The itinerary of this excursion lives up to the name of this tour company. It certainly is varied, including a visit to a remote Mayan village, canoeing, impressive Mayan ruins, repelling into sinkholes, and a zip line trip over the lake on a wire. We have not heard of a similar experience offered elsewhere. We took the tour personally to see what all the fuss was about. Here is our report:
The
trip went by quickly as we passed by villages, jungle birds, tarantulas on the
road and a lot of trees. Just we wondered if we were there yet, we were there.
If you ask anyone in Playa del Carmen about Pac Chen, it is highly unlikely
that they have heard about it. "Off the beaten path" is such an over-used
phrase in tourism, but you will start to understand what it really means
as you get closer to this little Mayan village in the middle of the jungle.
In Pac Chen, the adventure started out softly with canoeing on
the pretty lake right by the village and a short trek through the jungle to
get to the next experience - flying across a lake on a z-line (like a
wire 
across
the lake). We all got equipped with harnesses and one at a time we took that
step off the cliff. What a sensation! For someone a little apprehensive of heights
(like me) that leap was exhilarating and a little scary. But right away I realized
how secure I was in my harness and I genuinely enjoyed the thrill of the
ride. The feeling it left me with was one of pride (for conquering my fear)
and happiness (like a kid after a roller coaster ride - can I go again, please
daddy!). But the next adventure was even cooler.
The Yucatan is perforated with water filled underground rivers and caves. In
many places the roof has caved in, leaving an entrance to the cave, or a sinkhole.
The Spanish term is cenote from the Mayan dzonot (follow the link to
read more about cenotes). Our next adventure was to lower ourselves down in
such a cenote, in our harnesses, using a repel line.
If you're like me, dropping into a hole in the jungle floor is something I didn't
envision myself doing and I was a little apprehensive. It was fantastic! Feeling
totally secure in my harness I lowered myself slowly down this huge cave. I
stopped and dangled half way down letting my eyes adjust while checking
everything out. Beneath is a deep fresh water well and above the opening to
the cave. In the water we all had inner tubes so we could relax and just look
around. This is a totally awesome thing to have done in your life - floating
around in a crystal clear water in a huge cave, looking at the sun playing in
the water and with the surface of the earth about 15 meters above you! I was
there wishing I could have brought my camera, but then I realized that no photo
could do it justice. To get up you can either climb a ladder, still secured
in your harness of course, or be pulled up by some strong Mayan guys. I opted
for the easy way this time. They can also lower you down if you don't want to
repel yourself down, but I really recommend that you try it. It's a lot easier
than it looks and less hard work. And more importantly, ask yourself if you
think you'll ever get the chance to do something this cool again!
After
such an exciting morning we were all ready for some lunch. We walked the short
distance back to the village where food was waiting in the palapa covered
lunch area. With a great view over the lake we were accompanied by the sounds
of the jungle. Nobody leaves hungry from Pac Chen, I can tell you that! Barbecued
chicken, rice, beans, potatoes, homemade tortillas, salsa and salad - all you
can eat! With fruit for desert we all had to sit and rest a bit before we took
off to the next stop on the itinerary - the ancient Mayan City of Coba.
Coba
is one of the biggest and oldest of the Mayan World. Vast in size, it holds
over 5000 buildings. Only a small fraction has been excavated, leaving most
buildings covered by jungle growth - eerie and cool. You can read more
about Coba on this site. At the ruins, our guide
Mark was joined by a local guide, specialized on this site. He gave us
an interesting insight in what used to be, more than 1500 years ago and we all
learned more about the Maya. Coba is not only big horizontally speaking - it
also has the highest Mayan building in the Yucatan.
The pyramid, Nohoch Mul, stands 42 meters or 139 feet high. It was quite
a climb and once we were up there we were rewarded by a stunning view. A carpet
of green jungle only interrupted by other pyramids - some still covered by jungle.
An extra treat in Coba is the wildlife - on my little jungle walk I saw
birds and butterflies as well as amazing trees and flowers. Tired after a full
day of activity, we drove back to Playa, richer in heart. 
This day is quite an adventure, but it's not hard core and can be made by anyone of normal fitness. I have to admit I was a bit worried about chickening out, but I did it all, and so did everyone in my group. It is doubtlessly a tour you can not do by yourself or with any other tour operator in town - on the Riviera Maya actually. Furthermore, this is a great way to get to know some about Mayan culture, both from an ancient and a comtemporary point of view. Although the old cities have been abandoned for centuries, the Mayan culture is still alive everywhere around us. The Pac Chen-Coba tour is truly unique. Go for it! It's a real memory maker.
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