Eco Park Cuzam / Ecoparque / Mayan Extreme Park / Cozumel Fun Excursions

[jbrinkm]

I booked an excursion on viator that is ATV + paintball (I'm traveling with my teens). It says to meet at Eco-Park Cuzam (I've also seen spelled Ecoparque Cuzam). This excursion is operated by a company called Cozumel Fun Excursions. Also listed on the map in the exact same spot is Mayan Extreme Park. 

 

I'm wondering if anyone can give me insight into this strange assortment. Are Eco Park Cuzam and Maya Extreme Park the same thing? I'm also wondering why this is operated by an independent company (Cozumel Fun Excursions) - are they the operators of the park? I know the park itself has a few additional things that we aren't going to do - zipline and some horses, among others. 

 

My best guess is that Cozumel Fun Excursions supplies the ATVs and the leader/instructor and part of our fee gives us access/admission to the park (or parks?) to do the activities? 

 

Has anyone done this excursion, or visited Eco Park/Ecoparque or Mayan Extreme Park , or done any excursion with Cozumel Fun Excursions that can give me some insight? I have seen some negative reviews of Cozumel Fun Excursions with regards to their jeeps, so I think they both rent jeeps and run these ATV outings, perhaps some other outings as well. The ATV reviews are stellar so I'm not too worried about the jeep comments. 

 

Would love any info/insight into this activity!

[c-leg5]

16 minutes ago, jbrinkm said:

I booked an excursion on viator that is ATV + paintball (I'm traveling with my teens). It says to meet at Eco-Park Cuzam (I've also seen spelled Ecoparque Cuzam). This excursion is operated by a company called Cozumel Fun Excursions. Also listed on the map in the exact same spot is Mayan Extreme Park. 

 

I'm wondering if anyone can give me insight into this strange assortment. Are Eco Park Cuzam and Maya Extreme Park the same thing? I'm also wondering why this is operated by an independent company (Cozumel Fun Excursions) - are they the operators of the park? I know the park itself has a few additional things that we aren't going to do - zipline and some horses, among others. 

 

My best guess is that Cozumel Fun Excursions supplies the ATVs and the leader/instructor and part of our fee gives us access/admission to the park (or parks?) to do the activities? 

 

Has anyone done this excursion, or visited Eco Park/Ecoparque or Mayan Extreme Park , or done any excursion with Cozumel Fun Excursions that can give me some insight? I have seen some negative reviews of Cozumel Fun Excursions with regards to their jeeps, so I think they both rent jeeps and run these ATV outings, perhaps some other outings as well. The ATV reviews are stellar so I'm not too worried about the jeep comments. 

 

Would love any info/insight into this activity!

I assume this is the park located on the transversal? It has been there a long time and from the entrance has always looked a little run down. Considering all the activities I am surprised I have never read a review on CC about it. I have asked my local driver about it in the past and he has never told me much about it.

 

perhaps it is under new ownership? I haven’t heard of your tour company either but I see they are located in Royal Village so maybe they are fairly new too. I look forward to your review. It sounds like a fun place.

[c-leg5]

@jbrinkm

 

Have you done this excursion yet? Any reviews or reports?

 

Trying to decide between here or see if Xtrem has reopened at Chankanaab.

[jbrinkm]

We did it on Friday - I'm in the airport but will share more about it tomorrow when I have my laptop to type!

[jbrinkm]

So yes, we were there last Friday and really enjoyed our ATV ride. The three names are all the same group but theoretically run different parts of the business. The place itself is named Ecoparque (Eco Park) Cuzam. Cozumel Fun Excursions (they said) is the company they use if they want to rent out the facilities to a group. There was a school group there using the pool while we were doing the other stuff, so I guess like that type of group, or like a business retreat, etc. They told us for what we did that we should do any reviews under Mayan Extreme Park which is the sports stuff, like the ATVs, or they also have Jeeps that they rent.

 

The paintball setup seemed fine, we had helmets and padded vests, but this is the first time that my family had ever done paintball and my daughter and I hated it. We both got hurt from the hard paintballs (no airsoft here) and bruised, so we quit within 5 minutes. I wouldn't mark that down as a negative against the company - it was just that the two of us have thin skin and turned out to not like paintball.  

 

The ATV ride was fun. It lasted about an hour. They gave us a few laps around the front part of the park to get used to it, then we went off into the jungle. It is not a sanitized experience and I wouldn't recommend it for anyone who has health/mobility issues or is not very adventurous. The trail was bumpy and rocky and it took a lot of skill to drive through the trails. My daughter ended up staying behind with the dog and the little kids at the facility because she didn't like it. My husband and son have done a lot of mountain biking so they were used to similar trails. My son did get stuck on trees a few times around corners before he got used to the width of the ATV. I do mounted archery so have learned to keep my weight in my legs/feet so that was really helpful on the ATV as well, or my spine might not have felt great afterwards. We had a few spots where it was just open and flat and we got to go fast and my son was drifting the 4 wheeler (on purpose) so it was pretty dusty. We brought covering for our mouths but wish we had had them for our eyes as well. I also wish I had worn long pants because the engine got pretty hot against my leg. 

