Chichen Itza Full Day Tour
Recommended by 97% of travelers
Merida, Mexico
- 11 to 12 hours (approx.)
- Offered in: English
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Overview
No visit to the Yucatan is complete without visiting Chichen Itza, but arranging logistics yourself can eat into your precious vacation time. This seamless day trip from Merida saves you hours of planning, by arranging transportation and lunch, and giving you deeper insight into Mayan history as you explore the UNESCO-listed archeological site with a guide. Note that admission tickets aren’t included.
- Break up the long journey from Merida with a stop in the traditional town of Izamal
- Cool down with a refreshing dip in a cenote (limestone sinkhole)
- Get important historical and cultural context from your guide as you explore the site
- Skip the stress of hiring a car and navigating unfamiliar roads
What's Included
- Air-conditioned vehicle
- LunchLunch is buffet style and includes a drink during the buffet.
- Certified Guide
- Entrance fee - Entrance fee - Chichen Itza ExtranjeroMX$697.00 per person
- Entrance fee - Chichen Itza NacionalMX$310.00 per person
- Tips
- Admission to the cenoteMX$300.00 per person
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
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End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Start time.6:00 am
Itinerary
1
Merida
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Chichen Itza
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Chichen Itza
2 hours • Admission Ticket Free
4
Xcajum Cenote
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
5
Xcajum Cenote
2 hours • Admission Ticket Not Included
6
Izamal
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
7
Izamal
1 hour 20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
8
Merida
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
9
Merida
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
- Not recommended for travelers with back problems
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 18 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.9
based on 252 reviews
Review summary
Last 12 months
28 reviews
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Travelers praise the well-preserved historical sites of Chichen Itza, the tranquil cenote, and Izamal for their cultural significance and atmosphere. Guides are noted for their deep knowledge of Mayan history, bilingual delivery, and friendly, attentive manner, which enhances the educational experience. Overall, the combination of impressive points of interest and knowledgeable guides contributes to a valued cultural tour.
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We had an amazing experience touring Chichen Itza and the beautiful Cenotes! Our guide, Rosendo Pech was very knowledgeable and friendly about Mayan history and culture, making the entire experience educational. Chichen Itza was breathtaking and the Cenotes was a refreshing and magical experience. Everything was well organized and enjoyed our tour. Highly recommend this experience to anyone visiting Yucatan! A wonderful way to discover the history, beauty, and culture of Mexico.
Freddie was a great guide and very friendly and knowledgeable. He told us a lot about Chichén Itza and the area that was interesting. Going to Chichén Itza in the morning was helpful to beat the heat and the crowds. The cenote was AMAZING as well!
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Hello, thank you very much for your comment. It helps us improve our service and customer support.
Was a great tour, loved the cenote and the knowledge of our tour guide. I personally wouldn’t have minded if we skipped the last part of our tour to Izamal.
Well organized- Freddie, our guide, was great. Enough time at Chichen Itza, great choice of cenote (it wasn’t very crowded at all. Made for a beautiful and tranquil experience. Bring your swimsuits, flip flops and towels. There are changing rooms and lockers at the cenote.) Buffet is just okay. Yellow town was fine- super hot so they drove us first for a 20 minute stop at the convent, and then a 20 minute stop at the temple. Great timing. Got back around 4:30.
The only room for improvement is pickup. Id recommended doing hotel pickups since the start time is so early.
Rosendo of Guias de Yucatán was an ideal tour guide, pleasant, fluent in English, and very knowledgeable of Chitzen Itza and its environs. We appreciated the sites more because of his explanations.
Our tour guide (Sammy) was so great. Great energy and so friendly! Sammy made sure we had all our questions answered, knew where to be, were comfortable in the vehicle etc! He is a superstar!
We were met on time at the meeting location. The vehicle was a 20 person very very nice van, with comfortable seats, great AC, power outlets, window curtains etc. The driver was wonderful! We enjoyed our time at Chichen Itza and the Cenote. I know the guide was following the itinerary but Izamal should be skipped. That town is sad and not worth the time or stop. Either change it to another location or give more time at Chichen Itza.
I looked back at our instructions and didn't see any details about bringing a towel and flip flops to the Cenote. I don't think I missed it. Greater detail about what to bring would be appreciated. Lunch at the Cenote was decent. The cenote was nice.
Overall, great company, great guide, great value, but change the itinerary and don't do Izamal. Everyone in our group was ready to go and didn't seem too impressed with Izamal.
