Xcaret Plus

1101 reviews for Xcaret Plus

1. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Andrea M – June 9, 2022

   I cannot do this park justice with a review. It was beautiful! The people who worked there were so nice and friendly!

   To start, we got transportation included in our package. It took about two hours to get there but it was great not to have to worry about getting there. The bus left at 7 in the morning and we got there around 9.

   Before you go! Please be aware that if you buy your tickets in a big group you will not be able to split the cost of the photos individually. This means if one family doesn’t want to buy their photo package, but you do, they won’t let you. We were a group of three families and we all wanted the photo packages. However we wanted to buy them separately (why would you want someone else’s family photos right?) but and we were told they weren’t able to split the cost of the photo package up because we had bought our park packages together. For 10 of us, it costs $179 USD for two people it would’ve been $59. Just keep in mind, for this particular reason, it’s better to buy your park packages separately.

   At the advice of the bus staff, we waiting to head to the lazy river instead of going there first. Everyone tries to do the lazy river first and if you go as well you’ll get a lot of people traffic rushing you through it. There’s lockers you can put your stuff in (lockers were also included in our package) and they give you a key you hang around your neck so you don’t loose it. Life vests and flippers are handed out by the lockers and changing rooms. Flippers are optional, you can just wear your water shoes if you prefer that, which is what I did. It took about an hour and a half for us to finish the swim and we took our time. There’s plenty of photo ops (if you buy their photo package you just have to scan your bracelet at the designated areas and it takes photos for you). Some areas have a small current (nothing that would make even a beginner swimmer scared) which makes it easier to progress, other areas have no current so you’ll have to work at moving forward. There are ropes that follow the river so you can grab on if you need a break or help moving forward. At the end there’s a beautiful photo op with the colorful XCARETE letters. You will need to wait in line for a while for that one as many people stop there. A little further than that is the end where you drop off your life vests and flippers and can head to the restrooms.

   There was a ride called Adrenalina that we purchased. (You can buy these tickets at different counters through out the park, but you do have a designated time for them and they have limited seating so if you miss your scheduled time you might be out of luck trying to get on it later on) If you like roller coaster and getting soaked this is the ride for you. It’s a speedboat that goes 110 kph (about 62 mph). It’ll take you out to the ocean do some turns and go underwater so you absolutely get soaked and a great roller coaster like experience. You also get life vests for this so if you’re scared of falling off the boat (which I think would be hard to do if you follow the instructions) you’ll still be safe. It’s very important to listen to their instructions, there’s two staff on the boat with you, one gives you the instructions and the other is the driver. They always give you a warning when they’re going to make a spin or go under. When you go under you have to take a big breath in and tuck your chin to chest. If you don’t do that you’ll get hit with a face full of sea water. I suggest watching their YouTube videos if you want a better idea of how it goes. There’s a photographer on land that’ll take photos as you’re out and about and the boat has a camera recording a video. If you purchased the photo package the photos will be included, the video you can purchase at the main lobby for $40 USD. The video is about 2 min 40 sec. If you think there’s a chance you might buy it make sure to ask to sit in the front row so you can be seen clearly. Otherwise people’s heads might block you.

   Buffet came included with our package as well. We went to the Mexican buffet called La Cocina. This was really good authentic Mexican food. They have a good variety of everything as well. I didn’t try any of their alcoholic drinks so I can’t speak for those. However, I thought the jamaica and tamarind water lacked flavor and sweetness. The line can also be a bit of a wait so try to get here when you start getting the munchies versus when you’re already really hungry.

   There’s a cute little “town” you can visit as well. There’s a church that you can see, there no mass or anything like that, but it’s still cool to see what it looked like so many years ago. You can go through a house that have many old artifacts as well.

   The show at the end in the best part! Absolutely incredible and you must stay to watch it. It starts at 7, I recommend getting there an hour early so you can get good seats. Even though the auditorium is huge, it does get packed. They start off with an Aztec show and then move into the progression of the Mexico that is today. I cannot stress how beautiful it was.

   The show lasts about two hours and at the end there is buses waiting to transport you back to your hotel.

   There was definitely not enough time for us to see everything which was a shame, but I will certainly be back to see it all someday.

2. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   justthefacts41 – June 9, 2022

   We came back to PDC and XCaret with teenagers 17 & 14 after having been here 12 years ago. They both really loved it. It was as wonderful as we remembered. Beautiful park, spotless, well staffed, excellent food. We really enjoyed the aviary, and turtle habitats this time as stand outs. Resting in the hammocks was fun as was the buffet on the peninsula. We purchased the Plus package. The extra activity we purchased outside of that was the dolphin swim. It’s expensive but very well worth it. Wonderful experience with the dolphins and trainers.
   Areas of improvement- masks. We are outside. There is virtually no way to spread Covid. It would be great to recognize that at this point.
   More instruction: We would have liked to know which underground river gave which experience. Similarly, we were not told about the camera spots you can use with your wristband. We figured it out later but, missed some spots. There were a couple of other things we commented on that we could have used instruction for. IE: you really should use the fins in the underground rivers- send all of your belongings to the other end versus keeping in the locker.
   The picture package for dolphins was REALLY expensive. (Too) The park pictures package was far more reasonable.
   Make sure to bring a change of clothes. There is enough walking that ideally you’ll have tennis shoes and flip flops available to you.

   It can get cold so a sweatshirt is not a bad idea.
   The night show should not be missed. We did dinner on our own at a different buffet and then attended. So beautiful at night. It was fun to see the patriotic Mexican tourists cheering for their state when featured. 🙂
   To experience all you can and you won’t get to everything- 12 hours is what you should plan for. Think Disneyland time commitment.
   Overall, I still maintain that this is a MUST DO if in the area. First class. Great experience with little ones and teens alike.

3. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   coolmammaa – June 9, 2022

   Place is beautiful, well kept, staff is polite and they’re very attentive with details and covid guidelines

   Loved everything. Beautiful. Clean. Lots of activities. Very organized.

   I was super excited about the main show but to be honest I thought a little boring. they could cut in half and still would transmit the message without loosing its meaning or being so boring.

   I was surprised that they didn’t charge extra for the life vests and they also give you a free option to keep your belongings.
   The river was amazing and getting off at the beach was just perfect

   You MUST GO!

4. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   DrPleishner – June 9, 2022

   When we were on the bus to the park from our hotel the guide (?) was telling about Xcaret and he was steering us towards the extra attractions we should when we get there with motivation of “traveling so far, so you need to use this opportunity”. This seems to be the business model of Xcaret. All you get for the price of admission ticket is a lot of walking. Having said that the park is actually very enjoyable. There are animals scattered throughout the park (one enclosure had a sign “El Tapir” and well there was exactly one tapir there). Some of these animals are hard to see – monkeys, deer can be hiding. Jaguar Island is under construction and I’m not sure where they moved them. Pumas are not easy to spot. Aviary and Butterfly pavilion are superb. The cemetery is worth time to walk around and read different inscriptions. We didn’t swim in the river – we did it a few years back so we didn’t want to spend so much time and honestly people swimming there looked rather tired. One piece of advice is to download Xcaret app beforehand and figure out your path through the park because it gets confusing very quickly once you’re there.

   The shows are great but very crowded. Another piece of advice – go to the night show at least an hour before the beginning. We witnessed how quickly the theater fills up and if you come there 15-30 minutes before the show starts you will be sitting very high up. The night show itself is somewhat like the Olympics opening ceremony – lots of people moving around doing something but it’s very enjoyable nevertheless. A few musical numbers were extremely heartwarming.

   So, if not for the price of admission it would be a very enjoyable day trip. Though it’s not directly comparable with places like Disneyland though. I’d say you get more bang for your buck in Disney parks.

5. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Anna_WeHo – June 9, 2022

   Just came from the park, December 30, 2021. Which is supposed to be super high season.

   I read some reviews before and decided to purchase a Xcaret Plus Admission, as everyone said their buffet is super good. We did not buy their transportation, as taxi from Playa del Carmen is around 300 pesos one way. From there they have a fix rate (depending on where exactly you live and how many persons), we payed 330 pesos from Xcaret to Zazil-Ha (2 persons) at around 9 pm. It might be a bit more if you have more people, no idea. If you come from Cancun, it might make sense to buy their transportation.

   So below is our experience.

   Arrived around 1:30 in the afternoon (we are night owls)… As we wanted to do the underground rivers most, we jumped into them immediately.

   First experience, there is no FREE drinks or water included in Plus admission. But there are water fountains all over the park. If you do not want to buy the water, bring you bottle, you will be able to refill it everywhere.

   The rivers were great! The ticket price seemed a bit expensive to me, but after we did the rivers, I felt the value satisfaction 🙂 The rivers are great!

   Keep in mind, you will be literally swimming in the rivers. Not like floating in the rubber rings, but literally swimming in a life jacket. The life jackets are OBLIGATORY! Therefore the only place you will have to put something on is probably your neck. You might attach something to the jacket too, or put in your pocket, if you have one. If you get cold easily, come in closed swimwear. You will spend like an hour in the water, but there are exits like every 200 m, so you can exit if you are uncomfortable. If you want to use your phone for pics, bring a waterproof phone bag to put it around your neck. You would want to take picks in the rivers, believe me! 🙂 I recommend you to get the fins (available with Plus admission), masks might not be needed. I had google with me, but never used them. The rivers are like 1.5 m deep, you can pretty much see the bottom everywhere.

   Each underground river journey lasts for about 45-60 min. Depending on how fast you swim. But if there is ‘traffic’, it will be difficult to constantly overtake someone in front of you.

   With Plus admission you get a free locker. You can leave you things there. Or alternatively, make them ship your things to the end destination in a locked bag. I recommend you ship at least your shoes and towels, and maybe some clothings, as you will have to return to the beginning point to do the second river (if you wish of course), or to collect your things from the locker. And it’s pretty much at the other side of the park (like a 10 min walk).

   Both rivers start at the same point and end at the same point.
   At the entrance you choose which river to do first. You can go left first (as we were suggested by their service), or right first (to Rio Maya). The left river is longer, but we liked the Maya river more, as it has more attractions, kinda Indiana Jones style. If you can only do 1 river, I would go with Rio Maya. But it’s the matter of taste 🙂

   So we entered the park at around 1:30 and finished both rivers at about 4:45. While we had fins and both of us are good swimmers. I assume, I low season there is less traffic and you can do them faster.

   We have buffet lunch included in the Plus admission.
   Just so you know, most of the restaurants close at around 5PM. The only restaurant that is open till 7:30 is La Cocina (close to the entrance by the horse show). Keep in mind, you might get a line there if you come after 5:30, when all other restaurants will be closed. We were waiting for about 30 min to be seated. But the food was worth it 🙂 Amazing selection of Mexican dishes. Even a vegan person would find something to eat. They serve coffee. The only con was that they had only sugar drinks, we asked for water, and got tap water, which we did not drink 🙂 But if you are ok with coke, you should be fine. In addition you can watch the horse show from La Cocina restaurant, the show starts at around 6-6:30. The restaurant service stops at 7pm, but they will not kick you out till 7:30. However, at 7pm they start to play a loud notice telling you they are closing soon, which is very annoying.

   We even managed to visit the show, which we recommend as well. Especially the begging of it (first hour), which is more spectacular.

   Overall it was an amazing experience. I highly recommend! 🙂