We will be in the Tulum area in December and I am reading about the cenotes which look amazing. My question is the logistics for experiencing them. We are not as young and spry as we once were. How hard is it physically to swim in them (to actually get in - do you need to dive?) , are there changing facilities? Same with snorkeling. We did it once, years ago, but it was off of a beach where one waded in the water until it was deep enough to swim. I would love to see the coral reef but am a bit nervous about the logistics of getting in from a boat. And how cold is the water lol? anyone who has gone and can give me an idea of what it is like I would most appreicate it.

My husband and I traveled throughout the Yucatan by car about ten years ago - which would have put us in our early and mid-sixties. One of our goals was to swim in as many cenotes as we could - we stayed on back roads a lot and followed barely discernable signs leading us down dusty lanes into villages with community cenotes. Cenotes are everywhere - and in small villages, they are often like a public swimming hole would be in the US or Canada. I've never seen a cenote that one has to dive into - there are always steps or a ladder or some other way in - not always the easiest, but never impossible. We joined many Mayan families - mothers and fathers, older grandparents and teenagers, women with babies on their backs, children, and young people. I don't think we were a usual sight, but we were never made to feel unwelcome.

Every cenote has its own characteristics - some are almost completely under cover, others are open to the sun over a large part. Some have islands in the center, with lush foliage - others just a rope tied across the water surface to hang on to. Water is pretty uniform in temperature (cenotes are a part of a large underground "river," so no huge range of temps - cool but not cold.)

Of course, there are also privately run cenotes with sometimes hefty entry fees, along with adjoining restaurants and even small narrow-gauge trains to take you from one cenote to another. Sometimes they can get crowded - with weekend tourists lining up to get in.

One memorable cenote we visited had a very high diving platform built underground - there was a group of graduating pharmacy students from Guadalaraja, celebrating their new diplomas - and diving in from scary heights. You never know what you'll find when you head off the beaten path.