Chichen Itza is a great site and the main pyramid is incredible. Our tour guide gave us loads of information about Mayan culture and traditions in English and Spanish as we were walking around. It's not enough time to visit every inch of the site but you can see all the key parts.
The cenote was fun and refreshing.
Then Izamal was a nice way to end the day. You have enough time to climb the Mayan pyramid there and see the main other buildings and take plenty of photos down the yellow walled streets.
My wife and I had a great time on this tour. Seeing the Chichen Itzá is such a beautiful sight that is well preserved. Our tour guide, Rosendo, was awesome and always had a positive attitude. Our group had people from all over the world, English and Spanish speaking (as well as German and French), and Rosendo did a great job of going back between the two main languages. Diego was an awesome driver too and kept the ride smooth the entire time. I also appreciated the balance of walking as a group and later having some free time at all the locations. I would highly recommend this tour to any of my friends and family!!
Cost is transportation only. Pay for chicken itza and cenote swim and lunch and locker. ROosendo an excellent guide.
We were collected on time and at the place specified. Our guide was very enthusiastic and knowledgeable. Julian was keen to ensure that we were given as much information as possible. Most of the party were Spanish speaking and I think that a because I had a little, he didn’t feel the need to translate as much as others might have needed. Chichin Itza was fascinating.
The trip to the cenote was great. Well organised and the food much better than I expected.
Izamal was interesting.
Long day but worth it!
Freddie our tour guide was very good ! He first spoke in English and then Spanish. Never hesitating switching constantly from English to Spanish. Our driver Diego was very attentive in making sure everyone got on and off the smaller sized coach safely and was very gracious. The tour itself is a must do experience if you are in Mérida. It was a thirteen hour day by the time we got home, with an early morning meet up with our tour in downtown Mérida at 6:25 am, but worth every second. On the second stop at the Cenote, the water was much warmer than expected and we hated getting out. Everything was well worth every peso it cost us and we recommend to everyone that has a free day in Mérida to take this excursion.
This was fine but not amazing. We got off to a late start with organizational issues which meant we arrived at Chichen Itza at 8.30 when there were already loads of people. I chose this tour to avoid that. The cenote was excellent though very touristy as well and the buffet lunch was good. A quick stop at Izamal was nice. The tour guide was knowledgeable and friendly though I found his directing us to a particular vendor at Chichen Itza and his aggressive solicitation for tips at the end of the tour off putting.
Chichen Itza was impressive and unfortunately a “must-see” hence the hoards. You gotta get there early
Response from Host, Jan 2026
We greatly appreciate your comment, we are working on improving our logistics and being able to provide future customers with a unique and quality service.
The main tour guide did not have a sense of time. The bus arrived late, and we were not the first groups to get into the site. Before entering, the main tour guide spent about 30 minutes figuring out tickets. He also did not care about us, who need to use credit card to buy tickets. My boyfriend ended up finding out himself. If we have waited for the guide’s instructions, we would be even more late. By the time we entered the site, it was already very crowded and hot. On the way back to Merida, someone was eating cheese with very strong smell. The guide did not have rules for respecting others on the bus.
Our guide at Chichen Itza was good. His name was Ronendo (can not remember the name exactly). As a Mayan and who knows Mayan culture and language, he was enthusiastic and explained things well.
One thing to really look out for: both of us were very sick after coming back. I had not vomit since 10 but I vomit twice after the tour. Chat told me that the cause was highly likely to be the cenote. We did not even put our mouse or nose into the water, but we had very serious diarrhea and stomach issues.
A wonderful tour filled with great information. Took all day as advertised. Being there at 6 helps with the heat and the crowds.
What a great and informative trip! The highlight has to be going to Chichen Itza first thing. You won’t realise how important this is until you leave!
Freddie is full of knowledge and history about the site and the tour is done in the right order. It is a long a day but it was great for me, a solo traveller to see everything in one day when i wasn’t in the area long.
The van was both new and comfortable. With Carlos driving you will be safe and your personnel belongings should you wish to leave them in the van (which we all did) whilst exploring!
Response from Host, Dec 2025
Thank you so much for your comment. We truly hope you enjoyed it.
