Tour Reviews

Stormy
Austin, TX, USA
Chacchoben Ruins
Vision of the Seas

Book it, you'll thank me later.

I was a little nervous booking this experience because it was not through our cruise line and this was my first time in Mexico.

Our first stop was in Costa Maya and second was in Cozumel. We began comparing excursions and noticed that and it was only a 45 minute drive to and from the Chacchoben Ruins vs the 6 hours(!) of travel time to the Chichen Itza ruins in Cozumel. l was unsure of what to expect as I knew that we would have to find the Native Choice office, since we didn't book through the cruise line.

But it was easy enough to find and Native Choice will send you a map (just remember to print/download it) with your confirmation e-mail. We arrived at the office a little late and unsure that we would still be able to go. But everyone was friendly and we were soon on our way in a van. Native Choice provided a tour guide Fabiola and a driver Alejandro. Both were incredibly knowledgeable and very nice!

On the way to the site Fabiola gave a brief lecture on the geography of Mexico, Mayan history, and Mayan culture, occasionally consulting Alejandro. She had a backpack full of goodies to use as demonstration which she also used at the site. When we arrived at the site we were allowed to use the restroom facilities and then walked a brief path to the ruins. Wow! Beautiful! While there Fabiola gave us information on commonly used plants and trees by the Mayans, the styles of Mayan architecture, Mayan culture and history. Alejandro found some bits of broken pottery left by the Mayans and Fabiola explained that it was likely a bowl.

On our way back to the office Alejandro stopped and Fabiola obtained fresh pineapple from a roadside stand. Delicious. We were also given a bag of local spices that are commonly eaten with the pineapples. I loved it so much I am on the look for it back home. Native Choice also provided everyone with cold water throughout the excursion, which was refreshing and considerate. We arrived back at the ship right in time for departure.

My amigas and I were extremely happy we booked this excursion and talked about it for the rest of the cruise. Native Choice is a great choice and Fabiola and Alejandro did a fantastic job!

Estella Perrin
Austin, Texas
Chacchoben Ruins
Vision of the Seas

Great tour!

The tour was terrific and our tour guides (Diego/Miguel) were extremely knowledgeable. Diego was very detailed about the ruins and gave a lot of history and information. They always made sure we had plenty of water and even helped me up the steps to the top of one of the ruins. They were great! Only downside to the tour was getting to the Native Choice location from the ship. Directions were hard to follow and the walk was about 30 minutes.

brandon
Ogden, Utah
Blue Lagoon Adventure
rhapsody of the sea

Great Experience

We were excited when we signed up for our excursion but had no idea how nice it was going to turn out. We had a great tour guide (Juan Carlos). He was very informative of the culture and environment. The resort at the lagoon was a very impressive and quiet. It turned out to be the best excursion that we did on our cruise. Everyone that we came in contact with Native Choice where kind and helpful. We plan on coming back. Thanks for the professional service!!!!

Scott ONeill
Florida
Chacchoben Ruins
NCL Getaway

Chacchoben Ruins Excursion

My family booked a 4 hour adventure with Native Choice to see the Chacchoben Ruins on Feb 8, 2018. We had a large family group of 15 of us and wanted to try a private more personalized tour. We were not sure what to expect as this was our first time booking a shore excursion outside of our cruise line NCL. We were amazed at the value and the wonderful tour we received from our guide Patrick. He is very knowledgeable in the history of the site and of the Mayan people. We felt like he was part of our large family group and we were blessed to have him as our guide. We would absolutely do another tour with Native Choice and Patrick again. Already looking at another cruise to same location next year. We will also recommend Native Choice to everyone we know that goes to Costa Maya. Thank you for making our family vacation wonderful and thank you Patrick for the great time.

Lori
Pittsburgh, PA USA
Chacchoben Ruins
Carnival Vista

Outstanding Tour Guide!

Our tour guide, Hugo, made the excursion a fantastic one. He was so knowledgeable and passionate about history, and you could tell he loved sharing it with others. I am so glad we went with The Native Choice versus one of the large tour busses that the cruise ship offered. It saved us a lot of money and the value was superior. We talked to others from the cruise ship and their experience with the cruise ship tour was not like ours at all. It was a little bit of a walk to get there but so worth it... go with Native Choice and request Hugo!

Denise Roberts
Georgia
Chacchoben Ruins
Freedom of the Seas

Chacchoben Ruins - Trip Highlight

After reading the reviews of this tour and company on Trip Advisor, we decided to book with them instead of going through our ship. Great decision! The directions to their office were very clear - just give yourself a little extra time than the recommended 10 minute walk time because - if like what happened with us and there are three ships disembarking at one time - there might be quite the crush of people trying to make it down the pier. I guess because of the number of ships - our tour was larger than most are and they used a bus to transport us with two guides. Patrick and Lorenzo were excellent! The ruins are only about an hour away and we learned quite a bit about the area we were driving through, the history of the mayan culture and the people living there now. The ruins themselves were very interesting. Not crowded at all. Again, our tour guides were a fountain of knowledge about the ancient culture, practices, and civilization. We had plenty of time to meander and did not feel too "managed." The drive home was made complete by our roadside stop to get fresh pineapple from a local grower. A wonderful treat. I liked that this tour - as opposed to the one offered by the ship - was only 4 hours and not 6.5 hours. So we had time to wander through the Costa Maya village, get a margarita (which I warn you was not good), and enjoy the afternoon at our pace. I would definitely recommend this trip!

Juan
Florida
Mayan Experience
Holand America

Maya Experience

One of the best tours I have ever had. The tour was exceptional. The tour guide was very knowledgeable about the site, history and culture. We were engaging in conversation since we left the meeting place. Well organized, water available during the tour. We felt very safe and we never felt rushed. We took our time exploring the site and we learned a lot.
Highly recommend it.

Joe
South Dakota
Chacchoben Ruins
NCL

Great History

This was a walking tour, basically a history lesson of that location/temple. An hour bus ride to and from. Our guide gave us great detail of the area and answered any questions we had. Not little kid friendly!