Cenote Zapote: Hells Bells, Eco-Park and Fee

What the Hells Bells are

The Hells Bells (Campanas del Inframundo in Spanish) are underwater carbonate formations up to more than 2 m long and about 0.8 m wide, with walls up to 3 cm thick. They hang from the cavern walls and widen downward, like upside-down bells. Their growth stops at the halocline, the layer where fresh water sits on salt water; radiometric dating shows they began forming more than 5,200 years ago and are still growing. The first academic papers on them, by Wolfgang Stinnesbeck of the University of Heidelberg, came out in 2018 and 2019. Similar formations occur in the nearby cenotes Xkolac, Maravilla and Tortugas. The surface shaft is only about 8.7 by 10.8 m, while the submerged cavern below widens to 60 to more than 100 m.

The eco-park: four cenotes for swimmers

The park says it has four cenotes, and each of its tours includes two open cenotes and one underground cavern cenote that it dates at more than 10,000 years old. A full visit takes about 3 to 4 hours.

• Tour Chaká — Cenotes only, at your own pace.
• Tour Zapote — The fuller tour of the park.
• Activities — Jumping platforms and an aquatic zip line. Snorkelling is allowed with your own equipment. Extreme activities cost extra, sold separately or as a package.

Cenote Zapote entrance fee and hours

Zapote does not publish a swimmer's price: its booking form shows no amount, and Por Esto (March 2026) only says to ask the price on arrival. Plan on paying at the gate in cash pesos (MXN). The park's customer service line runs Monday to Sunday, 9:00 to 20:00; it does not publish separate opening hours, so go in the morning. A coupon code, MXZAPOTE, gives Mexican visitors a special price. For the fees we could source across all cenotes, see how much it costs to go to a cenote.

Diving the Hells Bells

The Quintana Roo tourism portal says the bells, at about 30 m, are for certified divers only. One GetYourGuide listing, two dives at Kin Ha and Zapote from $215 with pickup, asks for Advanced Open Water certification, or Open Water with at least 20 logged dives. Xico Dive Center in Playa del Carmen also sells Zapote with Kin Ha among its advanced pairs. Wikipedia notes that recreational agencies typically cap cavern dives at about 30 m (100 ft) in the daylight zone, so the bells sit at the edge of that limit: check what your certification covers before you book. The dive guide on cenote diving explains cavern versus cave.

How to get to Cenote Zapote from Cancún

By car, drive Highway 307 south to Puerto Morelos (about 30 minutes), turn inland onto the Ruta de los Cenotes and continue to km 19, then follow the 5.5 km access road to the park. Without a car, take a colectivo from downtown Cancún to Puerto Morelos (around 30 to 50 pesos, January 2026), then a white combi up the Ruta; combis stop on the main road, so the 5.5 km access road is the hard part. Read the Ruta de los Cenotes from Cancún guide for the other cenotes on the same road.

Tours that include Zapote

None of the six cenote tours we compare in detail stops at Zapote: the ATV day swims at Verde Lucero, and the cenote swim day goes to El Retoño. For swimmers who want transport, those are the nearest options; compare them in cenote tours from Cancún. Divers have the dedicated Zapote dive listings above.