This is the experience of a lifetime! Luis, our driver, and Freddie our tour guide, are excellent!!! They made this adventure so fun and easy! We were all treated like family and every detail was considered. Of course, as a Wonder of the World, Chichén Itzá is a spectacular site! We arrived very early to explore and enjoy without the crowds that gather later in the day. We also had a magical experience at a beautiful cenote with our small group of eight people. The last stop was in the town of Izmal, the buildings were painted in colors of the Vatican: yellow and white. The Pope visited in 1993 to honor the Mayans. The Church is built on a Mayan temple site. We also climbed the original steps of a Mayan temple nearby.
Freddie explained the significance of the history and culture at each point of interest. He is very knowledgeable about the history of the Mayans, Toltecs and resulting culture that exists today. This excursion is a rich and varied experience for people interested in the history of the Yucatan Peninsula.
A very informative and fun day at iconic Yucatan places. Ismael and Freddy were fantastic! The cenote was paradise.
We had an amazing time with our guide Freddy! He was extremely knowledgeable, friendly, and made the whole experience so enjoyable. I went with two friends, and from the start, Freddy had us laughing and joking as if we had all been friends for years. His warm personality and expertise made the trip not only fun but also memorable. I highly recommend Freddy he truly made our adventure unforgettable!
We had a small, friendly group tour with a family-like atmosphere. Chichen Itza was amazing and a must-see in a lifetime. But it was a pity and a great waste of time that we had too little time to explore and did not walk around the entire area (missed the curved observatory building. X-Cajum cenote was a great place for a family getaway, offering nothing but water fun and buffet food that was good, but the experience felt a bit uncomfortable as I felt watched and it was quite strict. Izamal city was quite striking with the city's colors, which were particularly beautiful on a cloudless day – the yellow and blue were just perfect. The guides were friendly and always willing to help, but due to the language barrier, our conversations and the information shared were about 80% Spanish and 20% English. For me, however, that was fine, as I already had more information than Wikipedia.
What an amazing opportunity to see México's most important pyramid! Getting up early to be first in line made a huge difference. Freddie did a great job preparing us while on the way so that we could get right to the key points while there, and being early meant it wasn't too hot yet as we looked around. Then when it did get too hot, we were ready to go for a swim in the cenote to cool off. Stopping in Izamal to see the contrast between the Izamal temple and the colonial era Franciscan Cathedral where John Paul II visited Mexico in 1993 made a nice way to end the day.
Very good tour guide. Provided explanations in English and Spanish for the participants and answered all questions. On time and organized. The only downside was the oppressive heat, but mind you this was the earliest tour the Chichén itza. I don't even want to imagine how hot it was for the people who started their tour 2 hours after us.
Excellent trip. Freddy and Ifrain were very friendly. Freddy had a great knowledge about Chizen Itza and Izumal. His English/Spanish narrative was very informative. We were glad we left so early. No crowd at Chizen Itza and we were the first at the Cenote. We really recommend this trip. Wonderful experience.
Brilliant activity, the guide/driverwas super knowledgeable, and got us into Chichen Itza before the crowds and we were the first ones into the Cenote so we had it to ourselves briefly! He was really communicative of timings and the bus was comfy, food included was great also.
Thank you Freddie/Ifrahim!
What an amazing day! This was part of our honeymoon, the tour guide was amazing! David! The cenote was incredible, what a feeling!
Guide was good, informative and ran the day smoothly. Would recommend this tour to family and friends.
If you’re on the fence at all about booking this tour, let this be your sign to TAKE THIS TOUR!!! Freddy is SO great and knowledgeable and hilarious. Thank you for a wonderful day Freddy and Gener!
Hated waking up so early but it was worth it. Great guide(s), restaurant at the cenote had tasty food.
Freddy was our guide and he was excellent, provided really interesting information. Unfortunately the bus was very hot and uncomfortable. We did get to Chichen Itza early to beat most of the crowds which was great, but we definitely needed more time there than was allocated. The cenote was gorgeous and the food buffet lunch was excellent. The last stop in Izamal was a bit too long. Overall a very good day.
It’s all day but the time never really lags. Guide (David) and driver (Carlos) both excellent. Guide fluent in English and Spanish which helped because our group was split roughly 50/50 between the two languages. The van was in very good shape. Leaving at 6 A.M. not fun but a good idea because Chichen Itza gets very busy quickly.
The guide was a Mayan man, who was fluent in both Spanish and English. He did a great job of explaining the Mayan people and their history at Chichen Itza (he explained he different classes within the Mayan society, why the behaved as they did and their obsessions with numbers and astronomy). He had a good sense of humour and was also a competent driver and a considerate individual.
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