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Price $82
Min age 0
Rating 4.28 / 5 [872 ratings]
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Travel bucket list idea:
Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico
This popular water-based theme park comprises a series of broken, crystal-clear bays and glassy streams, teeming with brightly coloured marine life and fringed with low tropical forest – a natural aquarium, where freshwater rivers meet the Caribbean Sea.
Known for its vibrant marine life and lush jungle surroundings, the park offers snorkelling, tubing, ziplining, and cenote exploration in one of the most scenic environments on the Yucatán Peninsula. It also offers the chance to swim with captive dolphins, manatees and stingrays.
Highlights include swimming with tropical fish in turquoise lagoons, cycling forest trails, and relaxing in hammocks under palm trees. It’s all-inclusive, with unlimited food, drinks, and activities.
It’s an ideal destination for families and nature lovers seeking a fun, eco-friendly escape in a postcard-perfect setting.
The dolphin swim programme offers interactive experiences in a sectioned-off area of a natural lagoon, connected to the Caribbean Sea. Part of the same group that operates Xcaret, Xel-Há has been welcoming visitors since the early 1990s, with dolphin encounters designed for all ages – from shallow-water interactions to full swim programmes and trainer-for-a-day experiences.
The dolphins at Xel-Há are born in captivity as part of structured breeding programmes. None are taken from the wild. They are trained using positive reinforcement, and sessions are closely managed by professional handlers to prioritise welfare and safety. The facility highlights education, allowing guests to learn about dolphin biology and conservation while participating in hands-on moments.
Though the dolphins are not eligible for release due to their upbringing in human care, the experiences are intended to foster respect and a deeper understanding of marine life, set in a uniquely beautiful environment.
Xel-Ha is about 10 minutes’ drive north of Tulum on the main 307 Highway (about 30 minutes’ drive south of Playa del Carmen).
No pre-booking is required for admission, but book ahead for the swimming with dolphins and manatees experiences. Book online in advance for a 10% discount.
Eating and changing facilities are on site. The entry price includes a buffet breakfast, lunch and snacks.
It’s open all year round, seven days a week.
The weather in the Mayan Riviera is generally good all year round, and the water is always warm enough for swimming. The rainy season from May through October sees the fewest visitors to Mayan Riviera. June through October is hurricane season. The dry season – November through April – gets busy everywhere.
If you can, avoid peak season in December to January, when it gets oppressively crowded, especially around Christmas and New Year.
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