The cenotes of the Yucatan are among the must-do experiences during a trip to the Mexican peninsula. These natural freshwater pools, nestled in the heart of the jungle or hidden inside huge caves, offer spectacular scenery and unforgettable swims.
During our road trip in the Yucatan, we visited many cenotes around Tulum, Valladolid, Mérida, and Homún. Some completely amazed us with the color of their water, while others won us over with their wilder and more authentic side.
But not all cenotes are alike. Some are very touristy, while others are still relatively preserved. Prices, access, and facilities can also vary greatly from one site to another.
In this guide, I’m sharing the best cenotes in Yucatan that we discovered during our trip, our thoughts on each of them, as well as plenty of practical tips to help you choose the ones that best match your travel style.
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What Is a Cenote?
A cenote is a rock formation that is partially or totally submerged in water. Basically, it is a cave whose roof collapsed one day and later filled with water. Although there are karst formations resembling cenotes elsewhere in the world (such as in Cuba, for example), true cenotes are found only in the Yucatan Peninsula. In fact, the word cenote comes from the Mayan language and means sacred well. The Maya saw them as a form of communication with the underworld. The cenote phenomenon is explained by an asteroid impact in the region 65 million years ago. There are said to be thousands of them across the peninsula, the deepest reaching 318 meters, and most of them are believed to be connected to one another by tiny cavities.
To make it easier to prepare your itinerary or search for information, I’m classifying the cenotes by “region.”
What Are the Different Types of Cenotes?
Not all cenotes in the Yucatan are alike. They are generally divided into several categories:
Open cenotes: these are the easiest to access. They often look like natural pools surrounded by vegetation. Cenote Zaci in Valladolid is a good example.
Semi-open cenotes: part of the cave has collapsed, but the ceiling is still present in some areas. They often offer beautiful light effects.
Closed cenotes: Located entirely inside a cave, they are impressive because of their stalactites and mysterious atmosphere. Lighting is sometimes very limited.
Cenotes suitable for diving: some cenotes are connected by huge underground networks. They attract divers from all over the world who come to explore these unique galleries.
Cenotes Around Tulum
What you need to know is that there are dozens of cenotes around Tulum. We were just starting our trip, so of course we wanted to see them all! Don’t do what we did, and try to limit yourself at the beginning, because there are tons more near the other towns too, ha ha!
Gran Cenote
The first one we saw, but not our favorite! Here, people spend the afternoon, or even the whole day, because there are lawns around the cenote as well as picnic tables. The water is beautiful, with lots of fish and little turtles too! On the other hand, we found it a bit too “built up/developed,” and there were a lot of people.
➺ price: 160 pesos/person. The cenote is easy to access with wooden steps. However, it closed at 4:45 p.m. in January 2019.
Cenote Zacil Ha
Just before going to visit the Sian Ka’an reserve, we thought we could try to see one or two cenotes. We passed by the “carwash” cenote and explained that we didn’t want to swim, just take a look. Unfortunately, the 50-peso fee is the same for everyone, whether you swim or not. Too bad, we moved on!
We left empty-handed toward Cenote Zacil Ha, and there was nobody in the parking lot or at the entrance… I went in and walked slowly inside without ever running into anyone… I took a few photos and we left! This cenote is pretty nice but quite small; if there are people, it must feel crowded!
Cenote Dos Ojos
I read everywhere that it’s the most beautiful cenote near Tulum… I kept pestering Alcino to go there in the morning before visiting the Punta Laguna reserve. Once we arrived at the entrance, the first “surprise” was that there were still 3 km of road in very poor condition to drive… As its name suggests, the cenote is divided in two, and of course, what you discover is very beautiful. However, the facilities are mainly designed for people who dive: the two cenotes are connected beneath the rock.
Our opinion afterward is that it wasn’t worth coming here “just to see it”; the cenote is very, very expensive, and the ticket does not give access to the nearby ones.
➺ 375 pesos/person – Easy access to the cenote, but allow a good 20 minutes between the entrance and the cenote. We recommend this one for divers!
