Tour Reviews

Susanna
Norfolk, VA
Chacchoben Ruins
Royal Caribbean

Wonderful Tour - 1st Class!

What a wonderful staff at Native Choice! Like most of you, we were hesitant to use a company other than the cruise ship excursion option, but I am so glad we did! We saved 50% by booking Direct with Native Choice and had a 1st Class Tour with approx. 12 others. Miguel was prompt and gracious, and our Tour Guide - Kaci is knowledgeable and speaks lovely English! And they supplied us with free water bottles during our walking tour of the Mayan Ruins. The vans are NEW and super Clean! We will tell Everyone to book with your company! --DONT BE SCARED to walk the 4 Blocks to their office, It's perfectly Safe. Follow the Map!

Amy
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Chacchoben Ruins
Allure of the Seas

Excellent Tour

We were a group of 11, ages 8 through 51. Lorenzo was an extraordinary tour guide, explaining the Ruins and history in a way that was interesting to all of the ages of our group. His English was fantastic, and his knowledge even better. We enjoyed our day with him immensely and recommend this tour to anyone and everyone. There is a lot of walking so this would not be good for anyone who cannot walk on uneven ground or up steps. Otherwise, green light! It could not have been any better!!

cykyle
Tennessee, US
Mayan Experience
Rhapsody of the Seas

The Best Mayan Experience

The absolute best tour we have taken in many, many years! The Native Choice is a first rate and very reasonably priced touring company. We found it online from excellent reviews in tripadvisor. It will not be listed by name through your cruise lines; but if you book the trip yourself online or in person at the nearby office (it is a 5-10 minute 0.8 mile walk from where the cruise ships dock), you will save approximately 50% off of the price of the tour if the cruise lines book it for you.

The drivers are very safe, the tour guides are very informative, and everyone is friendly and polite. Saul was our driver and he was extremely safe and careful; we always felt secure in our travels in the van. Maria was our tour guide and she was extremely knowledgeable about the Mayan culture, and the past and present history and regional politics. Everyone we spoke to was a local and they were able to give us inside information about the regional history and culture. It was so easy to communicate with them because their English skills were excellent. They always told us which route we would be taking, especially when taking a detour to shorten the drive. We always felt safe.

We especially recommend the tour including the lunch at a local resident in the town of Chachoban, which is close to the ruins. The home, grounds, and kitchen were immaculate and very clean. The food was incredible, real local cuisine, and very fresh. Vegetarians will have no problems finding something to eat. We cannot t say enough about this trip! By far, one day of the best things we've done in the Caribbean. A rare find, a welcome escape from the tourist rat race, and a genuine peek into the local culture, history, and real food and cuisine. You will love it! We did!

Elizabeth S.
Chicago, IL
Chacchoben Ruins
Celebrity Eclipse

Fantastic Tour for our Family

Our family of 5 thoroughly enjoyed our morning with Hugo (tour guide) and Alex (driver). Between the air conditioned, comfortable van and listening to Hugo, our 50 minute drive to and from the ruins went very quickly. It was also nice to have cold bottled water in the van. Hugo was quite knowledgeable and patient with all of our questions. We never felt rushed or uncomfortable. The pace was perfect, there was shade when we needed it, great spots to take photos, clean bathrooms and other facilities near the parking lot, etc. This was my first experience with a Native Choice tour and I would go on another Native Choice tour in a heartbeat.

Steve Maldonado
Miami, Florida USA
Chacchoben Ruins
Empress of the Seas

Casey Was GREAT!!!

Casey with Native Choice Tours was the BEST!!! She was very knowledgeable and explained everything, every step of the way. What a gracious host. Buses were modern, clean and with good A/C. Food and drink were fantastic!!! Ask for Casey when booking this tour!

Gary
Kansas, USA
Mayan Experience
Breeze

Exeeded Our Expectations!

First off, I would like to provide a quick background on our decision to tour with Native Choice. Native Choice was very highly recommended to us by one of my co-workers. He had said the experience was one of the best excursions he and his wife had taken during their years of cruising. My family; wife, two daughters (19 and 17 years of age) and I, were very excited to have the opportunity to explore the Mayan Ruins and experience an authentic Mayan meal. The departure of our Carnival Cruise on the Breeze was delayed by over 24 hours due to heavy fog that closed the Port of Galveston. We were originally informed we would not be able to make the call at the Port of Costa Maya. Our route was eventually changed and we were able to stop at Costa Maya.
Upon our arrival at the Native Choice office, we were greeted by Miguel, who was carrying a clipboard and instructing customers to go inside and register. Several other men were outside of the office and all were wearing Native Choice shirts and name tags. There were several vans sitting out front and all were clean and appeared to be in very sound mechanical condition.
Miguel introduced us to our guide, Joel, and driver, Alejandro. Joel advised us it would be a short wait, as the others who would be joining us on the tour had not arrived. Joel offered us a bottle of water as we waited. After approximately 10 minutes, Joel advised us we would not have additional tour mates, as they had not arrived and we needed to leave.
While enroute to the Mayan ruins at Chacchoben, Joel provided us with extensive information about the Mayan culture, the tour and what to expect of the Mayan meal. He was incredibly knowledgeable and easy to understand and communicate with. Joel completely exceeded our expectations! We also had learned he and the other tour guides had given up their only day off for a month to accommodate our tours due to the rescheduling of the day in port.
We could not have been more satisfied with the tour, the meal and the overall experience with the two gentlemen we spent our day with. Alejandro was a very safe and courteous driver. Joel was outstanding in all aspects of the tour experience. We would highly recommend this tour and company to any and all who have the opportunity to spend time in port at Costa Maya!

Kelley Dotson
Arkadelphia, AR, USA
Mayan Experience
Carnival Dream

Loved it! Walking impaired BEWARE!

First let me say that our group of 8 enjoyed this experience tremendously! We enjoyed the ruins, but the lunch in the Mayan home was the highlight of our day. The women were pleasant, the home and grounds were spotlessly clean and beautiful. Food was traditional and flavorful. I would have given this tour 5 stars but for the walk to reach the offices. First of all, do not follow the map provided of how to exit the port. That exit is blocked with a truck causing you to backtrack. It's anxiety provoking at the least fighting your way against the flow of people to find your way out of the port, across the parking lot, and to get outside the fence. At that point TAKE THE TAXI! We has 4 mildly impaired walkers in our group, the directions state a short 4 block walk. DONT BELIEVE IT! It's actually quite a long stroll in the heat and humidity. It set a poor start to our day as 1/2 of our group was exhausted before we began the tour. Once we arrived, the company was organized, provided excellent air conditioned transportation, and our guide EDDAR and driver SAOUL (?) were very informative and entertaining.
Overall, we were very happy with the day, but the walk was too far and should have been explained better in the description.

Tricia
Morristown, TN, US
Chacchoben Extreme
Rhapsody of the Sea

Wonderful

Our guide,Eric, was very knowledgeable and interesting. The tour of the ruins was at a nice relaxed pace. The ruins themselves were awesome to see and breathtaking. The lagoon was gorgeous and there was something there for all of us to enjoy!!!