There are so many things to do in Mexico, but one you’ve probably heard of or possibly done is to visit some of their cenotes. A cenote is a natural reservoir of water created from limestone bedrock that collapses. The water underneath is exposed and beautiful swimming areas are formed. Some cenotes are completely open with everything collapsing, while others form caves nearly completely covered, with scattered openings to access them.
Using our free smart car from the Grand Oasis Sens, Amanda and I went out on an adventure to enjoy some of these natural wonders and weren’t disappointed. Knows as Los 7 Cenotes, an area about 30 minutes south of the hotel zone in Cancun, there are multiple cenotes ranging from enclosed to open. We were warned ahead of time that a 4 wheel vehicle may be needed to get to these cenotes, but we were just fine driving that little smart car. There are numerous tours you can take if you don’t have a vehicle or prefer a guide, but we usually find that doing things on our own is not only a lot cheaper, but also a fun adventure that doesn’t make us feel rushed to move on to the next stop.
Once we arrived, it looked like any other area. For $20 USD we were able to access everything on our own and were given life jackets to use. Normally, I’d forgo the life jacket, but we had just been told that the cenote we’re about to swim in is 300 feet deep. We eventually lost the life jackets for a little bit once we were more comfortable. Anyway, after getting ready, we had to head down a ladder to access the water. I got in first, never really thinking about what I’m doing, then had to slowly coerce Amanda to join me. I tried to keep it a secret as long as possible, but once she looked up, she realized as I just had, that the top of the cave was covered with bats. The bats never bothered us more than a couple of close flybys, but it’s something to keep in mind in case you’re deathly afraid of them.
This particular cenote actually had 5 openings to the ground level. 300 feet deep, we arrived when a group of scuba divers were just wrapping up a dive. Once you’re in the cenote, there are ropes you can hang on to if you wish and pull yourself around to the different areas. And for the more daring, “cliff” diving into the cenote was extremely exhilarating (see video below). The water was also fairly cool considering it’s not exposed to the sun.
I definitely see us checking out more cenotes when we return to Mexico as each one is completely unique. If you wish to see more of our adventures here, check out our Instagram feed.
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