Río Secreto

This was an absolutely once in a lifetime experience! Our guide Thomas was just amazing and so full of knowledge. We enjoyed every minute! Mysterious, intriguing and like nothing I've ever done before. I was thankful, even with a bad knee that I did it, and made it through, no problems! ;) Be prepared for a bit of a bumpy ride on the bus to arrive, but that was all part of the fun!

One of the best experiences ever! Our tour guide, Jorge, was informative, friendly, very knowledgeable and passionate about preserving the cenote’s. A traditional Mayan ritual was mandatory and performed with a Mayan Shaman to ask for blessings and protection prior to entering the cave. Can’t take anything in so you have to leave cell phones, cameras, etc. in a locker. There is a photographer to take pics of your experience which is nice. He follows you throughout the tour. Bought the digital copies of the photos. Totally worth it! I feel like I got to experience the true beauty of the cenote without worrying about taking photos, etc. That gave me a chance to live in the moment and feel the energy, spirit and beauty of the water and my surroundings. Also, water shoes, life jacket are mandatory and included in the price. Wet suit, also included in the price, is optional. The water was nice and warm, but I preferred the wet suit in case I got cold. It was truly a spectacular experience and worth every penny!

Very unique experience. I suggest bringing your own well padded water shoes. Wet suits and towels are supplied. It is slightly lengthy so use that bathroom when they suggest it. If you're partaking in the lunch buffet it's so so. The lemon cookie looking dessert was very good though. Have fun! Photo packages are VERY expensive but you're not allowed your own camera in the caves.

One of the most uniquely beautiful places. The guides keep the history alive and so knowledgeable. The experience itself was out of this world but the guides were top notch! I would like to thank German and Pablo for our amazing time and making the experience one to remember. The photographer was amazing too, his pictures were very professional with amazing quality. This excursion was very organized and well thought out. You can relax and enjoy the ride!

We had a stunning experience at Rio Secreto even though it started with a scare. The tile floors at the bathhouse where you change lathes are incredibly slippery in the rain. The edges of Hurricane Milton brought lots of rain the morning of our expedition. My feet went out from under me and I hit the ground hard. The team was great. They immediately had an EMT on site who evaluated me. The pain lessened after some minutes and she gave me the all clear to proceed. Rocha was knowledgeable and professional. The cold water of the cave helped too! Our guide, Fernando was outstanding. It’s nice that the groups are small, limited to 12 people. He checked on me throughout the experience. Rio Secreto furnishes wet suits, water shoes, life vests, walking sticks and helmets with lights attached. They don’t allow you to bring cameras, etc into the cave; but they do provide a photographer with each group. He scurries ahead and takes both candids and posed shots. The cave is stunning . It feels like a real honor to visit. It’s completely dark inside the cave. Fernando knew the best paths to walk and showed us how to swim through sections that are deep. There are five or so different routes through the Rio Secreto park so you never run into another group. It is a must do experience.

We really enjoyed going here with a Carnival Cruise excursion. Price was reasonable. Our tour guide Gabi was great. The water is cold. Lunch after wad good, photos was nice but pricey compared to some places we have done other excursions. The photos also took a long time to show up for download. Preview was there right away though.

Slightly disorganised entry point whilst they assign a guide for your visit. Bikes are old, some have no brakes, single gear. Bike part of the day is just tidying a gravel track through the jungle for 15 minutes. Most of the group I was with took the option of a van transit to the zip wire. Zip wires are short, sub 30 seconds. Nothing special. Safe. Not high or overly scary. Surf board zip line more interesting but still less than 30 seconds through a tree cutting. Rappel/abseil into the cenote is ok. If you have abseiled before it'll be easy. No safety type controlled by another person so if you let go/faint you'll probably make it to the bottom quicker than you would ideally want unless the bloke on the bottom pulled the rope tight quickly. Cave was good. 5/10 minutes walk to the entrance then a nice walk through the caverns. Wetsuit, life jacket, helmet and torch provided. Guide did a good job answering questions. Chest deep walking in places 1.4m and then a section of floating) swimming before the exit. Good photographer. EXTORTIONATE prices for the pictures $30 (US dollars) for ONE picture, $120 for the lot! Now you CANNOT take your own camera or phone down the cave or on any of the zip lines so you are held ransom to their pricing. I took only memories from the trip. There should be an option to pay day $10 to take your own camera? Food at the restaurant: ok. Would I do this trip again? No. The trip in Mexico/Yucatan seem really expensive. I paid £106 per person for this trip. If you have the opportunity to go caving in your own country with a caving club go with them first. Even a trip down show caves without the wetsuits is worth doing. Am I being overly negative? Possibly because I've ridden a bike, zip lined, abseiled and caved before. All at a fraction of the price and without the EXTORTIONATE prices or restrictions on photography. The guide was a nice fella. Most guides are.