Cenote Punta Laguna
This experience was very special; I tell you more about it in detail in my dedicated article on Punta Laguna… Here, in the middle of the forest, there is a cenote you access by rappelling down a ladder. About twenty meters lower, there we were… But what makes the place truly unique is what was found underwater. Human bones have been submerged here… Rituals, offerings, a cemetery? We don’t know… An unusual experience guaranteed! There were so many emotions because of the place and the physical effort that our photos look like nothing… Sorry!
Cenotes Around Mérida
We had planned in advance to go to two cenotes around Mérida. One located near the Uxmal archaeological site, Cenote X-Batun, and then, when leaving Mérida, we wanted to stop at Cenote Noh-Mozon. Simple: we never found them! So we ended up going to other cenotes instead, Sambula and Cuzama.
Cenotes Noh-Mozon and X-Batun
We didn’t find them, despite the maps.me GPS, despite asking people we met…
For X-Batun, the road we were supposed to take was truly catastrophic, so we preferred not to venture X kilometers, have to turn back, etc.
As for Noh-Mozon, the one shown on maps.me is actually not the right place! Even the locals we met didn’t know it. We drove around for more than an hour looking for that one, in vain. Once we got Wi-Fi again, we read other travelers’ stories about crossing private properties, lifting barriers, etc. to find it. In short, we wasted time for nothing!
Cenote Sambula
We were glad we ended up there! When we arrived, there was only one family on site. The entrance is really different from what we had seen so far, so we liked it! After going down just a few steps, the heat hit us, and so did the lack of air—it was crazy! The water is crystal clear, and after being hot at Uxmal, we felt good here!
➺ Price: 60 pesos/person – Easy access with parking and fairly wide steps to go down into the cenote.
Cenotes Cuzama
There are 3 cenotes here that you discover over about 2 hours, with 30 minutes of swimming in each one. But I have mixed feelings about this experience… First, you access them via a small wagon pulled by a horse. While I found it fun and unusual at first, I ended up feeling bad for the horses… They were healthy and seemed well treated, but we really struggle with attractions that use animals…
The first one is magnificent; the ladder to access it is a bit “sloppy,” but well, we were hot and wanted to swim.
However, when we arrived in front of the second one, things got a little more complicated; the iron ladder was clearly scary. We were wet and barefoot, and Alcino slowly climbed down about ten meters. He came back up and told me it was still a bit dangerous: the ladder was slippery, for several meters, with zero safety. I started going down, not very reassured, when he said to me: “I don’t really want you to go down; would you rather we go straight to the third one?” His comment scared me even more, so we headed to the third cenote.
This time, access was “easier.” The setting is impressive; there is a whole “cave” section you can observe, with many stalactites and stalagmites, and the water is so pure. It’s simply sublime !
➺ 200 pesos for the 3 cenotes: the initial access is simple, and there is a large parking lot. The fact that there are 3 cenotes and that you move around at 10 km/h means you run into few people, which is great. However, we really don’t recommend these cenotes if you have children!
Cenotes of Homun
Right next to the village of Cuzama is Homun, and if we could do it again, we would have stopped there! We passed in front of the village church, which was just too cute, so of course we stopped. Right next to it, locals were playing soccer, and within a few minutes one of them came to talk to us. He is a guide in the area and really sold us on his village: much less touristy, with lots of cenotes too… He also explained that we were standing on the 3rd largest church forecourt in the world! (After the Vatican and Izamal). Crazy!
Cenotes Around Valladolid
Cenotes X-Keken & Samula
After visiting Chichen Itza, we skipped the closest cenote, Ik-Kil, because we were afraid of the number of tourists. We chose X-Keken and Samula because they are not very far from the city. The cenotes are very beautiful, but once again, it was a bit too “built up” for us. We prefer it when the natural side really remains. Here there are lots of shops, vendors, etc. So yes, I did find a great dress there, the water is sublime, but it still felt a little like a public swimming pool…
➺ 250 pesos/person + tip for the parking lot – really easy paved access.
Cenote Zaci
One of our favorites! This cenote is incredible because it is right in the middle of the city! We stopped by quickly “just to see,” and the surprise was so big that we decided to come back and spend the morning there. The second surprise: the entrance ticket is valid all day!
