RCCL Chichén Itzá Excursion Options

[RogerDodger247]

I have a port stop in Progreso with Royal Caribbean coming up in March 2024.  There are two available excursions to Chichén Itzá that I am considering:

 

Chichén Itzá Ruins & Cenote Tzukan with Lunch

• Visit a massive Mayan complex, which is one of the new wonders of the world with its magnificent pyramids and stone structures.
• Submerse yourself into beautiful waters of a deep natural sinkhole surrounded by lush green vegetation.
• Enjoy a delicious Yucatecan style lunch and flavored water.

 

Chichén Itzá - A World Heritage Site

• Guided walking tour of this pre-Columbian Maya civilization and explore its 1,000-year hallowed history.
• View the Great Ball Court, the Temple of the Warriors, and stand in awe of towering El Castillo.
• Includes roundtrip bus transportation as well as a box lunch during the two-hour trip.

Other than the Cenote and the lunch, does anybody know if there are any significant differences between these excursions?

 

Both are listed as 8-hour excursions and the first one is only slightly more expensive than the second so cost is not an issue.  Going to the Cenote would be great but I have no interest in swimming in it.  The lunch I can take or leave.  If the Cenote visit and lunch cuts short the tour of the ruins, I will definitely take the second one.  But if the tour is the same for both, I would go for the first one.

 

I realize an excursion from Progreso will involve A LOT of bus time and limited time at Chichén Itzá so my goal is to pick an excursion that maximizes the time at the ruins themselves.

 

If anybody has experience with these excursions or other thoughts, any feedback would be appreciated.  Thanks!

 

[Rock1t]

I have no advice to offer because I am looking at a cruise to Progreso in 2025 on Brilliance of the Seas but it looks like the Cenote is at or near the Chichen Itza site.

 

May I ask if you decided on one tour or the other and why? I am looking at booking this cruise specifically for the Progreso stop to visit Chichen Itza. 

[jean87510]

On 2/17/2024 at 7:44 PM, Rock1t said:

I have no advice to offer because I am looking at a cruise to Progreso in 2025 on Brilliance of the Seas but it looks like the Cenote is at or near the Chichen Itza site.

 

May I ask if you decided on one tour or the other and why? I am looking at booking this cruise specifically for the Progreso stop to visit Chichen Itza. 

We were looking at probably the same excursion as you for our 12/28/24 Brilliance cruise.  We did decide to use an outside vendor and do Uxmal plus a cenote because of the crowds.  We have never made it to Chichen Itza and we will probably try again on a different cruise to Progreso as our port time (7-3) was too short of a window for an outside vendor plus we are going in between Christmas and NY which may be a busy time.  If you do decide to do the cenote plus Chichen Itza, can you let us know how it was?