Review of Chacchoben Tour with David&Ivan

[campboo]

Costa Maya 11/29/05

 

We had booked the Chacchoben Ruins tour with David and Ivan. We got off the ship first thing (we docked here, so no tendering issues) and took a cab to Mahahual and were told that the meeting place was 2 blocks down from where the taxi let us out. Turned out that was wrong; it was right there, so we walked all the way down the "strip" and back. When we got back to The Cat's Meow (the restaurant where we were supposed to meet), the group had already left about 10 minutes earlier. We were not late (we were told that the tour left "an hour after the ship docks" and we were there 45 minutes after the Legend had docked, but I guess the other people were from a different ship and it must have docked earlier than we did.) Anyway, they put us in a cab and said that David would pay for it. It was about a 50 minute drive to the ruins, and I was bummed that we missed listening to David and/or Ivan talk about the history of the Mayans, etc. during the drive. Instead we just sat there as the bleak countryside sped past, and my DH kept saying "I have a bad feeling about this; what if the taxi driver is a psycho killer?" Well, DH finally lightened up when we saw signs for Chacchoben, and David was there to meet us and apologized for leaving without us (although we never really heard why they did.) But they had waited for us to start the tour, and for the next 1-1/2 hours we were captivated by the history and knowledge that these two guys shared with us. There were 13 in our group, and both David and Ivan stayed with us the entire time, taking turns talking. The other group that walked past us had about 50 people, and they were done in less than an hour, so I'm guessing that their guide didn't tell them nearly as much as we got to hear. I am not much of a history buff, but this was a very interesting tour and I'm glad we did it.

 

If you want to contact David & Ivan use dvillagomez@chacchobenruins.com rather than their website's information request form. It might take them a day or two to reply, but they will get back to you. And just make sure to confirm the time the tour is leaving, so you won't get left behind.