So gorgeous. I'm glad that despite all our pre-planning for the best Cenote during our short trip to Merida, that it was the locals who pointed us here. My boyfriend and I had rented a car in lieu of joining a tour group from Merida to Chichen Itza, so we had lots of flexibility in where we COULD have gone. Cenote Yokdzonot just happened to be 22 minutes down the road, on the way back to Merida after leaving Chichen Itza and was very easy to find. Apple Maps had no issues finding it's way there. I'm glad we went there since it's obviously not set up for huge buses, which is a plus in my opinion. You pull of the main road and drive down a gravel filled street for all of 1,000 feet maybe. You pull over off the side of the road for parking. There really isn't any "parking lot" per se so obviously there wouldn't be able to accommodate large buses. I'd say there was enough side parking to fit 20-30 cars comfortably, which does a lot for crowd control. The facilities are cute, have a rustic Mexican feel with thatched roofs, very clean and look really well maintained. The entry fee is quite small. I believe we paid $6 US for two, which included the required flotation devices. Although there is no lifeguard, you are instructed in excellent English that cannot enter the cenote without it. There is a small changing area for men and women which comfortably fits 3-4 people each at a time. The limitation is due to them being just an empty room with a bench in it and there's only so much space on the bench for people to put their stuff. Girls room has 3 cramped individual stalls though for those who are more modest. It was tight for me to find space on the bench with the other girls so I just went into the Guys changing room with my boy friend, where aren't any individual stalls.
There are no lockers so make sure to lock up your stuff in your car and take only what you need, including your towels. We brought our own and I didn't see them offer any. People just walked down towards the wooden deck and placed their bags on the side.
There are gorgeous "lookout" points around the area at the top. As you descend towards the cenote, you can either walk the path that goes around it for taking excellent selfies and enjoying the view, or you can take the path straight down.
The water is gorgeously clear and bitingly cold. Really cold. We came later in the day too, upon advice of others to roast and sweat in Chitzen Itza and then find a cenote in which to cool off. But it was so enjoyable. I didn't feel comforable jumping in as others did. The water is incredibly deep, at least 40 feet from the deck, but I used the ladder. There is one on either side, and two ropes that go from ladder to the other side of cenote. We didn't think to bring snorkeling gear as we saw others did but we did see fish swim along us. The cenote is gorgeous and you will love swimming up to the rock walls, admiring the tree roots stretch into the water, and see the vines covered with flowers. I wish we had grabbed our cell phones and packed a water safe pouch for wearing around our necks as we saw others do. We felt lucky being able to experience the romantic and raw beauty of this natural formation, despite the cold water. Although it was all adults there, I would feel comfortable only bringing children who are either excellent swimmers or don't put a fuss at wearing the flotation devices. Otherwise, this would have made a wonderful all day place to play in the water, especially if you brough a picnic. There is a food sold at a vending area at top but was closed when we arrived, perhaps because it was later in the day and so quiet. Even though we arrived 45 minutes from their closing, they were very nice and invited us to stay for an hour past their closing time. Like all the people we met in this region, we found nothing but warm and friendly service here. read more