Just got back from Xcalak

[love2godeep]

I just got back from a week of diving in Xcalak, which is about as far south as you can get in Mexico. We rented a car in Cancun and drove to Xcalak--about five hours.

Anyway, I was blown away with the diving. I've dived in the Philippines, Cayman Islands, Hawaii, and South Africa--and I'd have to rate my experience at Xcalak at the top of the list. The viz was phenomenal--lots to see and always something special. The spotted eagle rays were absolutely gorgeous. I filled my log book on each dive with new "finds."

We dove with XTC Divers. Steve Dramstad took us through an excellent AOW course. I learned a lot on every dive, and the price can't be beat.

We stayed at Sandwood Villas, which overlooks the best snorkeling spot in the area. Again, the price is hard to beat--$69/night for a ground-level unit with kitchen, living room, 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. We had to walk only a few feet to reach the beach.

We spent the first night in Cancun, in order to stock up on groceries, etc. Although our hotel (the Hyatt Regency) was really nice, I couldn't wait to get out of the congested city. When we dove at Xcalak, we were the only ones out there, and everything was pristine.

I can't wait to go back!

 

[lhpdiver]

Thanks for the post. My wife and I are thinking of a trip this fall to the Mayan Riviera. Did you stop anywhere between Cancun and Xcalak ? Did you look into flying into Chetumal ? We've got this evolving dream of moving to Q. Roo, getting small, and bootstraping some sort of dive op somewheres between Holbox and Xcalak (excluding Cancun and Cozumel). We don't need to make a fortune - but it would be nice to break even.

 

[love2godeep]

Thanks for the post. My wife and I are thinking of a trip this fall to the Mayan Riviera. Did you stop anywhere between Cancun and Xcalak ? Did you look into flying into Chetumal ? We've got this evolving dream of moving to Q. Roo, getting small, and bootstraping some sort of dive op somewheres between Holbox and Xcalak (excluding Cancun and Cozumel). We don't need to make a fortune - but it would be nice to break even.

Last time we went, we spent a few days at Tulum, but there was no comparison.

I wanted to stop at Akumal and dive some cenotes, but there was no time. No, we didn't try flying into Chetumal.

Your dream sounds wonderful! All the best!

 

[mediakzar]

Thanks for the post. My wife and I are thinking of a trip this fall to the Mayan Riviera. Did you stop anywhere between Cancun and Xcalak ? Did you look into flying into Chetumal ? We've got this evolving dream of moving to Q. Roo, getting small, and bootstraping some sort of dive op somewheres between Holbox and Xcalak (excluding Cancun and Cozumel). We don't need to make a fortune - but it would be nice to break even.

A few years ago there was some talk about Continental beginning service to Chetumal but I don't think that ever happened. I know you can fly from Cancun to Chetumal but once you get there, you still have a couple hours drive to get to Xcalak. You can also charter a small plane to fly directly into Xcalak from Cancun or Cozumel.

If you are flying into Cancun for the drive down to Xcalak I would strongly recommend that you plan your schedule to arrive in daylight. That means if your flight arrives in CUN much after noon, you should think of spending the night in Playa or Tulum or maybe even Felipe Corrilo Puerto on the way down.

We make it down to Xcalak at least once a year and have made the trip out to Chinchorro from there a couple times. We've only seen a small portion of the atoll but the areas we've dived were great. There also is decent diving just
off shore.

Xcalak is a great place to get away from the real world but would greatly disappoint anyone looking for lot's of nightlife. In addition to food and drink service at some of the small hotels, there are a few decent restauarants in town.

Take a look at http://www.mxtravel.com/xcalak.html for general info on Xcalak including a diving on Chinchorro section.

JK
http://www.mxtravel.com/xcalak/Cielosazules/