Rio secreto was an awesome experience, highly recommended!! Well worth the money, and if you can get the +plus package ,do it, worth it!! Plus+ package consists of a short bike ride, zip lining, rappelling & going into the cenote. And lastly, a delicious buffet at the end. Our host Mauricio was awesome. Very informative and very involved with our group. I saw a lot of people complain about picture prices, but I think it's still worth the money. You get a ton of pics in pdf form so you can share and print as many as you want. Better than a few hard copies if you ask me, but to each their own.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND!! GUIDE: "FINNICK" - WAS AMAZING! Awesome job bud... thank you very much. This place is first class and very professional. We did the "PLUS" tour and it was worth every penny. Make sure and wear closed toe shoes. Total trip is about 5-6 hours. Every minute is fun! Zip lining, biking repelling and the cave tour is awesome! The water is cold but very refreshing. Everything was great.

My favorite excursion in Cancun. This is a must do while in Cancun area. We were picked up from our hotel and had an amazing day in the cave plus lunch plus a visit to Tulum. Our guide Jorge was the best. He was super fun and very knowledgeable. Inside the cave is super cool. The water is cool and refreshing. I chose to not use the wetsuit and so glad because the water felt amazing. The water is crystal clear and the inside of the cave is so beautiful. Would definitely do again.

On a trip to Playa del Carmen for a wedding, I was looking for an adventure. Rio Secreto is listed at the top of the list of the top attractions in Playa on TripAdvisor so I made a reservation online well in advance. They picked me and my mom up from the resort on the day of the adventure. Here's what stands out about Rio Secreto. For the most part, it's a cave. I've been to several caves over the years and they're cool. Rio Secreto was the most elaborate of them all. Why? The majority of it is under water. Once you check in, they walk you through some instructions and you have the option of changing into a wet suit. Which I highly recommend because the water is pretty cold in the cave. You're also required to wear a life vest and a helmet. From there, your group (in our case, four total (myself included)) along with your guide hop into a car. You then drive through the jungle until the stopping point where you have about a ten-minute hike to get to the entrance of the cave. As part of the experience, you witness a Mayan ritual to bless you before your adventure as the cave is on Mayan land. Once entering the cave, the adventure begins. Getting through the cave takes about an hour and a half. During it, your guide will teach you how the history of the cave, the formations inside, and make sure you're safe. There are parts of the cave where the water is ankle deep and parts where you're wading over water above your head---and everything in between. It is definitely for the adventurous type and I loved every single minute of it. And you'll get a workout from the walking and maneuvering through tight spaces. After your adventure, you shower and change, and then have a buffet lunch. The buffet lunch isn't the greatest buy hey, it was the adventure I was there for. There's also a gift shop you can check out before they take you back to your hotel. Our host was exceptional. Friendly, knowledgable, and accommodating. This is an experience I will remember forever.

This was the best thing we did in the trip. Our excursion included seeing Tulum then visiting Rio Secreto. It was the perfect temperature and I highly recommend picking up a walking stick for the cenote. The cochinita pibil was the best on this vacation. It was so tender! Definitely give it a try. Our guide and photographer were both fantastic.

We thoroughly enjoyed our tour through here. Our guide Mely was very friendly and gave us a good amount of information. Thr tour was a lot of fun. We really enjoyed ourselves. There were spots where you are in knee deep to hip deep water. And a spot where it will be shoulder deep but it's really more for swimming. They do offer you water shoes to check out for free. But unless you want to wear used wet shoes, you should bring your own if you have them. They also do offer you a wet suit. It's optional though if you would like to use it or not. We opted not to but many.folks did use them They serve you a lunch after. We really enjoyed our lunch. There was salad, fruit, lentils, rice, black beans, fresh made corn tortillas, and some various meat. I personally found it to be quite a spread. I was thankful there were vegan and vegetarian options. There is a walk to get to where you will go down into the caves. Probably 1/2 mile? So you will want to make sure that is also something you are capable of. The jungle walk was very beautiful though!

Such a once in a lifetime experience to hike, explore, and swim through one of the oldest (millions of years old) cave systems in the Mayan Riviera. Mesmerized by the crystal clear blue fresh water, stalactites, stalagmites, & myriad of geological formations. LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!

