If you’re in the mood for a great party, sampling many dishes of Mexican cusines and listnening to Mexican music from different areas then Xoximilco Cancun, the new park by Xcaret Experiences inspired by Xochimilco in Mexico city, will give you exactly this …and maybe more. Located about 15 minutes away from Cancun the park will take on a colorful trajinera ( the man powered bots you’ll also find in Mexico City) with a group of other visitors while navigating through the canals of the park and for about 3 hours you’ll be having a good time while learning a bit about Mexican legends and making new friends.
Xoximilco Park
Xoximilco Park opened to the public in December of 2013, and was built in what untile recently was a mining area and was set to become a garbage dump. As with its other parks, this environmentaly conscious attraction re-planted more than 1,200 plants and flowers endemic to the area and made sure that any man-made structures needed mingle cohesively with nature. The trajineras are made of fiber glass and the design has considered rain and people for stabilization; in fact the roofs can open to show the stars during the beautiful caribbean nights.
The Food
During the 3 hour tour you’ll get the chance to sample 20 dishes from different areas in Mexico: corn paste tamales , chicken with chocolate and chile know as pollo con mole, fajitas and even little grasshoppers known as chapulines there is no lack of food for anyone. Of course the typcal tortilla chips with guacamole and Mexican sauce are available at all times. In case you’re wondering, I’ve been in Mexico for a while and have to say that the quality of the food is very good, with the flavour being on par with what it should be.
The Music
Throughout the itinerary the trajineras stop about 4 times besides others where musicians are playing traditional music from different areas of Mexico. You’ll of course hear mariachis, but also a banda norteña (band of the north), music from Chiapas and a band with what they described has some Peruvian influence. Now don’t think that you’ll be sitting comfortable on your trajinera eating food while the music is around you; the boat guides will make sure everybody stands up and gets the party going, dancing and messing around if anything else.
The Fiesta
If I had to summarize the experience at Xoximilco Park in one single word this would be it: fiesta. While every visitor is quiet and sticking to his or her own thing when first hopping on the boat, the guides will make sure that non of this happens soon after. You’ll have to introduce yourself to the rest of the boat, make faces to the cameras, and soon after beer and of course tequila will be flowing. Yes, drinking is in a way encouraged, but there’s no pressure; the idea behind this is to make sure everybody has fun.
What to Bring
If you think it may rain make sure you bring an umbrella. You won’t get wet while in the boat, but there’s a stop halway along the tour where the boats are cleaned and more food and drinks are supplied. While this happens patrons will have to wait, and there is no shelter on the ath that leads to the toilets.
Also, bring mosquito repelent. The crew will provide it, but despite using it I later learned that I should have used much more. Don’t make the same mistake I did.
So is Xoximilco Park Worth Visiting?
I had already visited Xcaret Park ( which you can read about here) as well as the largest natural aquarium in the world Xel Ha Park and was not sure about what to expect from this new endeavour by the Xcaret Experiences group, and I have to say it surprised me. I was expecting it to be a mellow boat ride along some canals while sampling food and drinking the ocasional shot of tequila and or beer, but I never expected it to be the great party it became. Not only were the other travelers in my boat willing to continu the party in some local bar in downtown Cancun, but I noticed that a girl from another boat could barely stand up! This said there were a couple of older ladies in our boat who had fun too, and families with children in others. Before the trajineras leave the docks the staff try to group them in a way that compatibility among visitors is most probable, and they did succeed with my boat.
To conclude, I recommend this tour to people who want to have an entertaining evening while eating different kinds of food and listening to Mexican music in a different environment, but above all to those who want to have a good time. In fact the trajineras can be rented to celbrate birthdays and events, and this could be a total riot for a good group of friends.
Resources
Website: www.xoximilco.com.mx
Had you heard about this park? Does it seem like the kind of entertainment you’d be interested in? Have you visite Xochimilco in Mexico City? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below and this post too if you think others might find it useful!
I was a guest of Xoximilco Park, yet all coments and opinions in the article are entirely my own.
