Chichen Itza Classic Tour

I booked this tour for my friend. it’s her first trip to Mexico,, probably first time join any tour as well. The first word she told Me when she came back to hotel was “ I saw Maya ruins! I jumped into Cenote….I had wonderful time!”

This tour was one of the biggest scams I’ve ever experienced and a safety hazard to tourists. We were lied to, extorted, threatened to be abandoned in an unknown location, and terrified for our safety. I was traveling with two other people (Person A and Person B). We had a pickup around 7 AM. After we were already on the bus and approximately 1.5 hours had passed, we were informed that—because of COVID—we’d be unable to enter Chichen Itza (the first stop) until after 12 PM. We were also told the tour would last 15.5 hours. We had no warning of either of these facts prior to this and had previously been told the tour was approximately 10-12 hours. However, it was too late to do anything about it, because we had already started traveling and were already 1.5 hours in. We then spent 4 additional hours riding on the bus. We passed Chichen Itza shortly after 12 PM, but—instead of stopping—we continued driving 30 more minutes to a location that was not on the itinerary. The location was a gift shop off of a dirt road and surrounded by jungle, where we were forced to stay for 1.5 hours with no indication of when we’d actually start following the itinerary. We asked the tour guides and the people working at the gift shop if there was any way to leave and go to the tour locations or go back to the hotel, and they said no (even though we were willing to pay and asked for a taxi). We asked when we’d be going to Chichen Itza (several times), and they refused to answer. We called Viator and explained the situation, and they just said to call back the next day and hung up on us. It felt like we were being held hostage. We were pressured to buy items in the gift shop. The “included” lunch didn’t include a single beverage, even water. (Side note: Two other passengers had extra water, but the tour guides literally wouldn’t let them give us their water to drink.) They tried to charge us for tourist photos when we tried walking out of the gift shop area. They had us sit on the bus motionless in the parking lot and pass around a bottle of liquor, trying to convince us to buy it. The time ticked by, and still nobody would tell us when we would actually be following the itinerary. But that wasn’t even the worst of it. After we complained and asked to go to the itinerary sites or to go home, we saw the tour guides pointing across the room at Person A and making a phone call. Shortly after that, they came over and told Person A that they didn’t actually have a record of him paying for the tour—even though they had already accepted his ticket to get on the bus and driven us the 5.5 hours to the gift shop. We showed the tour guides his confirmation, his ticket with barcode (for the second time), and his credit card statement with proof of payment. But they wouldn’t accept it. They told Person A that they would leave him behind at the gift shop if he didn’t give them money. They acknowledged that there 1) were no taxis at the gift shop, 2) was poor/no cell phone service at the gift shop, and 3) was no reasonable way to get home from the gift shop. But they still said they would leave him there anyway, unless he gave them money. It was retaliation because we had complained about being taken to the gift shop. And it was extortion. The only reason Person A was able to stay on the bus was because there were three of us who started yelling “no,” plus two other passengers who also started arguing with the tour guides that the whole ordeal was wasting everybody’s time. If Person A had been alone, I don’t know what would have happened. Without the help of the other passengers, we would have been forced to hand over cash or get kicked off the bus in the middle of nowhere with no known way to get home. Which is absolutely absurd, even if the tour guides had been correct about Person A not paying (which they were not). Because of the extortion, the three of us were terrified for our safety. We began sending friends and family our GPS location, photos of the gift shop, and a summary of what was happening to us—just in case we were in danger. We were held at the gift shop until 2:10 PM. We finally left and got to Chichen Itza at 2:35 PM, which was 7.5 hours after our original pickup time. Upon arrival and out of fear, we offered to give the tour guides all the money we had on us. However, we did this in front of other passengers, and—at that point—the tour guides suddenly said they had made a mistake, and they didn’t make us pay. We suspect it’s only because the other passengers started speaking up on our behalf and complaining about the tour as well. The ordeal made us feel targeted and concerned for our lives. As such, we didn’t know if it would be safer to stay with the tour in a group of people who had witnessed everything, or if it would be safer to immediately leave the tour on our own. We ultimately decided the best option would be to split off from the group and get our own ride home. We booked a taxi (when we were finally at Chichen Itza where there were taxis) for over $150 USD and went home, missing the rest of the tour (including the cenote swim, the stop in Valladolid, and the full amount of time at Chichen Itza). We let the tour guides know we would not be getting on the bus again, and they had us sign a paper stating why. Fearful of further retaliation and anxious to get out of the region, we said it was because we had dinner plans (which was made up, but also wouldn’t have been unreasonable, considering the tour was going from 7 AM-10:30 PM with only a single meal offered that didn’t even include water or any other beverage). I am an avid traveler. I’ve been to over 50 countries, often alone, including some very dangerous areas of the world. I’ve used Viator multiple times in the past. Person A speaks fluent Spanish—there was no communication barrier. I am a doctor, Person A is a doctor, and Person B is a lawyer—we know how to handle ourselves in difficult situations. But this was beyond anything I have ever experienced. This was the first time I’ve been truly fearful for my life and the lives of my travel mates. The tour itself is a scam—the tour operators must have some kind of deal with the gift shop owners. Chichen Itza is 2.5 hours away from the hotel, but it took us 7.5 hours to get there (and 2.5 hours after we initially passed it and they said we’d be able to get in). The “included” lunch didn’t include a single beverage (including water), even after a 5.5 hour drive with 10 more hours to go. And we were held at a location that was not on the itinerary for 1.5 hours with no way to leave and with no one giving us any information about when we’d actually begin the itinerary. We were lied to multiple times, we were retaliated against for saying anything about it, we were threatened to be left in an unknown location with no way to get home, and we were extorted for money. As a result, we missed the stops on the tour and we missed the opportunity to do anything else on our only day in Cancun. And when we contacted Viator asking for help as this was all going on, we were hung up on. This tour should be removed from Viator. It is a safety risk to tourists.