I want to give Rio Secreto five stars for how much we loved our tour through the "wet cave" cenote -- David our guide was very attentive to delivering interesting natural-encounter information, cultural value, safety, and enjoyment. We've visited on vacations many caves over the years (the Rio Secreto caves have many stunning natural features) and were excited going in that the tour was small, a worthwhile one-hour-ish length, and well-reviewed. The water aspect really takes the experience to another gorgeous, and at-times semi-spooky level. And kudos to the few reviews we had seen in advance that said how helpful quality walking/hiking stick gear is for the uneven footing inside, because wow are we glad we packed them, and wow, did they help us-- and far better than the PVC pipes they well let you borrow for free. (PVC plastic just doesn't have the secure grip you might need. We did. That said, David really worked to help give all members of our tour a helping hand through the slipperiest spots.) After taking the tour we semi-understand their reasoning for not allowing visitors to take cameras along on the wet tour for potential gear loss, safety, and delay to the flow of a constant stream of small tours. Yet the website says (even as I write this) that cameras are welcome elsewhere. Yet we were told we couldn't use our cameras or Go-Pro through the "Plus" experiences of the dry cave, on the hike-about, riding the bikes through the jungle, or rappelling into a different area of the cenote cave network. This left photo memories largely dependent on the end-of-tour shakedown: Being rushed thru an average- to sub-average buffet lunch because first they worked hard to pitch us first to buy a $130 package of mostly amateurish snapshot-level photos (or "only" $30 for any one photo) was a tragic insult to goodwill. They probably could have persuaded us into spending $40 or $50 on overpriced photos to back up the good memories we otherwise made. Instead they err in favor of extorting maximum price out of the very few who appear to pay for it. And this is after you get the numerous signs and pitches to donate tips to the tour guide (who we thought deserved it); the photographer; the Mayan blessing-giver; the drivers (who drive bouncy-seated vans so fast you feel like you're stuck in the live-action video game of Temple Run); and extra for preservation of the site itself (which apparently our $65/person tickets aren't enough to do). An otherwise beautiful and memorable nature-forward day of activities left us feeling like a kind of death from a thousand cuts-- though not nearly as profuse as we got sliced for tips on our Chichén Itzá tour.

To say this was spectacular is an understatement! I HIGHLY recommend this tour! I was so afraid it'd be too cold, too buggy, too something...it was perfect! Ana the tour guide was hilarious and so attentive to guests, guests were fantastic, the tour was beautiful and educational. I hope you'll give this a try! I did the Rui Secreto + Mayan Ruins tour and honestly would have been just as content with just Riu Secreto. The Ruins made for a very long, hot day. Lunch after RiU Secreto was quite the treat too! I never knew cactus was so tart! SO good, and the lime soup was SO good! As a lime lover, I hope I can recreate this at home! I took my own wet suit and layered on one of their as recommended, and temperature was just perfect one you get in. A little nippy at first but it quickly dissipated and being in water actually felt better than when out. I do recommend taking your med. for motion sickness if needed as the ride in and out of the area is a bit bumpy.

The experience itself is incredible... be prepared for a bumpy van ride going into and out of the excursion, but besides that, everything from start to finish was great. Such an incredible experience. Definitely from a physical exertion standpoint a rather intense day between the caves and touring the ruins, but totally worth it. Pace yourself and drink water! Also our guide Deanna(sp?) was awesome!

This was an amazing excursion recommended by our travel agent. We did the cenote experience with a trip to the ruins in Tulum. We got the chance to tour a cenote and cave with opportunities to swim in the natural water and had a pretty good lunch buffet. Our tour guide Eron was very informative throughout the tour and also gave us helpful travel tips due to Mexico having a "dry" law during our trip because of the presidential elections they had during our trip. He also gave us time to purchase souvenirs and ensured that everyone was safe throughout the tour. I would highly recommend this excursion experience for anyone who loves swimming and trying new things.

Let me explain why 1 star. First of all, the area itself is amazing and worth seeing - but this company did not build it, they only capitalize on it. They do not allow to take any cameras (even phones) inside, explaining that this is due to safety or that it's too dark - both of which is a completely false. The only true reason is they want to sell you photos their photographer takes, for $30 US dollars a photo(!) or $100 USD for a set, which is absolutely outrageous. Scammy. The food buffet is extremely basic, worth maybe $10-12 The staff in general is nice, and our guide, Maurite, was excellent.

Rio Secreto is located in Playa Del Carmen. If you book through their website they have a ton of different options that include transportation from hotel, etc. We booked the basic tour with transportation from Cancun for $109. Our tour guide was Gustavo and he was nothing short of AMAZING. He took care of us and made sure we had a great but safe trip through the mayan caves! The mayan caves are 65 feet underground and over 25 miles long. The general tour was about 2 hours under ground and was grueling but amazing at the same time. We were required to do a mayan ritual before which was basically asking for safety and no injury within the cave-- not going to lie made me nervous and was thinking what are we getting ourselves into?! Plenty of areas that are rocky and will have you second guessing yourself but with mind over matter then anything is possible! Tip: wear your bathing suit upon arrival! They will provide water shoes and life jackets. This activity can be done with non- swimmers just let your tour guide know and they will take care of you! Also be prepared to hop into a cold shower before entering the caves to prepare you for the cold water. Otherwise, enjoy! Do not recommend this activity if you are not fit for hiking or afraid of enclosed spaces.

