leaving in 4 weeks to cancun, got an email from the hotel asking about activities;

the provided list;
- **Xcaret**: An eco-archaeological park where you can explore underground rivers, see local wildlife, and enjoy cultural shows.
- **Xel-H**: A natural park featuring a stunning natural aquarium, perfect for swimming and snorkeling.
- **Chichen Itza**: A tour to one of the Seven Wonders of the World, where you can explore ancient Mayan ruins.
- **Tulum**: A visit to the breathtaking Mayan ruins overlooking the sea, combining history with beautiful beaches.
- **Isla Mujeres by Catamaran**: A catamaran ride to the gorgeous Isla Mujeres, where you can enjoy pristine beaches and snorkeling.
- **Yachts**: Rent a private yacht for a personalized experience on the Caribbean Sea.
- **ATVs and Ziplines**: Exciting adventures in the jungle with ATV rides and ziplines.
- **Cenotes**: Discover cenotes, natural crystal-clear water formations ideal for swimming and relaxing.

Any feedback on any of these?

We are with 2 other families, 6 kids in total ages, 7-10.

one family mentioned going to Xavage as well.

We are staying at royalton splash riviera maya if that makes a difference.

Isla
Rent golf carts

You can't go wrong with most of the Xcaret parks.

Usually the ATV's and ziplines are short in duration, so keep that in mind.

Isla - while lovely for adults, I'm not sure it will keep kiddos entertained as much (although snorkeling/boat part would be fine). Same with Tulum, not sure kids will enjoy historical ruins.

Chichen Itza - big fat no. It is FAR and it is hotter than hades. Historical as well. While I enjoyed it, I will never do it again unless we were much closer.

Xcaret or Snorkeling would be best options for kids. There is nothing I would rather do less with a bunch of children than tour the ruins. It's brutally hot and humid. We are also going in 4 weeks and do one excursion max per trip (7-12 y/o kids). Typically snorkel in Playa, PM or Akumal. The water is going to be awesome from what I've heard recently. Very little sargassum. Xcaret is what we may do this year.

Based upon my experience with cenotes, I would equate it to a public pool.

Our experience was with Royal Caribbean, so YMMV.

The ATV excursions were limited to age 16 and above. Idk if this was a RC stipulation or a rule set by the tour companies. We couldn't even book an ATV excursion because the cruise line knew we had a 14 year old in our party (which was weird/frustrating because he could have been a passenger).

We opted for snorkeling with the cenote/cave. The snorkeling was at some kind of ecopark. Honestly it was hard to see very much - just a few little fish in some cloudy water (because we were a decently large group). And none of the fish were interesting - very small and bait-like.

However, we loved the cenote. The one we went to had a zip line and a jumping platform. If you ever went to River Country at Disney World back in the 80s,it very much reminded me of that. Our three teenage boys had a great time jumping off the platform and 2/3 loved the zip line.

There was also a little walking/wading excursion into a cave. The cave was pretty cool. The cenote was much less crowded than the snorkel lagoon.

Sit in my beach chair all day and have beverages and food brought to me.

AgOutsideAustin said:

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Sit in my beach chair all day and have beverages and food brought to me.

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well that's the other 5 days

We like doing adventurous things.

The Jungle tour on mini speed boat

My wife and I did this and it was fun. They took pictures with a drone of us hauling a** through the mangrovers. Neat experience

rlb28 said:

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The Jungle tour on mini speed boat

My wife and I did this and it was fun. They took pictures with a drone of us hauling a** through the mangrovers. Neat experience

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wife I did the same thing at Cancun adventures. That was fun.

TXTransplant said:

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Our experience was with Royal Caribbean, so YMMV.

The ATV excursions were limited to age 16 and above. Idk if this was a RC stipulation or a rule set by the tour companies. We couldn't even book an ATV excursion because the cruise line knew we had a 14 year old in our party (which was weird/frustrating because he could have been a passenger).

We opted for snorkeling with the censored/cave. The snorkeling was at some kind of ecopark. Honestly it was hard to see very much - just a few little fish in some cloudy water (because we were a decently large group). And none of the fish were interesting - very small and bait-like.

However, we loved the cenote. The one we went to had a zip line and a jumping platform. If you ever went to River Country at Disney World back in the 80s,it very much reminded me of that. Our three teenage boys had a great time jumping off the platform and 2/3 loved the zip line.

There was also a little walking/wading excursion into a cave. The cave was pretty cool. The cenote was much less crowded than the snorkel lagoon.

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this must be company dependent, xavage.com says a min age for 5, 48" for atvs as passenger. 18+ to drive.

Sargassum is dependent on the weather and currents. It hasn't been bad since Beryl but there have been days where it's really heavy. It's impossible to predict outside of once November hits it slows down dramatically.

Of the last month I'd say we've had 4/5 heavy sargassum days. Usually in September it would be 2-3x that number. So yes, well below average but that doesn't mean we won't get swamped between now and November.

We live in Quintana Roo.

For what it's worth, our kids and most of their friends prefer Nickelodeon over XCaret and it's a lot closer to Cancun than Xcaret. It's pricey, but well worth it. You also won't get as many people at Nick vs Xcaret because there's no real local discount.

If you have anyonce recommend the new Jaguar Park in Tulum, DONT GO. It's only about 1/3 complete. We've been hearing nothing but complaints for people that have gone.

As a travel advisor Living Dreams is one of my personal favorite excursion operators in the Riviera Maya. John one of the co-owners is very hands on, I've personally done 3 of their tours and send clients to them all of the time. Things can be customized to exactly what you are looking for. If you need help shoot me an email. Contact info is in my bio.

Here is the link to look at what they offer
https://book.peek.com/s/1a217e23-03f7-4f91-b193-d02bb9f79ae9/1vwaR?channelId=9c2axng8m1fhcyd0o52j2kazs

Also should add that there have been multiple taxi strikes along the highway between Tulum and PDC. If you can avoid going south of PDC, you may save yourself a real headache if they strike again while you're here. It's been a 6-9 hour complete closure on the days they strike.