Hotel Xcaret Arte: Time for Adventure-the Activities and Excursions

This is where Hotel Xcaret Arte really sets itself apart! They offer an “all-fun inclusive” package that includes tons of parks, activities, and excursions. When I began researching our itinerary, I thought I would never be able to tell all the park options apart – they all start with “X” and the eco-park concept was new to me. We will discuss each one in detail so you can decide which ones are right for you!

Grupo Xcaret opened Xcaret Park in 1991 as a development committed to “sustainable tourist recreation”. Since then, they have added 2 additional eco theme parks (Xplor and Xenses) and 3 hotels (Hotel Xcaret Mexico, Hotel Xcaret Arte, and La Casa de la Playa) onsite. They have also expanded their excursion offerings to include Xel-Ha park, Xavage park, Xenotes tour, Tulum, Chitchen Itza (Xichen), Xochimilco, and 2 different Xailing options.. The hardest thing about a trip there is narrowing it down so that you preserve time to relax!

Xcaret Park

• Hours: 8:30am – 10:30pm, 7 days a week
• Includes: locker rental and 1 meal from buffet of your choice
• Transportation: Bus from Xcaret Arte runs approx every 25 minutes
• What to Wear: comfortable swim shoes (these were great for us) and rash guard/swim shorts or swimsuit with coverup. If you don’t have a dry bag,

Xcaret Park is the original park that started it all. It’s a massive park with a wide variety of entertainment. The underground river swim is one of the most popular attractions – there are 3 different routes you can take, Azul, Mayan, and Manatee. Life jackets are required and there are intermediate exits if you don’t want to go all the way to the end. Other attractions include the coral reef aquarium, aviary, jaguar island, a Mayan village, horse exhibitions, plus more.

It would really be too much to get done in 1 day – I recommend looking over the list of available activities and deciding on your “must-do’s”!

In addition to the included activities, there are plenty of optional activities available for an additional fee. Adrenalina (a high speed boat ride), Snuba (combination of diving and snorkling), Sea Trek (helmet and boots that allow you to walk on the ocean floor), and swimming with dolphins (do some research and decide if this is an ethical activity for your family – personally, I prefer observing them from afar).

There is preferred seating for hotel guests at the nighttime show that is INCLUDED with your stay – the Mexico Espectacular. You do not need to make a reservation unless you want dinner, and you can reserve just a day in advance.

Xplor/Xplor Fuego Park

• Xplor: 8:30am-5:30pm / Xplor Fuego: 5:30pm – 10:30pm, Mon-Sat
• Includes: locker rental and unlimited access to buffet restaurants
• Transportation: bus from the resort approx every 25 minutes.
• What to Wear: rash guard, swim shirt/swim trunks and swim shoes. You will be issued a helmet and locker keys upon arrival – everything needs to be left in the locker. The underground swim can be cold, and the zipline harness can chafe if you wear just a regular swimsuit.

Xplor Park is an adventure park nestled in the jungle. There are 5 main activities: a zipline circuit, underground river swim, hammock splash, amphibious ATV type vehicle ride, and an underground hike. A water park area is supposed to open summer 2023!

Xplor Fuego is the same park, just at night! You zipline through a ring of fire, there are torches everywhere – the ambiance at night is amazing! Some of the ziplines ( you can do a circuit of 3 or a circuit of 7) are crazy high, and going at night can be better for the more faint of heart. The Troglodyte buffet is better than most other park buffet offerings (although the food at the resort will always be better!).

Xenses Park

• Hours: open 9am-5pm Mon-Sat, Reservations required for 9am or 2pm slot.
• Transportation:
• Includes: locker rental – no food is included because it’s a half day park
• What to Wear: regular clothes or cover up ( you will be taking lots of pictures) over a swimsuit that you do not plan to use again – you’ll see why as you read along!

Xenses is not easy to quantify – it’s really unlike anything else out there. The activities center around exploring your five senses. You enter at the spiral, where there are many mind bending Xelfie opportunities. I recommend doing either that or going left to the Xensatorium first (the dry side). The Xensatorium is an indoor activity – it’s completely dark inside and you have to rely on your senses besides sight to know what’s going on (you go through different terrains inside the building – desert, forest, etc). There are some health restrictions for this one, so read over that carefully before proceeding!