We chose this as our shore excursion for our day in Cozumel, we were on a cruise. The description of this tour sounded AH-MAZING, and it was beautiful! They provided us with wetsuits, life vests, water shoes and Leo, the most patient, best guide!!! We traveled with me, my husband, and our 9 year old son (and then a family of 5 was in our tour group too). There was a short walk to the caves, and then the decent. I was a smidge worried because I am not too hip with small enclosed spaces, but there was no point in the tour that I felt was 'too small', it was a all fairly expansive. The underground was beautiful, and our guide took time to explain everything we were seeing. After 1.5 hours exploring we went back to day light and had lunch. I cannot emphasize how great this tour is, their guides, and ALL the staff. Special shout out to Leo and Angel. Thank you all for the memorable adventure.

While in Mexico we wanted to do something new. Saw a brochure for here and thought this is it! Booked it and the next day in a taxi to the excursion. The caves were great. Our tour guide was fantastic. Personable, friendly, fantastic English. Took time to explain everything to us. Really a gem. Sadly I cannot remember his name, but was a great experience. The cave water was cold, but refreshing. The tour was about an hour and we saw catfish, got to use this clay on our hands, see some bats. Really great. Would do this again. What I wouldn't recommend was the lunch. Honestly was some of the worst food I've ever eaten. Not embellishing, not being dramatic. It was horrible. Everything was cold. The meat, the potatoes, the beans, the tortillas, all cold. Past the dangerous temperature for human consumption, it was just terribly flavored. Nothing was edible. Just skipped lunch, despite it being included in the price it wasn't worth it. Second part of the tour was Tulum, which was great as well. Tour guide was awesome, talked about everything and let us out on our way. Wish like hell I could remember his name to give him a shout out but it's okay. Good dude. Rio secreto, amazing, food terrible, Tulum amazing. Summed up.

This is a MUST SEE!!!! I cannot say enough great things about this experience... Buy the Plus experience... if you have a car - do not sign up at your hotel, instead purchase tickets online or via phone. You get to ride bikes, rappel down into an underground secret river... the longest in the world and see stalactites and stalagmites that you cannot imagine! So cool ... waters great, you will get a spring suit from them and water socks. So much cool stuff to see... The guide makes all the difference. Lucilia was ours, Lu for short. She knew her stuff was friendly and open, Loved this. It takes more than a minute, about 4-5 hours but don't let that stop you.

Breathtaking! A must visit is you come to this region. Only discovered in the last two years, it is so amazing you will look forward to another visit. Our guide Milo was very informative. He knew the history of the owner, the area and was able to logically answer our questions. We would recommend this excursion 100%

Of all the places we visited while in Cancun (and Mexico) this was at the top. It's an amazing experience and well worth the $$. I'm amazed such a place still exists given the way humans destroy places such as this.

We took the ferry over from Cozumel ($27 pp round trip) & taxi to Rio Secreto. So much fun & we learned a lot! Unique experience & wonderful guide. The buffet was nothing special but we weren't there for the food. The ferry is super modern & clean- we enjoyed riding back at sunset. Highly recommend!

The tour with Pepe was amazing! Pepe was super friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. The underground cenotes were so gorgeous. We did the tour where you bike to a cenote that you repel into, traverse an underground river (cenote), visit a dry cave and lunch was at the end. Wonderful day! Could not have been better! Thank you Pepe again he is a great guide!

I want to start off saying that the national reserve is worth seeing, but I must warn everyone that they lied to us just to make a purchase. When I first inquired, about coming to rio secreto, I spoke to a sales person who told me that if we had 20 people in our party, they would make two groups, but when I was ready to book. We were looking for something that would keep us all together. It ended up being 14 people... so upon booking I spoke to 2 different sales associate (which I have screenshots) and they BOTH reassured me that they would be able to keep us together (as a group of 14). They pressured me into buying at that second... just to make a purchase. They also told me since we had a big group... it would be a private tour. They also told me that transportation was included... then all of a sudden it was another fee. Upon arrival we were told we had to separate... and I showed them the screenshots and they didn't seem to care. I have no problem with their rules, but I do have a problem with them lying several times. We ended up being split into 2 groups. One group had 7 people the other had 7 people PLUS 2 random people. Our private tour was no longer private. Upon checkout they try to sell you a photo package, and we're promised a discount for being split up. One of the employees tried to help us with that, and JAZMINE was super rude to our group because we wanted to discuss amongst our group... if we were going to make the 150$ purchase. Jazmine should not be in sales... if she wanted to be so rude and pushy! Our two groups ended up having a great time, because we have fun regardless. The national preserve is beautiful and our two guides... Aaron and Sarah were very sweet, and knowledgeable! Transportation is a bit bumpy and the vans are basically a bouncy sauna... so if you get car sick. I WOULD stay away from this excursion. Overall it was a fun experience, but I'm giving it 1 star because of the lies and disconnect between buying and actually arriving. Stop lying to your costumers.

