I am going to Playa Carmen and would like to know if anyone has gone on any side trips to Xel-ha or the other park (name escapes me)? Would you please advise if it is worthwhile and if you did the all inclusive which is expensive($40) I think. Thank you

Hi! We did Xel-ha as part of the Tulum and Xelha excursion offered by the resort (and usually offered in most of the resorts in PDC). Xel-ha, with it's beautiful blue lagoons and clear water was quite welcome after spending the hot part of the day at Tulum. We are heading back to this area at the end of January and are planning to head back to Xel-ha on our own to spend the day. According to the other travel guide that starts with an F, the non ai admission is $19. and will most likely go with that as he has his own snorkelling equipment. We would take water and drinks from the resort in our bags and then probably just eat when we get back to the resort (maybe get a snack at Xel-ha). We want to go more towards the end of the lagoons to see and swim in that area we did not get time to see the last time we were there. According to this other guide book, most of the fish has been scared off from so many people snorkelling there but it still looks like it's a beautiful place. <BR>The other place you might be thinking of is Xcaret (ish-ca-ret) and to us it was worth the $40. for the full day visit. Go early in the morning and do the underground river swim first thing (free) which takes you to the other end of the park and then you can walk and explore your way back from there. There are many things to see and do or just to lie and sunbathe or swim in one of the many beautiful lagoons. <BR>We think at least one visit to either of these two parks is well worth part of the attraction of going to this area.

Since my time is limited right now (too much work), I ask that you take a look at might Web site for a section on visiting Xel-Ha. oneeyed.homestead.com. In short, it is worth it, and I would do it on your own to have more time, but I tend to be biased against tours anyway.

We visited Cancun in 1990 and Xel-Ha and Tulum were the best part of our vacation. If you like snorkeling, Xel-Ha is great. It is like swimming in a huge aqaurium. Tulum is also very interesting. You might try going on your own instead of on a tour. It depends on how experienced you are with travelling. Sometimes it is better to have a local guide. HAVE FUN!

i agree with all the remarks of xel-ha and tulum. you can swim with dolphins and spend a whole day at the park. we did xelha one day and tulum and coba on another. <BR> <BR>we were staying pretty close to xelha. <BR> <BR>trevor

We went to Xel_ha in Jan of 2000.it was absolutely beautiful.We paid the price that includes everthing for the entire day.Food ,drinks,snorkeling etc...It was SO worth.While we were there we also swam with the dolphins.(that is extraWe .)Take a full day to go.Even that wasn't enough. The snorkeling was great!We heard that Xel-Ha is nicer than XcaretWe took another day to go to the ruins in Tulum and do some shopping there. It is MUCH nicer to shop in Tulum than in PlayaDel Carmen. <BR>Debbie