Valladolid Cenote Guide: 8 Cenotes Near Town, With Fees

Updated October 27, 2026

Valladolid is the one town in the region with a cenote you can walk to from the main square, and seven more lie within about 40 km. This list ranks them by road distance from the centre of Valladolid, nearest first, using road routes measured on OpenStreetMap: Zací in town, five cenotes 7 to 8 km out, Hubikú 17 km north and Ik Kil 40 km west, next to Chichén Itzá. Each entry gives the type (open, semi-open or cave), the gate fee in Mexican pesos (MXN) and who it suits. Most fees come from dated reports rather than official price lists, so they carry a date; pay in cash. Valladolid is about 158 km and 2 hours by road from Cancún. Buses run about 42 times a day and take about 2 h 15 to 2 h 20, from about USD 14 (CheckMyBus, late October 2026); there is also a Tren Maya station. Most visitors from Cancún come on a Chichén Itzá day that stops in Valladolid and swims at one of these cenotes. The Chichén Itzá tour with a Valladolid stop is the most-reviewed one we found. In Yucatán state, Decree 193/2014 requires swimming cenotes to have a lifeguard and life jackets for rent, and bans running and jumping inside cenotes.

1. #1

   Cenote Zací

   A cenote in town, a few blocks from the main square.

   Semi-open, on the block of Calles 34, 36, 37 and 39, a few blocks northeast of the plaza. Zací, White Hawk in Maya, is named for the settlement that stood here before Valladolid was founded in 1543, and it was once the town's water supply. Stairs cut into the rock lead down into a cave about 150 feet across; Wikipedia gives the water as 25 to 30 m deep in shallow areas and 100 m at the deepest. The town council set the fee at 150 pesos for adults and 75 for children in January 2025 (Diario de Yucatán). There is a restaurant on site. It suits anyone staying in town.

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2. #2

   Cenote Samulá

   Semi-open, in the same park as X'Kekén, one ticket for both.

   A semi-open cenote at Dzitnup, 6.8 km by road from the centre, about 10 minutes. It is one of the two cenotes in the Xkekén park, more than 13 m deep according to an undated guide. Yucatán's state tourism office gives about 80 pesos per person for the park (undated listing); an undated blog gives 80 pesos for one cenote or 125 pesos for both, plus a mandatory life jacket of 25 pesos. Open about 8:00 to 17:00. Dzitnup craftspeople sell clothing, souvenirs and swim gear at the entrance. It suits a cheap double cenote morning, with X'Kekén next door.

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3. #3

   Cenote X'Kekén

   A cave of stalagmites, lit by a beam of light at noon.

   A cave cenote in the same Xkekén park at Dzitnup, 6.9 km by road from Valladolid. State tourism describes stalagmites and a natural beam of light that enters through the vault at noon. Fees are shared with Samulá: about 80 pesos per person for the park (undated state listing), or 125 pesos for both cenotes in an undated blog, plus 25 pesos for the mandatory life jacket. ATV tours that start at the Dzitnup police station, 10 minutes from Valladolid, visit both cenotes. It suits a cave swim without a long drive.

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4. #4

   Cenote Oxman

   An open cenote in an old hacienda, with a rope swing and a pool.

   An open cenote in Hacienda San Lorenzo Oxman, a former henequén plantation 7 km by road from the centre. A staircase of 73 steps leads down to the water, where there is a rope swing; the hacienda adds a pool, a restaurant and a bar, and life vests are available. A December 2025 report gives 150 pesos for the entrance only, or 250 pesos with a 50-peso restaurant voucher; cash only, no camera fee, open 7:00 to 17:00 every day. It suits a long lunch-and-swim afternoon, and visitors who want an open cenote rather than a cave.

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5. 

   #5

   Cenote Chichikán

   $57

   The cenote on the most-reviewed Chichén Itzá day from Cancún.

   ★ 4.6 8,731 reviews

   A tourist park built around a cenote, 7.4 km by road north of Valladolid. State tourism lists 13 activities on Maya culture: tasting Maya chocolate, honey and handmade tortillas, a ball game, three phrases in Maya, then a swim in the cenote. We found no gate fee in a source we could open. It is the swim and lunch stop on the Chichén Itzá day with a cenote swim: from $57, rated 4.6 on 8,731 reviews of this tour on GetYourGuide, hotel or meeting-point pickup, free cancellation up to 24 hours before. Ruins fees (USD 44 on the listing) and the life vest and locker are extra on the basic option. It suits a first Chichén Itzá day.

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6. #6

   Cenote Suytun

   The stone walkway and the beam of light, 8 km east of town.

   A cave cenote at Tikuch, 8.3 km by road east of Valladolid. State tourism describes a round cave closed by a vault with one opening, reached by a tunnel and stairs, and a second, semi-open cenote, Suytun Kaa Pe. A stone walkway crosses to a round platform under the opening; the beam of light is strongest from late morning to early afternoon, when the queue is longest. The water is 1 to 5 m deep and a life jacket must be worn to swim (2025 report). Reports from 2025 give 120 to 250 pesos, cash. It suits photographers. See Cenote Suytun.

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7. #7

   Cenote Hubikú

   A cave with a skylight, a buffet and a tequila museum.

   A cave cenote in an ecological park at Temozón, 17 km and about 26 minutes north of Valladolid. State tourism describes warm water with natural light from an opening in the ceiling, a buffet restaurant, a tequila museum with tastings and a Maya village. An undated blog gives about 100 pesos, or 250 pesos with the buffet, plus 30 pesos for a life jacket. From Cancún, one day trip pairs the Ek Balam ruins with a Hubikú swim and lunch, from $81 with pickup and free cancellation up to 24 hours before. It suits a ruins day away from the Chichén Itzá crowds.

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8. #8

   Cenote Ik Kil

   The big open cenote 3 km from Chichén Itzá, with an official price.

   An open cenote 40 km by road west of Valladolid, about 45 minutes, and 3 km from Chichén Itzá. Ik Kil is about 48 m deep and 60 m across, with the water about 26 m below ground and vines hanging to the surface; a carved stairway leads down to a swimming platform. The official price is 240 pesos for adults and 150 for children, life vest, locker and parking included; open daily 9:00 to 17:00, with lifeguards. One visit report found tour buses arriving after 11:30. Chichén Itzá itself costs 697 pesos for foreigners (INAH, single ticket since March 2026). It suits a Chichén Itzá day by car.

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