If you are wondering if you should book this excursion, you absolutely should. I can't describe how beautiful this experience was. Also, if you have Diego as your guide, GET READY FOR AN INCREDIBLE TRIP! Diego was a superstar. He was funny and so, so informative. He told us about the minerals and wildlife and Mayan culture and language and probably a million other things I'm forgetting, but this dude was awesome and I can't say enough good things about him. Bring some cash to tip your damn tour guide! They deserve it and earn it!! ANYWAY. The day starts by watching a little video about Rio Secreto, and then everyone gets a locker where you put everything you brought with you minus your bathing suits. You then proceed to take a very cold shower to make sure all the lotions and deodorants and whatever else you have on your body are gone. The water you go through is a source of drinking water, so it's important to keep it clean! After the frigid bath, you get life vests, wet suits, water shoes (they're free - despite what the welcome video says), and helmets, and then off you go on a little jaunt to the cave entrance. When you first step into the water, it feels cold. However, it quickly stops feeling cold and even starts feeling nice! The whole excursion in the cave lasts about 70 minutes. There are places you can walk, and places where you float. Everyone's helmet has a lamp and the guide has a bright flashlight that he uses to illuminate the water so you don't knock your kneecap off on a stalagmite. You may see bats. You may see catfish. But you will absolutely see some of the most beautiful things you'll ever have the chance to. Note that you can NOT bring your phone/take photos. However, there's a professional photographer that follows you the whole time. If you want to buy a USB with all the photos on it, it'll cost you $99.00. TOTALLY WORTH IT! Just factor it in. After you get out of the cave you then have a nice Mexican lunch! The food was damn good. I mean, better than one of the meals we've had at our resort! I really could go on and on and on and on about this whole trip. I'm still so euphoric from it! Message me if you want to chat, but know this is an A++++++ experience!!!! Plus most of the money you pay for a ticket goes toward conservation efforts. PS Did I mention Diego is a Rockstar? I LOVE YOU, DIEGO!!!!

I can't swim. But I still love adventures. This is an underground cave that has stalagmites formed under in it. My tour guides were amazing! Imelda and Belen made sure I was comfortable before even going in the water. They were very informative with the history and the wildlife inside the caves. I did the half day tour without the bikes and atvs but lunch was included! It was very delicious. I enjoyed my tour today and it's gonna be in one of my favorites memories here in Mexico!

Wow and wow and wow! Worth every penny ($79). This is a privately owned natural wonder. A big portion of your ticket price will go towards purchasing more land that has these caves so it can be protected from non eco conscious touristy trap companies. We felt safe, the gear for the cave hikes and swims was up to date and clean, the photos were super cool, the guide was knowledgeable, the buffet was phenomenal. Might just have to do this again next time I come back to Mexico!

Dany S was the best tour guide we could have gotten!! He was hospitable, knowledgeable, and overall the best personality my boyfriend and I met here in Mexico. He made our experience phenomenal and we would absolutely come back. The caves were a beautiful sight, tequila shots at the end were the cherry on top! (Photographers were great it is 25 USD a photo or 100 USD for all so I suggest take as many pictures as possible and buy the package!)

Really unique and beautiful experience. You're taken care of through the whole process: equipment and explanation and the science and history. We loved it.

This is by far one of the most amazing excursions you can take. This was such a good time. I would do this excursion all over again! Highly recommend. The guide was very knowledgeable and the food was very good as well!

Great tour if your up to walking and swimming in underground cave. Exceptional experience with knowledgeable guide and photographer to capture your experience, Edwardo did a great job with his camera. Stefani, our guide, made sure we were doing okay as we were the eldest of our group and a little slower. You have to be aware of your surroundings as the footing can be tricky and space limited in some areas. You walk and swim with time split pretty evenly between the two. Well worth the visit if you are in the area

unique spelunking, swimming and hiking tour. Took just over an hour of exploring and fully led by a guide with a photographer capturing everything for you since you can't bring a camera into a watery cave. There was one hairy spot at the end which would pull out the claustrophobe in some. Felt safe except for that one spot. The views are absolutely amazing and make this a very worthwhile experience.

