Despite spending a good amount of time in the Yucatán, I really hadn’t had a proper cenote experience yet. I wanted to change that. Xpu Ha had also been on my list, and since I noticed that it was close to several of the cenotes I was researching, I thought I’d tick a couple of boxes at the same time.
There are several good videos on YouTube about these particular cenotes. Here I mostly want to focus on the logistics of this particular trip, since I was unsure how it would work out.
I went on a Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving. The forecast was for sun all day, but I don’t trust the weather forecasts around here any more…
Getting Around
I did this trip entirely by taxi, since I wanted to avoid renting a car if possible. The rental agencies policies often required 10% of the car’s value for accidents or charged 3,500 pesos for instances of minor damage. Taxis cost about the same in the end but saved me the worry over parking, damage fees, getting my deposit back, etc.
Colectivos or a taxi-colectivo combo are another option I could have taken and would have been cheaper, but I was more interested in comfort and convenience for this trip. Another, more expensive option proposed by one of the car rental places was to hire a car and driver from them for the day. The quote they gave me was 2200 pesos ($110) for 6 hours.
Cristalino Cenote
I found my taxi to Cristalino sitting on Avenida 10 in Playa del Carmen. The ride to Cristalino cost 500 pesos ($25), which was what I had seen posted at the taxi stands. After the driver dropped me off, he gave me his number and was eager for me to call him later for the return trip. He said to call 20 minutes in advance (I would recommend doubling that), so I assumed he would be coming from Playa again. So it must be worth it for drivers to do a round trip to Xpu Ha.
The entrance fee was 200 pesos ($10). I got there around 9:40 a.m., and there were only a few people there. I had one of the smaller pools to myself for a while. It was peaceful with beautiful colors and a little cave. The water was fresh but not cold. By 10:30, more people started showing up, so I hung out a little longer and then decided to move on.
Cenote Azul
A short 2-3 minute walk down the highway brought me to Cenote Azul, which had a 180-peso ($9) entrance fee.
This cenote is larger, with a bigger main pool and area for diving. It was busier than Cristalino but still had plenty of space to swim. It seemed like there were more nice places to picnic here. After spending some time enjoying the main area, I found a small, peaceful pool back towards the entrance. I didn’t swim there but just sat for a while and soaked in some tranquility.
Xpu Ha Beach
Taxis were waiting outside both the cenotes, so it was not problem getting a ride to Xpu Ha. The driver at Cenote Azul quoted 350 pesos ($18), which I thought was way too much for the short trip. He would only come down to 300 ($15) though, and I just decided to go with it rather than walk back to Cristalino or try to find another taxi.
Xpu Ha has a 50-peso ($2.50) fee per person to drive in. The beach was gorgeous and clean. I started at La Playa Beach Club. The prime front-row chairs there were taken, but granted it was already past noon when I arrived. I kept walking north along the beach and it became progressively less crowded. I eventually reached Duna Beach Club, where it was much quieter. I opted for entertainment this day and decided to head back to La Playa. Before I did, I took a dip in the ocean up in that area, where it felt almost like I had the sea to myself for a little while.
Back at La Playa, I landed in a chair on the second row, which was 200 pesos ($10). The shrimp ceviche was excellent, and I had a Michelada and a Cuba Libre. A live band did a couple of sets while I was there. They were quite good, but it was very loud where I was sitting. I had to put in my earbuds just to make it bearable.
Heading Back
Clouds started rolling in during the afternoon, so I called my earlier taxi driver for the return trip to Playa. I enjoyed the beach a little longer while I waited. It took him about 35 minutes to arrive. The timing worked out nicely, since it started pouring rain on the way back.
Final Thoughts
Great day overall. Both cenotes were beautiful and unique, and Xpu Ha lived up to the hype for me – I’ll definitely go back there. Taxis worked out well for the trip, letting me enjoy the day without the stress of renting, driving, and parking.
If I were to make a day of it at one of these cenotes again, I think I would choose Azul over Cristalino, since it seemed to have a larger diving and swimming area, and more areas to picnic and spread out. I would say that the water at Cristalino seemed a little bit cleaner and clearer to me though. I’ve also heard good things about Eden and Kantun Chi, two other cenotes nearby.