 

Happy to answer any questions.

[c-leg5]

55 minutes ago, jbrinkm said:

So yes, we were there last Friday and really enjoyed our ATV ride. The three names are all the same group but theoretically run different parts of the business. The place itself is named Ecoparque (Eco Park) Cuzam. Cozumel Fun Excursions (they said) is the company they use if they want to rent out the facilities to a group. There was a school group there using the pool while we were doing the other stuff, so I guess like that type of group, or like a business retreat, etc. They told us for what we did that we should do any reviews under Mayan Extreme Park which is the sports stuff, like the ATVs, or they also have Jeeps that they rent.

 

The paintball setup seemed fine, we had helmets and padded vests, but this is the first time that my family had ever done paintball and my daughter and I hated it. We both got hurt from the hard paintballs (no airsoft here) and bruised, so we quit within 5 minutes. I wouldn't mark that down as a negative against the company - it was just that the two of us have thin skin and turned out to not like paintball.  

 

The ATV ride was fun. It lasted about an hour. They gave us a few laps around the front part of the park to get used to it, then we went off into the jungle. It is not a sanitized experience and I wouldn't recommend it for anyone who has health/mobility issues or is not very adventurous. The trail was bumpy and rocky and it took a lot of skill to drive through the trails. My daughter ended up staying behind with the dog and the little kids at the facility because she didn't like it. My husband and son have done a lot of mountain biking so they were used to similar trails. My son did get stuck on trees a few times around corners before he got used to the width of the ATV. I do mounted archery so have learned to keep my weight in my legs/feet so that was really helpful on the ATV as well, or my spine might not have felt great afterwards. We had a few spots where it was just open and flat and we got to go fast and my son was drifting the 4 wheeler (on purpose) so it was pretty dusty. We brought covering for our mouths but wish we had had them for our eyes as well. I also wish I had worn long pants because the engine got pretty hot against my leg. 

 

Happy to answer any questions.

Thanks for your review. As I said when you first asked about it I don’t remember anyone going  there in 20 years of reading reviews so good to hear of somewhere different. I am not sure it would be what my daughter is looking for but will show her the review. Is there a pool at the facility as well? Any food and drink for purchase? Did you take a taxi each way and did you manage to stop anywhere else?
 

Since they have a similar name I wonder if they used to run the Xtrem at Chankanaab as well. That doesn’t appear to have reopened from my research.

[jbrinkm]

They do have a zipline and a pool, but I did not notice any food or drink. Apparently you can ride a horse as well but I didn't see the horses on the property - maybe they just bring them in when they have a ride scheduled?

 

We took a taxi but did not try to stop anywhere else. We went straight back to the ship, got changed for an afternoon Discover Scuba, and ate lunch, so we didn't have time to make any stops. We got overcharged from the taxi driver but through complaints at the port when we returned, were able to get our money back. It was supposed to be $16 each way according to the board but he charged us $30 each way.  

[c-leg5]

5 minutes ago, jbrinkm said:

They do have a zipline and a pool, but I did not notice any food or drink. Apparently you can ride a horse as well but I didn't see the horses on the property - maybe they just bring them in when they have a ride scheduled?

 

We took a taxi but did not try to stop anywhere else. We went straight back to the ship, got changed for an afternoon Discover Scuba, and ate lunch, so we didn't have time to make any stops. We got overcharged from the taxi driver but through complaints at the port when we returned, were able to get our money back. It was supposed to be $16 each way according to the board but he charged us $30 each way.  

 

Wow, surprised to hear that about the taxis and that it would happen twice.
 

Did you have the taxi numbers and get refunded from dispatcher?

 

Our only problem with taxis when cruisers are in town has been them trying to charge each couple/ family the fare in a shared van, which is why we often walk out into the street but I am sure you would have had private taxis for your party to and from there. Did you get a taxi back easily enough?

[jbrinkm]

It was the same taxi - when we said where we were going, the person at the port that directs you to a car said that we’d have to pay for a round trip because the same driver would have to come back for us, so we weren’t surprised that our driver said $30 on the way there. We figured $15 each way, and we planned on tipping him during the return ride back to the ship. However, after our excursion, he made us pay another $30 to get back. I hadn’t specifically looked at the board, but it seemed high, so I took a picture of his cab number.

 

When we got out, I went to the board to check, and it was supposed to be $16 each way. He didn’t wait for us at the park to charge extra for wait time - he left and came back in an hour and a half to take us back. We told the port police when we returned to the ship at lunchtime to change and eat, and also that we were going back out in the afternoon for another activity, and they said to stop back by on our way out again. When we left the ship the second time, they had gotten the overcharged amount back from him and gave it to us.

[jbrinkm]

Couple of pics of the place. You can see their main structure, a little bit of the pool in one background, the jungle conditions for ATV and a the base of one of the zipline platforms in another background.