Just got back. I can't say too much about this trip that hasn't been said better already so I'll keep it brief with the following tips: 1. You do not need some fancy tour operator- just book your tickets through their excellent website which can include transportation to and from your hotel or just take any taxi there yourself after booking tickets. 2. If you are fat, old, slow, handicapped or have difficulty on stairs or navigating rough terrain this is not for you. The tour is a real work out with a real capacity for slip and fall injury. You have been warned. 3. Just wear your swimsuit there and have it on when you show up - it makes it easier. 4. When they offer you a walking stick, take it. 5. Don't hesitate just do it- it is about a three hour experience including the lunch and it's pretty unique and a lot of fun especially incorporating the swimming parts. The whole place is clean and organized with excellent English speaking guides. 6. Don't waste too much time posing for photos- The cost was a rip off plus they can only send them to you digitally anyway- This method is ALWAYS unreliable and seems to have formatting issues. 7. Everybody keeps saying how great their guides were but they are wrong because Jose (The young guy with a beard) is the best.

The tour was great, the food after was amazing. Thank you Tainara for making this an extra fun experience, you were awesome!!

Great time with our guide, Santi, who speaks 5 different languages. Other reviews were great with description of tour. About $109 pp and 5 hours from our resort in Riviera Maya. Small video followed by wet suit and shoes, short walk, then caves. Really pay attention during your tour. Advice to use walking stick to probe depth of water was great to avoid mishaps. Nice to float a few times and just check out the beauty of the caves, especially the fungus areas which are white and glisten, and are a healthy part of the caves. Lunch was ok. Liked the tortillas and chicken, as well as pickled onions and sauces. Pictures will set you back a bit, but they day that the proceeds benefit the preservation of the caves. Great change of pace for our chill beach vacay.

This is your one "do not miss" adventure if you're in the Cancun area. Our guide Caroline was super friendly and knowledgable. She speaks English and Spanish beautifully. We paid for the Plus package which included: *dry cave tour - nice prelude to the "wet" tour *1.5 mile bike ride - easy dirt road, watch for the potholes *rappel into a dry sink hole. It's only about 50 feet. Short and fun if you have never rappelled *underground river tour - the most fabulous and beautiful experience. You will see stalactites and stalagmites galore. * buffet. Really good and you will be soooo hungry after all the activities. This park is becoming commercialized at a very fast pace. Although they try to preserve it as much as possible, we have noticed a big difference in just one year. The cruise ships docking in Playa del Carmen offer the shorter tour with the underground river only so you can only imagine the sheer number of people visiting. This will take a toll on the caves so the sooner you visit, the better.

Paulina made this excursion. That's really the gist. My husband and I are enjoying our honeymoon, and she was SO attentive and taught us all sorts of stuff. She made me feel comfortable, confident, and grateful. She helped us through safely, and held our hands (literally) when we had rough parts to get through during the excursion. I couldn't imagine our excursion being led by anyone else. I will absolutely be recommending HER to all of my family and friends!!!

I loved the tour. Make sure you are in medium shape the stalagmites and stalactites are tricky to maneuver around but they give you gear, wetsuit, helmet w light and water shoes

This excursion exceed all of our expectations! We chose the Rio Secreto plus and it was a an amazing adventure with a full day of various activities and one of the most beautiful caves we've seen. Our teens were impressed and engaged, and it was a good challenge for those of us in our 50s too. Our guide, Mitch was one of the best guides we've ever had. He was knowledgeable and sincere and super helpful. We started the tour walking through a stunning dry cave with magnificent formations. We saw a deer and the Mot Mot bird and Mitch relayed their cultural and biological context. He helped me in a few places as I was less steady on the slippery rocks. We repelled down into a dry cenote hole which was thrilling. Mitch and the other guide helped me to overcome my fear and it was not hard for anyone in our group. Then we road bikes for a a bit to get to the rio secreto. We showered and were fitted with our equipment. Before entering, we participated in a short Mayan greeting ceremony. We walked, scrambled, and at times, swam through the underground River for an hour and a half, and Mitch gave context to the fragile and unique symbiotic ecosystem of cave, river, bats, catfish, ficus, ants, and a special spider (which we luckily did not see). When we entered a special chamber Mitch led us in a visualization moment which was powerful. When we returned via bikes someone's bike broke so Mitch gave her his and he ran ahead of us all the way back. He is trained as a triathlete and it shows. The meal at the end was very good and there is is a small gift shop. The transport was good too. I highly recommend this tour! Booking through Trip advisor allowed us to have free cancelation which luckily we didn't need.

