Chacchoben Mayan Ruins and Mayan Experience from Costa Maya

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Five stars isn't enough!! This was our very first cruise, so I was honestly a little nervous about booking a third-party excursion instead of one through the cruise line. After experiencing The Native Choice, I can confidently say it was one of the best decisions we made. Everything was so well organized, professional, and completely seamless from start to finish. If you're on the fence, book with The Native Choice—you won't regret it! A huge shoutout to Elliot at the kiosk! His customer service was exceptional. He even helped us switch our excursion at the last minute, and the entire team was so accommodating. Instead of making us feel like it was an inconvenience, they went out of their way to make sure we had an amazing day. We started in one van with Lorenzo as our guide and an excellent driver whose name I unfortunately can't remember. The van was clean, comfortable, and had great A/C (which was definitely appreciated!). Lorenzo taught us so much about the local culture on the drive to Chacchoben. It was absolutely fascinating and made the drive fly by. Our first driver was friendly, professional, and made us feel safe the entire time. After arriving at the ruins, we switched vans because of our last-minute tour change, and everything was handled seamlessly. Joel was our guide through Chacchoben, and he was fantastic! He was born and raised nearby and is raising his family there also. He had laminated, full-color posters that helped bring the history to life and made it so much easier to understand what we were seeing. His passion for Mayan history was contagious. From there, Miguel drove us to the Mayan family village, and Allen was our guide. Allen was truly a ray of sunshine. He grew up in a nearby village and is of Mayan heritage himself, which made everything he shared feel even more personal and meaningful. The family we visited are friends of his, and you could tell he genuinely cared about them and their way of life. He was incredibly knowledgeable about Mayan culture and explained traditions in a way that was both engaging and easy to understand. One of my favorite moments was when he picked fresh cinnamon bark and allspice leaves for us to smell while explaining the plants and trees that help sustain the community. Those little hands-on experiences made the tour unforgettable. The Mayan family's property was peaceful, beautiful, and impeccably clean. This wasn't a restaurant—it was the family's home, and that made the experience so special. We learned why the traditional Mayan kitchen is a separate building from the main house, and we even got to make our own tortillas there. Three local Mayan women who live on the property welcomed us with such kindness. Dressed in beautiful, traditional embroidered Mayan clothing, they prepared an incredible homemade meal for us while sharing a glimpse of their daily lives. Everything was fresh and absolutely delicious: chicken, handmade tortillas and salsa, tamales, rice, vegetables, beans, and a traditional homemade Mayan dessert. Sharing a meal in their home and learning about their traditions made this so much more than just a lunch stop—it was one of the most meaningful parts of our trip. This truly felt like a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I found myself saying little prayers of gratitude over and over because I was so thankful we had the opportunity to experience this day. Thank you, Elliot, Lorenzo, Joel, Miguel, Allen, and our first driver for making our first cruise excursion unforgettable. Every single person we met was kind, knowledgeable, and genuinely cared that we had an incredible experience. I also want to encourage anyone visiting Costa Maya to consider booking with this local company instead of automatically choosing a cruise-line excursion. We were a little hesitant at first, but The Native Choice exceeded every expectation we had. They were incredibly organized, communication was excellent, transportation was comfortable, and we never once worried about getting back to the ship on time. Beyond that, it felt good knowing we were supporting local people who are passionate about sharing their history, culture, and community. We didn't just visit the ruins—we learned about them. We didn't just eat lunch—we were welcomed into a family's home. We didn't just see Mayan culture—we experienced it. Thank you, The Native Choice, for giving us a day we'll remember for the rest of our lives. We would choose you again in a heartbeat. Love, Gary & Elizabeth

Eric is the guide you want. Great transportation to the ruins. Ice cold a/c. Really cool to learn Mayan counting. Lunch was perfect. Small group of people and really neat to watch them cook the food while getting a lesson.

So happy we took this tour. Excellent guide, so much great information. We had a wonderful lunch. 16 yo grand loved it!

My boyfriend and I had an incredible experience on the Ancient Chacchoben Mayan Ruins & Mayan excursion in Costa Maya. From start to finish, everything exceeded our expectations. Our tour guide, Diego, was outstanding! His knowledge of Mayan history and culture was impressive, and his genuine passion for sharing it made the entire experience engaging and memorable. The traditional meal was another highlight. The ladies who prepared our food were so warm and welcoming, and their hospitality made us feel like honored guests. The food was fresh, clean, authentic, and absolutely delicious. This excursion offered the perfect combination of history, culture, amazing food, and wonderful people. We left with a much deeper appreciation for the Mayan civilization and the beautiful community that welcomed us. We would highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Costa Maya!

This was an amazing experience! Javier and Rosie were the perfect tour guides. Javier transported us safely and kept us fully hydrated throughout the trip. Rosie made us feel like we were friends of the family. She was very knowledgeable and extremely proud of her culture. It was a pleasure to have her guide us on this excursion. If you want the opportunity to have a cultural and historical experience, this is definitely the excursion. A very memorable experience that we will not forget.

Our tour guide Joel is excellent!! Very organized, informative, and friendly!! The ruins and a place in the Mayan village were very impressive! I highly recommend this trip!!

The guide, Alondra, was really good—vey sweet and knowledgeable. Cooking and eating our own tortillas was the best part.

The guides are very knowledgeable and proud of their heritage. The Mayan ruins are impressive and the cuisine was delicious. Highly recommend this tour for any family that wants, history, good food and something other than another beach.

We had a fantastic day with Edder and leaves so much about the Mayan culture. After a slightly delayed start due to a large group that didn't want to split up on two buses, we drive to Chacchoben and had an amazing tour. We then visited the village for a tasty Mayan lunch. Everything about the tour was top notch. We highly recommend Native Choice Tours That being said, I will never book with Viator again. We added two friends to our booking and paid in advance. When we arrived they were not on the list and the tour was full. Viator customer service did nothing to help us. Thankfully, the tour operator has two no shows and they were able to join and had to pay AGAIN. Eight thumbs down for Viator.

Our tour guide Elliott was excellent. He explained the history and Mayan culture. Then we had lunch with a local family and his wife. 5 star tour all the way. Would do it again and highly recommend.