Tourism is such an enormous industry in Quintana Roo, and there are just so many thousands of us here each day that it is no wonder that there is now a thriving industry of theme parks dotting the map up and down the Caribbean coast. There are just so many days of someone’s vacation that they can spend at the beach! One company has virtually monopolized this industry and has created something of a juggernaut in this field. It started with the first large theme park just south of Playa del Carmen called Xcaret (shhh-car-ett), but has since branched off to no fewer than four other parks!
One company has virtually monopolized this industry and has created something of a juggernaut in this field.
Xcaret is still the grand-daddy of them all—by far the largest and most heavily-touristed one. It is the largest private employer in all of Quintana Roo state, and welcomes easily 5000-6000 guests each day. We’ll leave it up to you to fully research your options, but we definitely recommend at least one day in this park—two if you possibly have the time—so that you can fully enjoy all that it has to offer. With tickets selling for more than $100 per person per day, you’ll definitely want to take as much advantage of your experience as possible. Last time we checked they were offering the second day’s entrance for free with the use of a MasterCard to buy the tickets—certainly a bargain if you have the time to spend. We did and doing so took a lot of the pressure off to see everything in one day. We also recommend the nightly cultural show in the main auditorium. Xcaret’s chapel in the historic hacienda section is also a fantastic place for a wedding ceremony, just BTW!
Xel-Ha is the second of the theme parks to have been built, again around a natural cenote formation close to the coast that formed a natural lagoon. This is like a much bigger version of the Yal Ku lagoon in the Water Excursions article, but even though it’s much more expensive and there are a LOT more tourists here, the swimming is no better than it is in Yal Ku, so we don’t actually recommend this park very highly when there’s a smaller and better and much cheaper option.
Xplor is a different type of park, appealing to those who crave more adventure and adrenaline rushes. A combo of an extensive ropes course and an underground driving track for go-cart-like contraptions, it’s something of a two-trick pony and so you don’t really need all day to spend there. You may feel obliged to anyway because of the steep entrance price, so if that’s the case, we recommend staying until after dark so you can re-experience a lot of the rides with the extra thrill of doing them “blind”!
Xoximilco is almost brand new (opened 2015) and is a tropical re-creation of the famed Xochimilco “floating gardens” in Mexico City. In the original, tourists climb aboard party boats called “trajineras” that are very colorfully painted and are guided around by the Mexican equivalent of gondoliers with long paddles reaching down into the bottom of the canals to steer the boats. On either side of the canals you can see the “chinampas” or islands that the Aztecs built in the middle of what was once a huge lake where they grew all their food. Other boats come floating along with mariachis to entertain you, traditional Mexican snacks to feed you with, like elotes (corn on the cob) or esquites (corn niblets cut off the cob, boiled and served with mayonnaise and lime juice and chile). It’s possible to enjoy Xochimilco either day or night, but most Mexicans tend to do it in large groups in the evening, and there is much drinking involved. In this Cancun version, they dug canals out of pure jungle, and have built a large palapa at the entrance and are re-creating a traditional Mexican village to help make it seem more authentic. It’s not. Don’t waste your money.
Xenses is a brand new park just opened in 2016 that we haven’t yet experienced personally but it has gotten good reports so far. Very unique and designed to test your perception—a “town” where everything is out of proportion and another exhibit that’s pitch black designed to get you in touch with your other four senses. Visitors are recommending to just spend a half-day until the park opens more exhibits.
The other (night) activity that’s extremely popular with tourists, but that isn’t part of the Xcaret corporate monopoly, is the Cirque de Soleil presentation of Joyá at its own private stage across the highway from the enormous Vidanta (formerly Mayan Palace) time-share community between Playa del Carmen and Puerto Morelos. It is a full-fledged Cirque du Soleil performance nightly, with an optional dinner beforehand. If you know and like their performances, this is well worth an evening out.