This visit was absolutely worth it! Rio Secreto is located near Playa del Carmen and about 1 hour drive from Cancun's hotel zone. It's a straight shot down the 307 and if you're renting a car, you can go yourself, rather than booking a tour. We drove here and paid for the tour at their ticket office. Rio Secreto is a semi-flooded limestone cave system filled with stalactites and stalagmites. The tour is filled with wonderfully picturesque sights and the guide Victor was knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. They supply you with equipment (spelunking helmet, life jacket, wet suit, shoes and an optional cane, which I recommend you take), and lockers to keep your stuff safe while you are on your tour. The cave system was only discovered in 2004 and has about 38 kilometers (24 miles) of caves in the system and about 10% are used for ecotourism. You're not allowed to take any cameras or photographic equipment, but a photographer accompanies your tour. They give you the option to buy a digital copy of the photos: $99 for all the photos, which include about 40 photos taken of your tour and about another 40 photos taken of the caves and the wildlife. You have the option to buy individual photos for $24, but I'd recommend the whole package. That comes out to about $1.25 per picture. I saw that most people who gave this a low score was because of the price of the photos. This is a once in a lifetime experience in a private cave system. The price is not exorbitant compared to the costs of many attractions in the Cancun area. The tour lasted several hours and a meal was served at the end as well. If you don't think that it's worth it, don't go, but you'll be missing out on an incredible experience.

While I was away on vacation my girlfriend and I decided we would check this out. We have done crystal cave tubing in Belize before and had hoped to have just the same amazing experience here, and we weren't let down. This is truly a wonder to see and is worth the money to witness. It's truly breath taking to see, as is the water you get to swim through (it's shockingly refreshing!). When we arrived we filled out some simple paperwork then we were assigned our tour guide. I think he was the best, but I might be biased because we share the same name. Joshua was an awesome guide and very informative but in a humorous way, not boring at all. The cave itself is quite amazing, the only downfall is you can't take your own belongings down, such as a camera to take pictures, but they do have someone that takes pictures for you. The tour itself takes a decent amount of time so you don't leave feeling like you didn't get your monies worth. At the end of the tour you're treated to a shot of their Mayan alcohol that involves honey. Apparently it's difficult to make, it tastes like licorice and it's delicious. Bought a bottle to take home! They also treat you to a meal at the end as well before taking you back to your resort if you're a tourist like we were. If you're here on vacation and debating whether or not you want to do this, trust me, you do. I would do it again.

This place is amazing if your in the area I would 1000% go you won't be disappointed I went around 4:30 at night got done everything by 11:00pm so I didn't have e to wait an any lines at all except the zip lining witch was packed but even that was totally worth it the buffet was just as good the staff was great I mean the only complain I can think of is I wish the offered videos of your experience instead of just photos hopefully that's something they will work on but other then this is really that good

Very nice experience ! Our guide was Alfredo he was so knowledgeable and super incredibly amazing !! He explained everything in detail and showed us incredible views , he took his time to explain everything from the insects to the tree roots . It's a very unique experience , it's very earthy and there's a sense of calmness to it , definitely a must !!! Btw I recommend taking a he stick they offer you will not regret it . The suit is also recommended if your a chilly person .

Absolutely wonderful experience! Do not miss this if you are in the Maya Riviera. Our guide was wonderful and every step inside the cave is mesmerizing!

Amazing! Our tour guide, Jose Luis was extremely knowledgeable & helpful. He always made sure that we were very comfortable and felt safe. Miss Antonia made us phenomenal tortillas & Sikil Pak, omg sooooo good. Daniel, knew how to take the perfect photo every time and he was extremely nice. The excursion itself, including hiking, swimming, and biking were all very doable for many different people. We even felt safe doing the rappelling, which I was most nervous about. You will try so many different things on this trip & you will feel very accomplished afterwards. Not to mention, our group members were so awesome & encouraging. The food at the end was very yummy and everything was very organized. My fiancé and I went on this excursion not really knowing what to expect and absolutely loved it! Seriously, add this adventure to your trip, if possible (: A special thank you to all of the wonderful staff and others for keeping this place running!

We absolutely loved our excursion to the Rio Secreto back in early March! It was helpful to read the reviews before in order to know what to expect. We were on a Royal Caribbean cruise, and they provided motion sickness pills since the boat to get to the island was super bumpy. VERY BUMPY. Take the motion sickness pills!! Once you get over, you will be at a little tourist area where they take you on buses to the location. Once there, you are provided wet suits and other equipment. There were a few people who didn't wear bathing suits so make sure to wear them and bring clothes to change in after. After in our suits, we rinsed off then went through the caves. It was such a cool experience, but make sure you use the restroom before you go in since there isn't a bathroom inside. If you have trouble walking or clumsy, this is not the excursion for you. After, there is a nice little local lunch after you change out of your wet clothes. You aren't allowed to take pictures, and I would've fallen or missed something if I did. We opted out since we were chubby in our fitted wet suits . We were then taken back to the shopping area to shop before we loaded the boat. I would highly recommend this excursion!

