I have personally been to every single one of the sites included below. I’m utterly obsessed with Mérida and Yucatán and love discovering all the fun there is to be had around the city.

Here are the 3 MexicoCassie top pick cenote tours from Mérida at a glance for those who just want to ‘pick, click and go’. If you’d like more information before you book, skip down by clicking here

And if you’d like extra information about Mérida, at the bottom of the article you’ll find links to my many articles about Mérida

The best Mérida cenote tours – the details

according to MexicoCassie

1️⃣ Chichén Itza, Izamal and Private Cenote

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | ⏰ Duration 8 hours | check rates and dates

Cenote tour details

🚐 Exclusive small tour groups – max of 10 people

🗣️ Tour offered in English and Spanish

📌 Visit the modern wonder of the world, Chichén Itzá and learn about the ancient Maya – with an early departure from Mérida (6 am), you’ll be at Chichén Itzá early enough that there will be very few other visitors.

📌 Visit the fascinating yellow city of Izamal and explore the convent and pyramid

📌 Enjoy a traditional lunch with a Maya family in their home (small extra cost)

📌 Swim in a private cenote

This is the best way to see Chichen Itza! Delio was our guide and was fantastic: he’s been doing it for 33 years and is incredibly knowledgeable about the history. The private cenote was gorgeous and peaceful, and the home cooked meal was fantastic. Isamal was a great way to end the day. We spent just enough time at each place. Overall, I can’t recommend this tour enough. (Emma, Dec 2025)

2️⃣ Santa Barbara Cenotes & Acanceh ruins

⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | ⏰ Duration 7 – 9 hours | Check rates and dates

Cenote tour details

🗣️ Tour offered in English and Spanish

🐴 Choose to travel between the cenotes by bike or take the horse-drawn truck

📌 Visit the peaceful Acanceh ruins, a site barely anyone visits in one of the oldest inhabited villages in Yucatán

📌 Swim in the four glorious Santa Barbara cenotes (including the only fully accessible cenote on the Yucatán Peninsula)

📌 Tour includes lunch at Santa Barbara

The Santa Barbara visit was outstanding, all four cenotes located there are superb. We also appreciated the Maya sculptures that we saw earlier in the day. The day trip was well organized. (Merrick Jan 2026)

3️⃣ Yaxcopoil Hacienda, Uxmal and Cenote Peba

⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | ⏰ Duration 8 hours | Check rates and dates

Cenote tour details

🗣️ Guided tours in English and Spanish

📌 Visit Hacienda Yaxcopoil to learn about the role henequen played in Yucatán’s history

📌 Spend time at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Uxmal (note that the fees here are split into two sections so while your entrance is covered, the state tax may not be)

📌 Restaurant meal included in price

📌 Take a swim in Cenote Peba

Had a magical day. Lemuel was an excellent tour guide. Would highly recommend this tour. Very knowledgeable. (Pablo Dec 2025)

4️⃣ Private tour: Uxmal, Choco Museum and cenote

⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | ⏰ Duration 8 hours | Check rates and dates

Cenote Tour Details

🚐 Private tour

🗣️ Bilingual guide (English/Spanish)

📌 Guided tour around Uxmal, the UNESCO World Heritage Maya ruin

🍫 Visit the excellent Choco Story Museum to learn about the history of chocolate, taste traditional Maya hot chocolate and experience Maya traditions

📌 Visit Yaal Utzil, a gorgeous wild cenote for a swim and lunch in the traditional on site restaurant (lunch not included in price)

This was an amazing experience. I enjoyed Uxmal much more than Chichen Itza. The site was closer together and much easier to explore. It was not as crowded, and the ruins were amazing… Our guide Gabriel was great and very knowledgeable not only in the local tour, but could he could explain many other things throughout Mexico. It was nice that the car ride was not too long. We were able to arrive at the site earlier in the day before the heat set in and explore the entire site. The next visit to the Chocolate museum was also wonderful …The tasting was a lot of fun to be able to taste the traditional chocolate drink. It was the perfect ending to stop at the cenote for a swim to cool off. Definitely a wonderful day for the whole family and one of the best experiences in Merida. (Michael, Sept 2025)

5️⃣ Private tour of Mucuyche & Santa Barbara cenotes

⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | ⏰ Duration 8 hours | Check rates and dates

Cenote tour details

🗣️ Tour available in Spanish and English

🚐 Private tour – go at your own speed

🐴 The tours begins early at the Santa Barbara site so you’ll most likely have the four cenotes to yourself, offering a truly unrivalled experience of peace.

📌 You’ll tour the old henequen hacienda, Mucuyche, and learn about the site’s history before heading to change to swim in the two cenotes on site – one a semi-open cenote, the other (linked by an idyllic swimming channel) a full cave cenote

This trip exceeded our expectations. Ale was the most knowledgeable and professional guide, who looked after us with a lot of patience and care. We visited 5 cenotes, each different from another and each exceptionally beautiful and amazing. The first three at Santa Barbara were very quiet with very few people, the next two were busy but the tour was organised in a way that it didn’t really matter. Everything happened exactly on time as arranged, we were offered snacks and drinks including beer. We had a really nice lunch at Santa Barbara (own expense) and joined hacienda tour at Mucuyche (costs included in the tour) was very interesting. Ale and the driver Gorge looked after us really well, we’ve had amazing time. (Barbara, Jan 2025)

6️⃣ Private tour of Ek Balam, Valladolid and Cenote Saamal

⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | ⏰ Duration 8 – 10 hours | Check rates and dates

Cenote tour details

🗣️ Bilingual guides

🍻 Bus cooler with beers, soda and water provided

📌 Explore Ek Balam, a gorgeous jungle archaeological site

📌 Visit the colonial city of Valladolid; enjoy the atmosphere on the main plaza and see the famous San Bernardino convent

📌 Finish the day with a cenote swim and a traditional Yucatecan lunch (included in price)

Amazingly informative. We had been to EkBalam without a guide years ago and we learned so much with Vincente, Even on the drive we learned about the areas we were passing through . Since we had been in this area before we asked if there were things we may have missed. He took us to this utterly charming town on their market day. This was certainly beyond the scope of the tour. When we stopped for lunch which was an extensive buffet he explained all the options and we were able to try many local dishes. He was thoughtful and very knowledgable. I must also compliment the driver who wove through streets easily so we could see the smaller parts of town. (Linda, March 2025)