A Guide To Diving Cenotes In Mexico's Riviera Maya
Cenote Diving With Blue Experience – A Unique Experience You Won't Find Anyplace Else in The World
Not only is Akumal blessed with some wonderful Ocean diving but we also have the Magical Mexican Cenotes right here on our doorstep. Cenotes are huge underground river and cave systems that are accessible to all certified divers.
In The Mayan Culture
The Mayan people consider these Cenotes to be sacred places, (no problems with diving in them though!), and there is a special “peace and serenity” around them which you will feel as you begin your dive in the crystal clear fresh water. Akumal has many Cenotes all within easy reach by a short car ride, from 10 minutes to 30 minutes.
Do not miss it
All certified divers have the chance to do these incredible dives, as many are both shallow and allow easy access to the surface within 60m/200ft. Natural light is never far away, and in several places it comes through openings in the roof to give a spectacular light show as it hits the clear waters. There are no narrow passages to squeeze through, it’s all big and open. The routes through are clearly defined by permanent guidelines, and you will always be within a couple of meters (6ft) of these. Diving in these spectacular caverns is strictly controlled, you will be in a group of 4 divers maximum with and always accompanied by one fully Qualified Cavern instructor.
Don’t miss out on this truly amazing diving experience!
Prices
Including tanks, weights and torch. Excluding gear & entrance fee. Dives must be done on the same day.
| 1 Tank Dive | $ 1900 Pesos |
|---|---|
| 2 Tank Dive | $ 2400 Pesos |
| 3 Tank Dive | $ 3000 Pesos |
| Puerto Morelos Cenotes (Hell's Bells - Maravilla) | $ 4000 Pesos |
| Equipment | Piece per day | $ 180 Pesos |
| Equipment Rental complete gear | $ 500 Pesos |
| Dive Computer | $ 250 Pesos |
| Sidemount (Apeks or OMS wing + regulators) *SM cert. mandatory. | $ 1000 Pesos |
- (*) Price per diver
Garden of Eden / Ponderosa
A beautiful body of water, just 10 minutes away from our dive shop in Akumal, hides one beautiful cavern dive. After entering the crystal clear water thriving with fresh water fish, you'll find yourself going down into a huge underwater opening that leads to the main cavern, that connects Cenote Ponderosa with another nearby cenote.
At this beautiful place, non diving companions can enjoy a memorable snorkel swim, over this outstanding underwater landscape.
Tajma Ha
***CAVERN DIVES AT CENOTE TAJMA HA ARE TEMPORARILY NOT AVAILABLE ***
This cenote is situated 10 min north of Akumal. The cave tour takes the diver from the entrance into a wide room underneath an air filled bat cave. Here, light enters through holes in the ceiling and penetrates the water like laser beams during the summer months. Along the cavern floor, you will find hundreds of stalactites lying in the sediment. Continuing the dive, you enter the sugar bowl, a second small cenote where you can see an amazing light show on sunny days. Tajma Ha is decorated with stalactites and stalagmites, and plenty of hidden fossils can be spotted if you look for them.
Find the best time to go to Riviera Maya and dive with us!
Dos Ojos
Just 10 minutes away from us by car, including a 2 km drive into the jungle! Two huge open pools look up at you (Spanish,- Dos Ojos means “Two Eyes”). These 2 large openings allow for spectacular light effects as divers approach them during their dives. Dos Ojos is claimed to be part of one of the largest underground river systems, (connecting several other local smaller Cenotes via smaller cave passages), but the main Cenote is made up of wide passages and chambers, considered to be some of the biggest on the peninsula.
Dos Ojos allows for two separate dive routes, named Barbie Line and Bat Cave! Each dive is approximately 40–45 minutes, with a maximum depth of just 14 m (45ft).
Casa Cenote
Crystal-clear waters and a pristine mangrove await as you discover this unique dive site. Casa Cenote is perfect for divers of all levels. In its open water area, many tarpons, blue crabs, and other species of fish gently float around you as you explore the brackish water. For the more experienced divers, a unique cavern dive is an option. Can you imagine diving under the mangrove roots instead of a rocky cavern?
Perhaps the most amazing feature of this incredible site is "Panchito," a crocodile that has been living in the cenote for several years, creating some of the most memorable diving encounters for our divers.
Aktun Ha / Carwash
Cenote Aktun Ha, also known as the "Car Wash Cenote," is a mesmerizing underwater wonder located in the heart of the Riviera Maya, Mexico. This cenote offers a unique and enchanting diving experience, with crystal-clear waters that reveal a hidden world of intricate limestone formations, stalactites, and stalagmites. As you descend into the cenote's depths, you'll encounter a thriving ecosystem of freshwater fish, colourful liliths and a mesmerizing play of light and shadow. If you're lucky to visit it after some days of rain, you might get some magical pictures with the effects the light plays on the tannic water.
Cenote Aktun Ha is a must-visit destination for divers of all levels seeking a magical and otherworldly adventure beneath the surface. Explore its depths and discover the secrets that lie beneath the Mayan jungle.
El Pit
Approximately 10 minutes south of Akumal and just 2,8 km past Dos Ojos you find El Pit. Arrive early for a morning deep dive and the best light penetration. Once in the water, stop and appreciate the tranquil surrounding that tower above, descend in the middle of the cenote through a shallow halocline towards the hydrogen sulfide cloud at 30 meters. Like Angelita, tree branches eerily protrude from the cloud, what seems to be the cavern floor becomes visible. Continue your dive above the cloud, exploring the cavernous overhang of the cenote before coming up to the sloping ceiling at 10 meters. Here you find stalactites of all shapes and sizes, but also remember to look up and watch the laser beams of sunlight penetrating the gash from below.
Angelita
“Little Angel” Is a cenote hidden away in the tropical forests, and it offers something completely different from the rest, we have to take a 40 drive to get there, but it's totally worth it! If you're an experienced diver, you can't miss this dive… There's no big passages in Angelita, this is a deep opening dropping to 60 m (200 ft). The top - 27 m( 90 ft) is fresh water with crystal clear visibility and then below is salt water, coming in from the sea. The defining layer at 28/29 m (92-95ft) is Hydrogen Sulfide, giving the appearance of having reached the bottom! As you go down through this layer, you will feel as if you are looking back up at the clouds! A truly strange experience, this Cenote dive is for advanced divers only!
Get a deeper insight by reading our article about diving in Cenote Angelita
Cenote Dream Gate
A 30 minutes drive from our Blue Experience Diving center will take you to a beautiful location in the middle of the Mayan Jungle and therefore to this magnificent underground system. Cenote Dream Gate offers two unique dives, enjoy the rich decoration of ancient stalactites and stalagmites frozen in time since the last Ice Age. On both dives, huge chambers provide different angles of incredible light beams hitting the water from the surface.
Cenote Dream Gate is an exciting adventure you can't miss.
Taak Bi Ha
Located approximately 15 km from our Blue Experience Diving center is cenote Taak Bi Ha. The adventure starts even before hitting the water, a tiny entrance in the middle of the jungle leads you to a beautiful underground chamber where you will find a crystal clear natural fresh water pool which hides an unforgettable cavern dive, zigzagging through many ancient rock formations. Even though it is a very shallow dive, buoyancy is a must while exploring the many corners of this beautiful system. At Taak Bi Ha, cave divers can also enjoy two exciting cave lines.