Rio Secreto is one of the most impressive tours I have been on PERIOD. Since the caves were only found recently, the entire property is barely touched by humans and tourism, it was awesome to get so close to nature. Our tour guide was a biology major working on his PHD and was extremely educated and fun. He LOVES his job, and it's really easy to tell throughout the tour. There are 5 different tour paths we were told are different. We were on one I think called "Princess" (guide said all paths were all different so if you go again you can see a different portion. The is broken up into 3 portions in 3 different sections on the caves. Dry cave (YOU CAN BRING A CAMERA SO DO IT!), a wet cave with repelling into cave (40% swimming 60% walking) and a final wet cave 75% swimming 25% walking).

This is a nice little family adventure about an hour south of Cancun. We made a private tour booking. The guide was awesome (though had a hard time understanding his heavily accented English). The tour itself lasted about 2 hours. Its not really strenuous - anyone without major disability should be able to do. No need to know swimming either - there are barely any places where you'd have to float/swim. We had a four-year old and she could manage without any issues. The cave and the underwater river is pretty awesome - one of its kind. There is almost a mystical quality to the place. The food at the end of the tour was good - minimal options but tasty and fresh. Know that you have to pay for the photos. The photographer knew exactly where to place the lights etc for the right pic and it made it worth it

Probably the WORST experience I have ever had!!! I had booked the tour over a phone call 20min before the tour started. The person who helped me told me that if I made it to Rio Secreto within 15min then I can get on the tour. I had paid the money for the tickets and once I arrived, they denied us the tour because apparently the tour had already begun. The guy on the phone had told me since we paid, they would wait for us but clearly, they took our money and did not. I then had to get on a phone call with customer service twice to argue about getting a refund for my money! And after being on the call multiple times they said they would refund us with a penalty charge even though it was NOT our fault!!! I would NOT recommend this tour to anyone! Spend your money at XPLOR rather than this!

Nothing wrong with the trip but one thing is the reason I go to yelp which I don't do often. You can't take your camera and have a photographer with the group all day. These pictures are being sold to you as a package for no less than 120 dollars. What a disappointment. Allow people their own cameras so they have pictures added to their memories or charge a reasonable price. Bad bad job Rio Secreto! If people pay 120 each for entrance you shouldnt do this to them.

Excellent tour! A highly recommended excursion on a week or longer vacation. It breaks up your time with an unforgettable day. I was disappointed at first when I was told I could not bring my GoPro since it is waterproof - but, I am happy it was not allowed. It gave me an opportunity to be completely removed from technology and experience the wonders around me. It is not an excursion for the faint of heart! It calls out your inner adventurer, from the climbing in the hills to the narrow passageways through the cave. Victor was our tour guide and he was patient, but also pushed us steadily as to take in everything allotted in our 1 and a half tour. Food was tasty for an included meal - nothing extravagant. But quick and sufficient for your ride back to your resort. We opted into buying the $99.00 USB drive photo package and it did not disappoint. Some of our photos were blurry, but the photographer was running through knee and waste high waters with her camera in the air. All little things, but did not take away from an overall "5 star" excursion!

We were afraid Rio Secreto would be a repeat of the underground rivers at Xcaret and Xplor, but Rio Secreto is a whole different experience. We booked the basic tour in advance online (make sure to browse for promos on their website!) and were picked up from our hotel. This tour starts a little later that most, which is nice for days when you don't want to wake up at the crack of dawn. Upon arrival and check-in, you're split into tour groups (English speakers together, Spanish speakers together). Cameras are not allowed, as they have a cameraman with each tour group at most times, and you'll have to purchase pictures through them. It is a super bumpy ride into the jungle. Luckily, I had motion sickness medicine, as both my partner and I were very uncomfortable. There's a short walk in the lush jungle, then finally descent into the underground river. Our tour guide Luis walked us through the various areas, always making sure we were comfortable, safe, and respectful to the environment. After your exploration, you take another bumpy ride to the lunch area, where you purchase pictures, sample the local liquor Xtabentun, and enjoy the small lunch buffet. Overall, I really like the "small company, very environmentally conscious" vibe from Rio Secreto.

Such a great experience and we had a great time with Pepe!! He was an amazing tour guide and was very informative on the history of the caves and culture. Was tons of fun!