Once you’re done with the dry side of the park, go ahead and strip down to your swimsuit, because you will be getting wet! First you walk through “The Town” on your way to the water activities. We could not stop laughing as we walked through – the town is configured to look like you are going uphill, but it’s actually downhill. This optical illusion even makes the stream that runs through the town appear to be flowing uphill!

After the town, you go through a series of wet activities – the slip (a waterslide that is surprisingly fast), followed by the bird flight, which is a short, fun ride! After that, you go through Riverlaxing (floating through salt water with a low current). We all had a bit of a hard time staying afloat and had to help ourselves along through the path, but it was serene moving through the water through the cave. We then went through the Sludgerie, which is a float through mud experience that will get you extremely dirty. That’s why you need the swimsuit you won’t be wearing again after your Xenses day! It’s certainly a unique experience, and I’m glad I did it once, but probably wouldn’t do it again! My hair took at least 3 washes to be back to normal. Finally, you get a bit cleaned off walking through Rain (kind of like a carwash for people) and dry off in the sauna.

This is a quick park – you make a reservation for either 9am or 2pm, and can easily be combined with Xplor Fuego in the evening! If you do a combo day, I would do Xenses in the morning, go back to the hotel and relax a while, then go to Xplor Fuego in the evening. We did them back to back, and were pretty tired!

Xenotes Tour

• Hours: pickup 8:40am, return 5:30pm, Mon-Sat
• Transportation: Xcaret passenger vans
• Includes: picnic lunch with beer, wine, and soft drinks, towels are provided
• What to Wear: rashguard with long sleeves (the cenotes can be cold and you will need sun protection), swim bottoms, water shoes, NO sunscreen

The Xenotes tour goes to 4-5 different area cenotes, and you do different activities at each one. Everyone goes in a different order so no one cenote gets too crowded. On the way, you pick up a personal photographer for your small group, who does an amazing job capturing the day. I’m not a fan of paying for photo packages in general, but in my opinion, this one is 100% worth it.

For our day at the cenotes, we did a water slide into a cenote then floated down to a cliff jumping area. For our 2nd and 3rd cenote experiences, we kayaked and snorkeled. We ate a picnic lunch that really hit the spot – sandwiches, prepared salads, sushi, and dessert, accompanied by wine and beer. Then we did an assisted descent into our 4th cenote, which was nearly enclosed in a cave. And finally, we ziplined and cliff dove at our last cenote.

Don’t miss this one of a kind experience! if you are nervous about any aspect, they are great about encouraging you but it’s not awkward at all if you aren’t up to completing an activity. I am an out of shape nervous Nellie, and the only thing I skipped was the cliff jumping. You wear a life jacket at each cenote, and safety is taken very seriously.

Xel-Ha Park and Tulum+Xel-Ha

• Hours: Xel-Ha only pickup 9:20am, return 5:30pm, Xel-Ha/Tulum pickup 7:05am, return 5:30pm
• Transportation: Xcaret bus
• Includes: food and drink (including alchohol) are included at Xel-ha (unlimited).
• What to Wear: swimsuit with coverup that can double as regular clothes

Xel-Ha is about 45 minutes south of Xcaret. If you are doing the combo tour/park with Tulum, then you stop at Xel-Ha briefly on the way to Tulum to schedule any of the paid activities you wish to do and head the additional 15 mins south to Tulum.

Not only is the walled city of Tulum an important location for the Mayan ruins, it is right on the coast which makes for a unique backdrop. You have a tour guide that gives some context to what you are seeing – our tour guide was fantastic!

Xel-Ha is a gorgeous eco-park where the water is the main event. The lighthouse waterslide is a highlight – it goes super fast! Then you have the option to either float through the mangroves on a tube (lounge style) or snorkel. Once you get into the open water, there are zip lines, cliff jumps, and a ropes obstacle course. There are also many walking trails for enjoying the natural beauty of the are.

All food and drinks are included, but the food was some of our least favorite. Out of the buffets, we recommend the American fast food buffet, if you can believe it – the food seemed the freshest. There are bars throughout, and they will fill up your reusable water bottle that you receive before the Tulum tour. We have some lightweights in our group, and the alcohol content of the drinks was extremely low.