In addition to Chichen Itza we went to 2 different cenotes (both super cool) and Valladolid. Hector and Julio were wonderful and took care of us all day, providing a morning snack and beverages throughout the day. Hector was our guide and was very knowledgeable about Chichen Itza and the history of the area. We appreciated the small group set up and the itinerary- we picked this tour because they went to Chichen Itza first in the morning and it’s definitely the right way to go!

Wonderful time! Alfredo and Avelino and the rest of Cancun Bay team were super attentive, insightful and had a wonderful energy about them. I would highly recommend Cancun Bay for any cultural tours!

Ceaser was a good tour guide funny and very helpful. The driver was good as well. The actual tour who we had was awesome in explaining things to our group. Overall first experience for me was good and second experience for other person with me was good

It was a great experience our tour guides were very attentive. Also if you do the math more than half of your ticket is just the price of admission at the various places. Great cultural experience. We loved the cenote and it was perfect after walking for 2 hours at chichen itza. Bring plenty of water.

I booked the Chichen Itza Classic Tour with Coba Tulum Experience; however we were picked up at our hotel by someone from Cancun Bay who had never heard of Coba Tulum Experience. In addition, I had selected the Chichen Itza Classic Tour, but this was not the itinerary that was followed. Instead of going to Chichen Itza first, we ended up at a tourist trap called Real Mayab, and then we went to Chichen Itza in the middle of the day at the peak of the heat. Then, instead of going to the Suytun Cenote as per our itinerary, we were taken to an overcrowded alternate cenote. Overall, it was a very disappointing experience, and we would not book this tour again.

We Highly recommend this Tour , Our Guide Cesar was real nice and very informative , He knows quite a lot , he was part of a team of Guides that went on the tour with us and I don't want to leave them out since they were also very nice. Cesar , Ricardo , Jesus and Roger the Driver who got us safe to every destination Thank you very much for a Wonderful Experience .

This tour was amazing. Adrien did a great job explaining everything to us in Spanish and English!! Great deal for a packed all day activities

The tour guides are entertaining and nice people. The bus is comfortable. The attractions were interesting. Cenotes were beautiful. Chichen Itza was a must see. Valladolid was a nice place to see the locals. Facts about the Mayans were interesting. This was a nice way to see how the locals live.