Aquaworld Cancun Snorkeling

While my wife and I were in Cancun we wanted to go snorkeling. I looked online for tour options and I discovered Aquaworld Cancun which was located about a mile from our hotel which offered a variety of tour options.

I selected the Paradise Snorkeling tour that included a boat ride to the Cancun Natural Park, snorkel equipment and a guided snorkeling tour as well as free time to snorkel. The tour was available for $40 per-person + taxes and $10 per-person tourist fee for admission into the natural park.

Booking the tour was easy and various departure times were offered. We selected a tour around 12:00 PM. The webpage charged $40 + the taxes; however, it did not collect the $10-per-person tourist fee.

Arrival

My wife and I arrived at Aquaworld Cancun and found the site near the Oasis Cancun Hotel. The Aquaworld Center was a departure point for various tours including snorkeling, scuba, jet boats and a number of other options.

We entered the site and were greeted by a staff member who offered help.

The staff member located our reservation and they required us to pay the $10 per-person fee before we were issued our boarding passes.

There was an option to pay in Pesos and I requested it. Despite that the credit card voucher stated the amount in Pesos, it was charged in USD.

Once we paid the fee, we were given our boarding passes and were advised to go to the gift shop to get our mouth piece tube for the snorkel adventure.

We proceeded to the gift shop and were issued two yellow mouth pieces.

The sales person suggested we buy an underwater camera. We declined and she thanked us and provided instructions for boarding.

We proceeded outside and reached the boarding area.

A window was setup to get the fins. We had to sign a waiver prior to them issuing us the fins.

Once we were issued the items, we waited about five minutes before the boat was ready for us to leave.

Boat Ride

The boat was a medium-sized boat that offered two levels of seating.

We selected seats on the lower level which was covered.

The staff on the boat welcomed us and they asked to take a seat.

They informed us that the ride was about 25 minutes and they said that they offered beer, water and soda on the boat for no charge.

The boat included passengers on two tours, the Paradise Snorkeling as well as a submarine tour.

The boat departed within 10 minutes of boarding.

The boat ride was quick and it went through the lagoon and then the jungle area.

The staff member walked around and offered beer or soda to all the passengers.

He also offered refills as guests finished their first glasses.

After about 25 minutes, the boat docked with a platform that was setup with two of the submarine boats were placed together.

At first the passengers for the submarine ride were asked to leave.

After those passengers departed, the Paradise Snorkel passengers were asked to walk in between the two boats to a third and smaller boat which would take us to the snorkeling park.

The staff assisted us with stepping off and on the other boats as the water was a bit choppy.

The smaller boat quickly escorted us to another boat that was anchored near the snorkeling area.

We transferred on that boat and the staff and tour guide welcomed us.

Beer, soda and water was provided on the boat.

The tour guide provided instructions for the tour as well as an explanation about how to use the equipment.

Tour

We were asked to line up and a staff member issued us a life jacket and mask. The staff member attached our breathing tube to the mask and they assisted us with putting on the fins.

The tour guide instructed us to wait in the water near the boat until all the other passengers were ready for the tour.

We waited in the water for a few minutes.

The equipment worked well; although the masks were too tight initially for both my wife and I. It was difficult adjusting it to the proper fit.

Once all the passengers were ready the tour guide informed us to stay close to us.

The tour guide led everyone out and we swam into the natural park.

Underwater there were several underwater displays that were setup with statues and other items. Those statues were located near the natural coral.

The tour guide had use swim to the side of the corals and she warned us to not touch the coral as it could harm us of the sea life.

We saw various fish during the tour.

The tour guide constantly told us to stay with her and the tour was a bit rushed.

Because the group was all together, some of the fish swam away from us.

The tour guide led us around the underwater exhibits and we had about 30 minutes of time snorkeling in the park before she asked us to swim with her back to the boat.

Once we arrived at the boat, we were informed that we could swim and snorkel around the boat without our life jackets or we could get out of the boat and relax with drinks.

I swam around a bit and saw a few more fish before boarding the boat.

Entertainment

The staff members welcomed us back and they offered beer, soda and water.

Music was playing and the staff were encouraging the guests to relax and with the other guests.

At one point, one of the staff members dressed up in costume and they walked around joking with the passengers, dancing with them and providing shots of tequila.

Some of the passengers were jumping off the top-level of the boat into the ocean and they were relaxing and swimming around the boat.

Boat Trip

A short while later, another boat arrived and we were informed that we could either take that boat back or stay for another hour at the tour site. Some of the guests stayed for another hour.

My wife and I boarded the boat and it departed promptly.

The boat stopped at the off shore dock created by the two underwater boats and we were asked to transfer across them onto the larger boat that would take us back to the land.

The staff assisted us with exiting and boarding the boats.

Once we were on the larger boat the staff  greeted us and offered more drinks.

The boat departed shortly after we boarded and after about a 20-minute ride we returned to shore.

The staff thanked us when we departed the boat and they wished us a good day.

We returned the fins to the desk where we picked them up and we were informed the mouth piece was for us to keep and use in the future.

Summary

Overall I felt that the tour was good although the actual snorkel time was a bit rushed. I would have preferred to have more time to swim around the park on my own. Because of the group being all together, I felt some of the fish got scarred away so we did not get to see as many fish as we would if everyone was not so close together. The staff on the tour were friendly and polite and it was nice that beverages were offered on the boats.

It was a bit annoying that we had to pay the additional $10 per-person when we arrived. I am not sure why that cost couldn’t be collected at the time of booking.

Overall though the tour was fun and I would use Aquaworld for future tours.

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Note: Aquaworld offered a 15% discount on booking the tour when I contacted them prior to the excursion.