➺ 30 pesos for the day: unbeatable! – Cenote quickly accessible on foot from the city center, or by car (there is a parking lot). Swimming is also easy to access, even if it is quite slippery.
Cenote Suytun
There is no doubt about the charm of this cenote. However, it has become far too much of a victim of its own success! When we arrived, 3 coaches were leaving the parking lot, and there was also a souvenir shop with about twenty Asian tourists inside… We were so lost in the crowd that we didn’t even realize we had just passed the entrance without paying… until the checkpoint where we were asked for our tickets! The cenote is beautiful, but here people come to take THE Instagram photo and leave… On top of that, lots of incense sticks were burning, making the air hard to breathe (it’s already limited once inside the cenote, so with incense on top of that…). If we could do it again, we wouldn’t come here; we would look for more “wild” cenotes.
➺ 120 pesos per person – parking – very easy access.
Yucatan Cenotes: Practical Tips
There are lots of criteria to take into account before choosing the cenotes you want to see. First piece of advice: don’t just tell yourself, “wow, so beautiful, I want to go.” I’m telling you this because that’s kind of what I did, and I shouldn’t have. Or at least, I should have done a lot more research! In fact, I listed tons of beautiful cenotes that I had spotted on Instagram or on blogs, and we went there “just like that.” Besides, as I told you above, sometimes we didn’t even find them.
What you need to take into account before going to a cenote:
➺ The price
➺ Access
➺ Location
The Price
The entrance fee will probably help you choose which cenotes to visit. Simply because prices can double, or even be five times higher. We saw entrances at 30 pesos and others at 200 pesos. If you don’t plan to stay for a while, sometimes it’s not worth paying that much just “to see.” But that’s our opinion, of course!!
Access
We don’t have children yet, but we thought about it a lot when we found ourselves in cenotes we were afraid to enter. Some are well developed, with wide staircases, for example, or stone steps that are easy to use… But some are accessed through a hole via a very slippery iron ladder, all over 10/15/20 meters. If you are traveling with little ones, or people who are physically weaker, or just not very adventurous, you’ll be disappointed to have made it all the way there and not be able to enjoy it. I’m not judging anyone, since I myself didn’t go down into one of them…
Location
Even with GPS, the cenote is not always where you think it is. As we told you, we wasted quite a bit of time searching for nothing! Be sure to check the address, get its exact geolocation, look for reviews online, etc.
Miscellaneous Info
➺ Bring something to drink and eat if you plan to spend the afternoon or the day there; there aren’t necessarily vendors around. Sometimes there may be a bit of walking, or no shade, so it’s better to have water with you.
➺ There are cenotes everywhere, everywhere. If you’re looking to see less touristy and lesser-known places, don’t hesitate to ask the locals. They’ll be happy to point you toward the ones in their village!
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Of course, since both of us love the sea, rivers, the ocean, and basically anywhere you can swim… The cenotes of the Yucatan were obviously going to appeal to us! We loved discovering these formations that are so unique to the region! Do you know cenotes?
FAQ: Best Cenotes in Yucatan
Expand to see frequently asked questions about the cenotes of the Yucatan
How much does it cost to enter a cenote in Yucatan?
Prices generally range from 30 to 300 pesos, depending on the popularity of the site and the facilities available.
Can you swim in all cenotes?
Yes, most cenotes open to the public allow swimming. Some also offer snorkeling or diving.
What is the most beautiful cenote in Yucatan?
There is no single answer. Some of the most famous include Suytun, Dos Ojos, Ik Kil, Samula, and Zaci.
How many cenotes are there in Yucatan?
There are estimated to be several thousand cenotes across the Yucatan Peninsula, although only some of them are accessible to visitors.
Which cenote should you visit near Valladolid?
If you are short on time, Zaci is an excellent option thanks to its location right in the city center.
Which cenote should you visit near Tulum?
Dos Ojos remains one of the most famous cenotes around Tulum thanks to its crystal-clear waters and extensive underground cave system. It is ideal for divers.