Punta Cana: Underground River and Cenote Cave Swim Adventure

A Perfect Combination of Nature, Adventure & Relaxation in Punta Cana This excursion ended up being one of the highlights of our family trip to Punta Cana. We went with our daughter Sophia and my partner Yigit, and it offered a wonderful mix of nature, wildlife, relaxation, and adventure. Our day started with hotel pickup right on time at 8:20 AM, arriving at the Punta Cana Ecological Reserve (Los Ojos Indígenas) around 8:55 AM. The organization throughout the day was excellent, and everything ran according to schedule. The guided walk through the reserve was fascinating. We learned about the local flora and fauna while seeing rhinoceros iguanas, birds of prey (including falcons), native bees, and many tropical plants. Our guide was knowledgeable, answered questions, and shared interesting facts without making the tour feel rushed. After a short 5–8 minute walk, we reached the famous Los Ojos Indígenas. We spent about an hour and a half (10:00–11:30 AM) swimming in the crystal-clear freshwater cenotes. The water is incredibly clear, refreshing, and surrounded by lush vegetation, making it one of the most beautiful natural swimming spots we’ve visited. It was peaceful, uncrowded, and felt like a hidden paradise. We were then transported to the marina, where we enjoyed lunch at Noah Restaurant in Bibijagua before boarding the snorkeling catamaran. The snorkeling portion was equally enjoyable. The crew was friendly, attentive, and made sure everyone felt comfortable in the water. The reef had colorful tropical fish, and although the sea was a little choppy that day, the experience was still fantastic. We also appreciated the snacks, fresh guacamole, salsa, chips, and drinks served onboard while enjoying the beautiful Caribbean views. What really stood out about this excursion was the variety. In a single day, we experienced: * Wildlife and ecological education. * Swimming in breathtaking freshwater cenotes. * A delicious beachfront lunch. * Catamaran sailing. * Snorkeling in the Caribbean Sea. It never felt rushed, and each activity flowed naturally into the next. If I had one small suggestion, it would be to allow a little more free time at Los Ojos Indígenas because it’s such a beautiful place that you simply don’t want to leave. Overall, this was an excellent excursion for couples, families, and anyone wanting to experience more than just the beaches of Punta Cana. It gave us memories we’ll always cherish, and Sophia absolutely loved seeing the iguanas and swimming in the cenotes. Highly recommended — 10/10! We’d happily book this excursion again on our next visit.

This was a really fun experience. There's so much to do in one place. We did the Sacred River. The water was cool and it was fun to swim in a cave and see waterfalls. We also di the Jungle River which was a great lazy river. The waterfall cenote was a relaxing way to end the day. For the more adventurous they had zip lining, dune buggies and horseback riding. We also had an amazing Dominican lunch which was delicious.

It was a relaxing day. Travelers should know that some of the activities are a fair distance walk from each other and should be prepared. The Dominican village was about 3/4 of a mile down a trail. The attractions were nice, although not historically original. Nice forested environment.

A super unique, fun day in the water. The Sacred River was beautiful and unlike anything we had done before. The food at the restaurant on site was delicious. We will do this again when we return.

We are a couple in our 40's and chose to do the water areas only including the Sacred river, Jungle river and waterfall pool. Although the excursion was fun we felt it best suited for families, or geared towards tweens or teens. The excursion lasted about 5 hours from pick up to drop off at the resort, with the ability to stay longer if we wished. There is a decent amount of walking through the paths to each attraction. The Dominican village is a bit of a walk, but not strenuous and relaxing. The Dominican village is geared towards souvenirs, however you do get to sample excellent hot chocolate, coffee, mamajuana and a cigar where there is a cigar maker rolling on site. The shop is not pushy and is reasonably priced for souvenirs. We did the Jungle river twice which is geared towards a lazy float down in tubes where you are guaranteed to be splashed through waterfalls. Fun experience. We did the sacred river once where you will wear life jackets and calmly float/swim through caves. Although in spots you wont be able to touch bottom, most areas feel 4-5 feet deep. Most of the surroundings feel manmade. These do not feel like a genuine "cenote" or natural surroundings despite the rock being real. Much felt machine dug. Calm nice experience. The waterfall pool is geared towards kids, and the snack bar. Genuine Dominican food for lunch was included and was very good. Drinks not included. There are lockers at the front, however bringing a towel to the rivers doesn't seem logistical as there isn't a place to leave it to dry off after getting out of the water. We left all of our belongings including our towels at the entrance in the lockers that were 10$ US to rent. Although we did enjoy this experience, we felt there wasn't enough to occupy our time as we chose not to do buggies, horses, ziplining as we had done those before in other countries. Suggest if you are deciding to do these things to do elsewhere. A lot of downtime. Great souvenir shop at the exit point.

Very nice excursion and very well organized

My wife and I had a blast. One of the top 2 things we have done on vacations. Highly recommend for lots of fun!!

It was a beautiful and relaxing experience! The sacred river was more than expected as it was one long tunnel to explore after another, loved it! Blue Lagoon Cenote has an easy long ramp to get in and out of. Jungle tube river was about 20 mins of relaxation and fun. Waterfall Pool was beautiful and had loungers to take a little nap in on their fake beach. Dominican Village was about a 15 mins walk past the ranch with horses along the way. I little shop to buy local was there as well. Traditional Dominican Lunch was delicious, and they had water bottle refill stations there. We got our lovely welcome photo via email the next day.

We had a great day here for the most part. Lots of fun. However, when I got food poisoning from their restaurant, I was in trouble. I got violently ill. There was one gentleman there that helped get us a cab when we couldn’t make our tour bus for the return trip to the hotel. I had heard from my friends later that as I was being carried out through the souvenir store in severe distress, there were some girls there being disrespectful instead of being of helpful.I’m disappointed to hear that. So I guess my tip here is to not eat the food here and for the park to train their staff to be more helpful in times like this.

Our visit at the sacred river was an amazing experience from beginning to end. We were picked up on time and transported. The guides were helpful throughout the whole experience. The food was absolutely delicious! It was 8 of us and we truly enjoyed swimming in the cave and cenote. 3 of my friends are afraid of water and they conquered their fears and was so excited about it. Would definitely recommend!