Xavage Park

• Hours: pickup 8:50am, return 7pm, Mon-Sat
• Transportation: Xcaret bus
• Includes: all inclusive food, no alcohol
• What to Wear: rashguard, swim bottoms, CLOSED TOE water shoes plus bring change of clothes

If you’re an adrenaline junkie, you shouldn’t miss this one! Be aware that it’s a long, exhausting day – the park is all the way back up in the Cancun area, on the same campus as Xochimilco. If you want to leave before the bus returns that evening, a cab ride is approximately $50.

There is a ropes course with different levels, and if you want to do the higher levels, you need closed toe shoes. An intense jet boat ride (you will get wet!) and monster trucks over rough terrain (you are required to be an experienced driver). The white water rafting opens at noon. Some milder thrills are the bird flight style zipline and kayaks. There’s also a waterpark area for the kids!

Xichen Tour

• Hours: 7:05am – 8:30pm Mon-Sat
• Transportation: Xcaret bus
• Includes: box breakfast, lunch in Valladolid
• What to Wear: comfortable, cool clothing, swimwear and water shoes if you want to swim in the cenote, sun hat

Chitchen Itza, one of the 7 Wonders of the World, is a about 3 hours from Xcaret each way. That’s a long time on the bus, but with the Xichen tour you also get food and drinks in the town of Valladolid as well as a stop at a cenote. It should also be noted there is a $33 government charge. Unfortunately, when we were there, the roads were closed due to protesters so we were unable to visit..

Reports are that it’s extremely hot at the ruins, so come prepared! Also, you are no longer allowed to climb the ruins. You will have a dedicated tour guide during your visit.

Xochimilco

• Hours: 3:20pm-10pm (Mon-Sat) or 6:10pm12:30am (Mon-Thurs)
• Transportation: Xcaret bus
• Includes: all alchohol (hope you like tequila!) and small portions of traditional food.
• What to Wear: cool, comfortable clothes and bug spray

The Xochimilco “floating fiesta” is a ton of fun! It’s located right by Xavage – if you don’t mind having a pretty long day, you could do both the same day. Everyone loads onto one of the trajineras, and there is music, food, and plenty of tequila flowing.

You are given a selection of traditional foods – they are small portions and meant to be more of a sampler. It’s recommended to eat before you go. Also, don’t forget the bug spray – being on the water means a risk of mosquitos!

Xailing (Ferry)

• Hours: 8am-8:30pm, Mon-Sun
• Transportation: Xcaret bus/Ferry
• Includes: bus, ferry, and the Xcaret scenic tower on Isla Mujeres
• What to Wear: something cool and comfortable over swimwear

This is a ferry from Cancun to Isla Mujeres. The ride to the ferry is about an hour and a half from the resort, then the ferry ride is 25 minutes to Isla Mujeres. Once you are there, you can rent a golf cart or grab a taxi wherever you want to go. Punta Sur is a popular beach area, and you have free access to the scenic panoramic Xcaret tower on the island. There’s also a sea turtle sanctuary. You can take any ferry back that you like, but the bus to take you back to the resort won’t be there until 7pm for the hour and a half drive back to the resort.

Note that the transportation, ferry, and tower are all that are included, you are responsible for your own food and drink.

Xailing (Catamaran)

• Hours: reserve for 10:35am or 1:25pm, Mon-Sat
• Includes: food and drink (including alcohol) are included at Xel-ha (unlimited).
• What to Wear: something cool or long sleeved rash guard for sun protection, a hat, and don’t forget sunscreen

The Catamaran sailing is the newest offering from Xcaret! It’s so new, I don’t have any pictures, so above is an example picture of a catamaran! It is about 3 hours sailing up to Playa del Carmen area. There is a premium open bar and snacks/canapes. You have a great view of the resort itself, and anyone who has ever been to Riviera Maya or Cozumel knows how beautiful the bright blue ocean is. There is music and dancing, so it’s a real party atmosphere! Get there early so you are sure to have a shaded area to escape the sun.

As you can see, you will need to plan to come to Xcaret multiple times to get a taste of all the excursion offerings! There is something to suit any type of traveler. Check out the rest of the Hotel Xcaret Arte series for more information!

Hotel Xcaret Arte: The Ultimate Guide *Start Here*

Hotel Xcaret Arte: How to Maximize your Vacation ++ Complete Packing List

Hotel Xcaret Arte: The Best Restaurants and Bars + Menus

Hotel Xcaret Arte: Diving into the Resort and Grounds