spider monkeys in their natural habitat. But your journey into Maya culture is only beginning. Continue on a short 15-minute drive to Chacchoben village, where you’ll meet descendants of the ancient Maya and discover how their traditions live on today.

    2.5 hAdmission included

  2. Now experience Maya culture as it lives today. Meet a local Maya family, descendants of this great civilization, and step into their daily life as they share traditions and knowledge passed down through generations Discover traditional tortillas, home remedies and knowledge inherited from their ancestors. Then make your own tortilla alongside your hosts. No family visit would be complete without sharing a meal. Gather around the table for a home-cooked traditional lunch, prepared with fresh local ingredients, Maya spices and ancestral techniques passed from generation to generation. Discover authentic flavors rooted in Maya family life. More than a cultural visit, this is a chance to share food, traditions, stories and laughter with the family who welcomed you — and experience Maya culture through the people who keep it alive today. After this special time together, relax on the 50-minute drive back to Costa Maya, bringing your journey from the ancient Maya world to Maya life today

    3 h

Cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.

Reviews

5.0

  • 55
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  • 10

Ratings come from 5 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.

Know before you go

Meeting point
Your tour departs one hour after your cruise arrives at Costa Maya Port. Meet at Plaza Las Fuentes, just outside the port area. Allow 15 minutes to walk from your ship. Provide your full cruise ship name when booking. Detailed directions and a map will follow confirmation.
Pickup
Everyone meets at the starting point; there is no pickup.
Ticket type
Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Group size
Up to 80 travellers
Operated by
Next Experience Travel
  • Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
  • Specialized infant seats are available
  • Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels
  • This tour will depart one hour after your cruise arrives to port from Plaza Las Fuentes, conveniently located just a few steps away from the main access of Costa Maya Port.
  • Please note that the total walking time from your cruise ship to the meeting point is about 15 minutes.
  • Cruise guests arriving after 12 PM. Make the most of your limited time in port by booking our Chacchoben Mayan City Tour or our beach break options
  • No port, no pay! Guaranteed full refund if your cruise ship does not call port in Costa Maya at all

How it compares in Costa Maya

  • Its from-price is 12% below the median of the 74 day trips we list in Costa Maya.
  • Its length is typical for the group.
  • By number of reviews it ranks 32 of 74.
  • The operator lists free cancellation on it.

About Costa Maya

Costa Maya is the southern Caribbean coast of Mexico's Yucatán, a quiet shoreline of white beaches and mangroves beside the reef, with Maya ruins inland.

Costa Maya is the name given to the southern stretch of Quintana Roo's Caribbean coast, south of the Riviera Maya and close to the border with Belize. Its shore is a quiet strip of white sand, palms and mangrove, backed by low forest, and the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef runs just offshore. Mahahual, a small seaside village with a long boardwalk, is the main settlement and has a dock for cruise ships. Xcalak, a fishing village at the southern tip, sits beside a protected reef park.

See all 226 experiences in Costa Maya

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