3 Incredible Cenotes in Valladolid, Mexico
Valladolid is a vibrant colonial city on the Yucatan Penisula of Mexico, known best for its proximity to one of the new wonders of the world, Chichen Itza. Whilst visiting the Mayan ruins is absolutely a must-do, Valladolid has plenty more to offer.
Valladolid offers the perfect base to explore a few of the thousand cenotes around the Yucatan, which the Mayans once believed were the entrance to the underworld. A cenote is simply a sinkhole resulting from a collapse of limestone, you will find open cenotes, semi-open cenotes and cave cenotes.
Below you will find a simple budget-friendly DIY route to explore 3 cenotes in Valladolid.
How to Get To the Cenotes
There are plenty of shuttle tours or taxis that will take you from Valladolid around the nearby cenotes, but this is far from the cheapest option and as a backpacker, I love a cheaper option.
If you don't mind a bit of a sweaty workout, remember you can cool off by jumping in the cenotes, I recommend renting bicycles for the day. This is what we did and it was a lot of fun, it cost us 100 pesos each (£4.25) for the full day's rental. You could also hire a scooter which would allow you to go a bit further out of the city to some more remote cenotes.
It was arranged by our hostel (Hostel 48) and the guy came around with the bikes and gave us some advice about the safest route to cycle. He told us not to follow Google Maps as that route has some issues with people being robbed.
Cycle Route to the Cenotes in Valladolid
We turned left out of Hostel 48 and went over 1 block before turning left again. It's then another 7 blocks going straight, and then you need to turn left again where you will see a police station. If you head down this road you will come to a cross-section, head towards the petrol station and you will find a little Oxxo shop. I recommend stopping at this Oxxo if you want any water, drinks or snacks for the day as they will be a bit more expensive at the cenotes.
From there head down to the roundabout taking the 2nd exit and then just on the left you should see the cycle path. Follow this all the way down until you reach a big traffic light junction, from there Cenote Oxman is a 5-minute cycle to the left or go straight on for the other two.
It took us roughly about 45 minutes to get to our first stop which was Cenote Oxman. And for the rest of the day, it was no more than 10 minutes cycling between the cenotes and the journey home seemed to go even quicker than it did in the morning, just be sure to stop for water breaks, it did get super hot in the afternoon.
Cenote Oxman
We were so glad to arrive at this first cenote, after the panic of are we going the right way or not, it was a relief to finally see the Cenote Oxman sign. We locked our bikes up around some trees and headed for the entrance.
We paid 150 pesos (£6.38) each for a cenote-only entrance fee, the other option was 250 pesos (£10.64) which allowed you access to the restaurant and pool area, where you could easily spend the whole day just chilling out if you wish.
Once you go through the entrance you will find lockers, changing rooms and showers, they ask you to shower before entering the cenote. Then head down the spiral staircase and grab your mandatory life jacket and you can gawp at the stunning cenote.
As this was my first ever cenote I was in awe, crystal blue water with hanging vines it looked stunning. Even though you are underground in this cenote, the big open roof allows the sun to shine down into the waters, meaning it's not too cold for a swim.
With a rope swing and a jumping platform there is plenty of fun to be had, or alternatively, just allow yourself to float around and take in the magic of your surroundings.
We got there about 10:30 in the morning and as we were arriving so were many tour groups, so if you want to see it a bit quieter I recommend getting there early doors, I believe it opens at 7 am.
Cenote Saamal
Just a 5-minute cycle ride from Cenote Oxman and you will arrive at the gates of Saamal. This was by far my favourite cenote of all 4 we visited.
The entrance fee was 150 pesos (£6.38) each and this included a life jacket, a locker and the entrance into the cenote. Opening times of Cenote Saamal are 9 am to 5 pm.
It was based in a lovely complex Hacienda Salva Maya, with souvenir shops, a bar, a restaurant, changing rooms, showers and lockers. Check out the courtyard pond on the way in as we spotted some turtles.
Once you locked your stuff away and showered off the sun cream, it's time for a swim. Just watch out on the stairs down to the cenote as I found them rather slippery.
With a large open roof to the cenote, the gorgeous blue water glistens under the warm sun. Also with a small waterfall trickingly down the side of the cave, it is a very tranquil space.
If you are feeling adventurous there is a jumping platform or alternatively, you can catch some sun rays lying on the small rock section to the top left of the cenote.
We found it much quieter and more peaceful at this cenote and at one point we were the only people there floating around. Not sure if this was due to the fact it was lunchtime, but nevertheless I was more than happy having a little peace and quiet.
If you only have time to make it to one cenote, this is the one to visit.
Cenote Samula and Xkeken
Just a short cycle ride from Cenote Saamal you will find these 2-for-1 cenotes, Cenote Samula and Cenote Xkeken.
Entrance for the two cenotes cost us 220 pesos (£9.36) each, however, I see online that people are saying it only cost them 125 pesos for the two cenotes. So I am starting to think we may have been ripped off here, if you have been here recently or know more please share it with me.
You will walk into a big open courtyard after paying the entrance fee, first stop and pick up your lifejacket (weirdly they asked us for our ID to hold as a deposit here, this didn't happen anywhere else). Then you have to decide which cenote to visit first as they are in different directions.
We headed to Cenote Xkeken first and after a short walk past some market stalls we made it to the stairs down, where we had to produce the entrance ticket so don't lose them.
As we went down the stairs I realised it was a completely enclosed cenote, there were extremely impressive rock formations and even a few bats flying around in the cave. As there was no sunlight beaming down onto this cenote the swim was a much cooler one so I didn't stay in for that long.
It was a short plod from Cenote Xkeken to Cenote Samula and again there were changing rooms, toilets and market stalls along the way if you needed anything.
Cenote Samula was a huge enclosed cenote with a tiny little gap in the roof allowing for a gorgeous sunbeam to shine through.
I didn't love these two cenotes as much as the first too, but that may be because I am slightly claustrophobic. I did enjoy seeing the difference between open/open roofed vs closed cenote, but if you're pushed for time or money I would skip these.
Top Tips
Have cash because most of the cenotes wouldn't accept cards for the entrance fee.
You have to shower before you get into the cenotes, to help keep the cenotes as beautiful as they are so make sure to do your part.
They make you wear a lifejacket for a reason, on average cenotes are 8/15 metres deep, so just wear it.
When renting the bikes make sure they give you a bike lock so you can lock it up whilst you are swimming.
Take water and snacks as they charge more at the cenotes.
Don't forget to reapply suncream when cycling between cenotes or lying out in the sun after a swim.
Visiting the cenotes near Valladolid was one of my favourite days in Mexico, with stunning views around and in the cenotes, it was a magical experience. There are plenty more around Valladolid so let me know your favourite cenote in the comments below.
