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Hotels, dive operators, gear, and how to get here are on the Riviera Maya Cenotes location page.
Overview
Roadside cenote 8 km west of Tulum on the highway toward Cobá, named for taxi drivers who once rinsed their cabs in the open pool. Lily pads and water plants carpet the surface; in the rainy season the canopy filters sunlight into emerald shafts that rake the cavern floor. Divers enter through a sunlit cavern past stalactites, cross a halocline near 14 m, and follow a marked line into the cave system beyond the daylight zone. Freshwater turtles patrol the shallows, schools of mojarra dart through the beams, and a small crocodile sometimes rests beneath the lilies.
Briefing note
A cavern guide is required for the daylight zone; only fully cave certified divers should follow the line past the air dome into the deeper system. Emerald light beams are strongest from May to October when the surface algae carpet thickens; the dry season gives clearer water but a different blue cast. A resident juvenile Morelet's crocodile is sometimes seen near the lilies — give it space and do not approach.
What you'll see
4 species curated- year-roundMesoamerican slider
- year-roundMexican mojarra
- year-roundMexican tetra
- rareMorelet's crocodile
Reef data for this area
Jurisdiction-level snapshotsBenthic snapshot — AGRRA
Mesoamerican Reef — Mexico (AGRRA)
Current mean coral cover
19.5%in 2022
Earlier survey
22%in 2015
↓ -2.5 pts
AGRRA Caribbean benthic transects across Quintana Roo (Cozumel, Cancun, Riviera Maya). AGRRA composite for Quintana Roo and adjacent Mexican Caribbean transects.
Reported at the jurisdictionscale, not the dive site — the published surveys don’t resolve a single reef. Healthy Reefs Initiative 2022 Mesoamerican Reef Report Card (AGRRA data) →
Conditions
| Month | Water | Visibility | Current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Feb | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Mar | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Apr | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| May | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Jun | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Jul | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Aug | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Sep | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Oct | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Nov | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
| Dec | 24–26 °C | 20–40 m | none |
Season calendar
Peak season highlighted · current month outlined
Gear for this site
Beyond the basic kit- Primary dive light — Cavern interior darkens off the line and the back of the room sees little surface light.
- Dive computer — Repeated halocline crossings near 14 m stack up bottom time across a multi cenote day.
Next step
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