Sitting in Cancun, Mexico, is the exciting theme park, Xcaret, and all of the other parks that it has to offer, alongside the hotel. Xcaret (pronounced ish-car-et) is an eco-park, that was built near Mayan ruins that you can actually observe in the park. It also offers insight on the wildlife, history and culture of the area. You can snorkel, swim with manatees, zipline and partake in some good eats by taking a trip to this action-packed park. Overall, there are actually four parks for you to explore under the Xcaret umbrella, all offering different experiences, so you’ll be anything but bored.
Xcaret Park
Obviously, the first park that you need to visit is Xcaret! It has over 50 natural and cultural attractions for you to explore, it’s also a great place to bring the family, as there’s a little something for everyone. Be sure to bring your swimsuit when you visit, because you’ll have plenty of opportunities to get wet, as Xcaret has multiple underground rivers, a lagoon, a beach area and even places for the little ones to play in shallow water. You can also learn about the native wildlife by visiting the aquarium, aviary and butterfly garden. The park even features a multitude of awe-inspiring live shows that can thrill you and teach you about the local culture. One of their most popular shows is called the Xcaret Mexico Espectacular. The grand show tells the history of the area and showcases the different cultural regions throughout Mexico, through dances and a variety of music.
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Xel-Há
Xel-Há is the second most popular park, second only to Xcaret and it brings a lot of great things to the table. It is a little closer to the tourist hot spot of Tulum, so depending on where you’re staying it might be a little bit more of a drive, but you can take a shuttle there from the Xcaret hotel as long as you book it ahead of time. There are a ton of great places to snorkel here, as well as waterslides, cliff jumping opportunities and rope games. Climb your way to the top of the scenic lighthouse and enjoy views of the jungle that you’ll never forget, then slide your way down on a massive slide! However you spend to choose your day here, you’re guaranteed a good time.
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Xenses
This one may seem a little out of the ordinary, but it’s worth the trip. The point of this park is to engage and trick all of your individual senses and trust us, it works. There are optical illusions all over to place. You can fly like a bird, float through a warm clay river, go on a waterslide through a cave or stroll through a village that may confuse your balancing abilities. If you’re brave enough to take it on, you can also test out your senses by walking through a maze that goes through a variety of ecosystems, all in complete darkness. It’s definitely a unique park, so how could you miss it?!
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Xplor
Xplor is for all of the adventure seekers and adrenaline rush lovers out there because this park is sure to get your heart pumping. It offers another underground river, similar to Xcaret, but this one is entirely in a cave. You also will have a multitude of ziplining opportunities, with the highest ziplines in the Riviera Maya. We actually recommend doing this park at night, which they call Xplor Fuego. Not only are the prices better, but there are fewer crowds and some fun additions, like torches lighting the way on your ziplining adventure.
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Other Things to do at the Xcaret Parks
Xcaret offers a lot more than just their main parks of course. You can take a variety of tours through them, one being their Xenotes tour. In this tour, they take you to four different kinds of cenotes, where you can enjoy things like kayaking, swimming and ziplining. Each cenote offers different kinds of activities, and this is the only tour that takes you to four types of existing cenotes. They also offer tours to ruins such as Chichen Itza and Tulum. Most of these tours leave from the Xcaret hotel, which segues us to another great thing offered by Xcaret, the accommodations.
If you’re looking to get the full Xcaret experience, you can stay at the all-inclusive Hotel Xcaret Mexico. It has shows and activities of its own, along with a private beach, cenotes and restaurants. You also have easy access to all of the parks via shuttle and/or boat.
If you go, take advantage of are the wristbands. When you scan your wristband at one of the various locations throughout the site, you’ll get some photos snapped of you and your crew. So you won’t have to risk carrying a phone or camera around.
Overall, there’s just so much to do at the parks and even the hotel. Choose your own adventure here, or just opt to hang and see the sites.