Cenotes at Cuzama

An antique wooden buggy type of cart called a 'truck' pulled by a horse is the mode of transportation used on the increasingly popular "Chunkanán" or "Cuzamá cenote trip." Traveling through the lush (or bone dry, depending on the time of year) sisal plantations of the Yucatán with three wonderful refreshing cenotes as the goal of the trip, this day trip is something truly unique that you can do while visiting the Yucatán Peninsula.

Take a look at the Yucatán State map and locate Cuzamá and the tiny village of Chunkanán, which lie southeast of Mérida. Then read our general article on Cenotes. And then, start planning! You can count on a car trip of about 45 minutes from Mérida to these cenotes. The time you take at the cenotes will, of course, be up to you, keeping in mind that on a busy day, you will be allowed 30-40 minutes per cenote.

Once you arrive in Cuzamá, turn right at the main square (the town hall and church are located here) and find the road that leads out towards Chunkanán and the cenotes' entrance. There are two ways to access the cenotes:

1. There is a "paradero" or stop where you will see a man waving a red flag, with a parking lot on the right, to indicate that this is where you turn to start your cenote adventure. From here, the excursions are run by the folks from Cuzamá.

2. Ignore the red-flag man and continue along another 5 minutes to the tiny village and former hacienda of Chunkanan. This is where the tour originally got its start and these tours are run by the folks from Chunkanán (see Yucatan Today Editor's note below).

Both groups charge the same rate, about $200 pesos, and visit the same 3 cenotes, called Chelentun, Chansinic'che and Bolonchoojol along the 9 kilometers of narrow gauge railway once used to transport workers and henequen leaves from and to the now-ruined hacienda. Two of the three cenotes now have concrete stairs leading down into the crystal clear water. The last cenote is accessed by a wooden ladder that disappears dramatically into a round hole cut into the rock.

Keep in mind that the drivers will be happy to lash your cooler onto the 'truck' so you can take your refreshments with you; there are no stores once you are enroute. On weekends and holidays, some ladies from Chunkanán will set up tables with snacks and souvenirs at the first cenote, close to town.

Also, at the first and last cenote, there are change rooms and washrooms available, not so at the cenote in the middle.

Change rooms and washrooms are also available at the new restaurant in Chunkanán called El Dzapacal, which serves good Yucatecan fare at very affordable prices under a huge palapa (thatched with palm leaves) roof. Or you can stop at the restaurant at Hacienda Tepich on the way back to Mérida. The restaurant serves international and Yucatecan cuisine using chicken, pork, beef or rabbit. Tepich is on the way back to Merida, after Acanceh, about 24 kilometers from Cuzamá.

Article and photos courtesy of William Lawson of Lawson's Original Yucatan Excursions.

There are bus departures from Merida at 9.15 am, 10.45 am, 12.30 pm, 2.30 pm, 4.30 pm, 9 pm. Trip takes 1.5 hrs, costs 18 pesos. Returns at 2 pm and 7 pm. The bus terminal is at Calle 67 x 50, Centro. Tel. 924 7865 to confirm schedule and cost.

Editor's note: further to the two options about accessing these cenotes, we recently received the following comment from a reader:

Related articles:
- Cenotes, Underwater sinkholes
- The Seven Best Cenotes in Yucatan
- Cenote Kankixche
- Cenote Peba
- Cenote Yokdzonot

Maps:
- Map of the Yucatan Peninsula

Tours to cenotes:

- LAWSON'S ORIGINAL YUCATAN EXCURSIONS
Email: lawsonsyucatan@gmail.com
Website: http://lawsonsdriving.blogspot.mx/

- MAYAN ECOTOURS
Calle 51 # 488 x 56 y 54
Centro Histórico, C.P. 97000
Mérida, Yucatán, México
Tel:  52-   999-9 87 37 10
Cel:    52-1-   99 92 43 14 89
Cel:    52-1-   99 91 05 46 14
E-mail: info@mayanecotours.com
Website: www.mayanecotours.com