Tour Reviews

Thom Howe
Melbourne, FL
Chacchoben Ruins
Carnival

Eric is the Man!

Did a holiday cruise with Carnival and decided to use non-Carnival excursions at 3 of our 4 ports. This Native Choice tour our of Costa Maya was highly rated on trip advisor as well as several good write-ups on cruisecritic.com.

We had Eric as our guide an he was absolutely great. His passion for the ruins is obvious (shared some stories of playing at the ruins as a child). Very friendly - his ability to entertain the group and share some or the history during the ~1 hour bus/van ride to the site made the trip seem shorter. Had plenty of cold water and stories to keep us all in a good mood. We had our family of 4 along with another family of 3 and a couple traveling together...the van was a bit of a tight fit, but the AC worked and the weather was pretty good during December. The roads are a bit bumpy - but kind of expected that. The trip back the cruise terminal was made all the more pleasant by stopping in a small village along the way and purchasing fresh pineapple through the van window from the locals - this was a big hit with our group!

The ruins themselves were great and Eric is an awesome guide. I'm not sure if you can request him (because they tour company dispatches several vans at once). We got to Native Choice quickly and were the first van to leave...maybe that is the key to getting Eric??

There is a bit of physical effort required to walk the ruins - but you can limit your need to walk up stairs if you are willing to wait while the rest of the group goes up to the higher level. I don't really recall how long the whole experience lasted - perhaps 3.5 hours (including the ~ hour van ride each way). There is a small gift shop (whose prices are negotiable and quite a bit cheaper than the cruise terminal) as well as a snack bar selling pre-packaged drinks and chips/candy.

These are the only Mayan ruins I have visited - so I don't have personal experience to compare it to others. But I would highly recommend using Native Choice and requesting Eric if possible - you will enjoy yourself for sure!

Richard and Diane
Simpsonville, SC
Chacchoben Ruins
Carnival Glory

Best deal in Costa Maya

We decided to try this because it was about $40 less than an almost exact same tour offered by the ship excursions. The groups from the ship were on buses of at least 30 people. This tour takes you on a smaller 12 passenger Mercedes air conditioned van and the tour guide is a trained local that is very knowledgeable and personable. Most of the guides have helped the archaeologist at the ruins and asked them many questions to learn more about the sight. It is about a four block walk to the office from the ship, but they provide an excellent map. We went in December. I imagine the walk would be very hot in summer. The air didn't quite work, which was no big deal because it was a beautiful breezy day, but the guide told his boss and he had him stop and buy everybody a beer or soda. I only heard words of praise from everybody in the van. Save yourself some money and have a much better time seeing the Mayan ruins. Book this one, you will not regret it. Ask for Joel and Raul.

Gerry and Sylvia
Montreal, Canada
Mayan Experience
Oceania Riviera

Unforgettable day

We started the day with a little walk to the Native Choice tour building. (can't be closer due to local politics) We were offered bathroom facilities, bottles of water and we checked in and were organized into small groups. We went with our guides (Jasmine and later Kasi) and driver (Abel) into small but clean and air conditioned vans and drove to the Mayan ruins. Our guide was personally tied to the area having grown up there. She was extremely knowledgeable and could answer any of our questions. She spoke excellent English and had a very nice rapport with the group. Very professional.

We tasted honey pineapple, learned some Mayan words and a lot of the social aspects of the Mayan people, who still exist.

The ruins were spectacular. We learned about some of the plants, saw some monkeys, birds and butterflies.
We then went for a Mayan lunch in a Mayan village. This is not a village for tourists, but a real neighborhood. We truly felt like we were being invited to our new friend's house. They were so hospitable and the hot meal was absolutely delicious. We were assured of the safety of the food and the water used to prepare the meals and the drinks. There was no problem at all.
We felt really cared for. We will always remember it.

We will echo what many others have said: that we have no problem strongly recommending Native Choice Excursions. It was the excursion that stood above all of our other excellent excursions.

Lloyd and Caroll Morin
Victoria, B.C. Canada
Mayan Experience
Riviera

This one's a winner

This was a real highlight of our cruise. The guides were very well informed, spoke English clearly,
Were great hostesses.

The Mayan meal was delicious. And the ruins were certainly worth visiting.

Tony and Lucy Martinez
Parrish, Florida
Chacchoben Ruins
Vision of the Seas

Unforgetable experience

Aside from the long walk from the port to the office, the van ride to the ruins was very comfortable. We thank and appreciate Erick and Pedro for making this experience special and meaningful.

Erick was very knowledgeable and informative; he explained many things that made sense.; a very intelligent kid you got in your crew.

Reese Norris
Lecanto, Florida
Mayan Experience
Vision of the Seas

The Best Ever!!!!!

My wife and I had the best experience of our life. Following the excellent tour of the Mayan ruins, we were taken to a Mayan home, met the residents and served an awesome authentic meal. Our tour guides Erik and Joel were fantastic and entertaining.

This is a must excursion when you visit Costa Maya. Seeing the culture of the Mayans today was the highlight of our cruise. We were truly touched to be welcomed into a family home and given the opportunity for a truly unique experience.

Emilio
Colorado
Chacchoben Ruins
Carnival Pride

Amazing Tour

We were lucky enough to decide to book a tour outside of Carnival's Tour Excursions. We took what we thought was a risk and booked a tour with Native Choice. Now we're thinking why hadn't we done that before, why do people spend so much money on the Cruise Ship Excursions? This was less expensive and sooooo much better.

It was a short walk outside the port village and when we were making the walk, we were all looking at each other like OMG. Did we get screwed?

There were eight of us, four senior citizens, two teenagers and my wife and I in our 40's. Once we arrived to the Native Choice Offices, we were greeted with smiles and bottled water. Then we loaded up into a brand new Mercedes Sprinter for the drive to the ruins site. Rosa (Rose) was our guide in the van and she was so super sweet and very informative.

Once we got to the site we felt like we struck GOLD to have Ivan as our guide for the tour of the ruins. This guide might be the BEST of any tour we've ever taken, He explained everything in such great detail, with a smile and laughter that was very infectious.

Ivan opened all our eyes to the culture that he grew up in and shocked us with his stories. Things we don't read in history books in the USA. If you want a real Mayan history lesson, book this tour and demand that Ivan is your tour guide.

Please take this tour, you will not regret it.

Amazing!

Peter Embrey
USA
Dzibanche Ruins Premier
Norwegian Sun

Great Tour

This was an excellent tour. Erick was a great guide and Diego and the driver were also very helpful.
While the ride out and back, about two hours each way, it was certainly worth the time. Erick spent most of the ride out giving a great history lesson of the Mayan people and the area we were going through.
I would recommend this tour to anyone who wants to get up close and personal with the ruins and climb them while you still can.