Xplor Park, Cancun, Mexico (May 13, 2026)
Violet and Elena would have loved this. Nine different ziplines, another cenote you can swim in as well as ride around on a raft, and this:
Yes, it’s only ONE water slide, but it’s really 4 slides warped into one.
Yes, it took about 2 hours from Cancun to get here, but it was totally worth it. Imagine if Disney cared more about your experience than turning you upside down and shaking you by the ankles to get every last dime you brought into the park with you. It’s like that.
It also didn’t hurt us that Will and I were here in the middle of the week. I’m sure if we mistakenly came on a Saturday or Sunday, it would have been packed. Instead, there were barely any lines and we could do any attractions we wanted to repeat as often as we wanted.
Selfie in front of the carved out rock sign out front … before the water.
Yesterday, I opted for the $90 photo package. If I hadn’t done that, I would have done it here, but both Will and I were done posing for pictures. Today was about having fun together on our last day in Cancun, Mexico. Yes, there are (no exaggeration) more than 60 selfie spots throughout the park. I’m sure I would have had a ton of pictures. But I’ll save this for when Elena and Violet are with us next time.
Behind us is part of the cenote we both swam through together
So I made a bold claim comparing this place to Disney. Let me back it up. The “all inclusive” culture reigns supreme here. All day (from 11am to 4pm), you can go to the all you can eat buffet, to ensure you’re never hungry. This includes ice cream, dessert, and the most delicious pulled pork we’ve had here in Mexico. There are separate drink stations where you can get fruit smoothies.
And lockers are free. In fact, you’re encouraged to leave your money in your locker (since you can’t pay for anything else other than the photo package which you must agree to at the start of your day). You paid. You’re in. Want to spend all day doing ziplines? Go for it. Prefer to ride around in an ATV. Be my guest. Want to do the most epic water slide of your life over and over again? Enjoy! Prefer to do a low height “hammock” version and get wet? You bet. Try your hand at rafting through a centoe? Or would you prefer to swim?
The list of attractions are long, so the lines are short. Best of all, you get around most of the park UNDERGROUND. That’s right, the paths are carved through a cave where it’s both cool (temperature wise) and cool to walk through. 2xCool!
Helmets off to you, Xplor, you put on a great show. So much fun!
Tomorrow, Will goes back to New York and I head to Bogota, Columbia. I’ve really enjoyed this extra time one-on-one with Will. We’ve binge watched Gen V and caught up on The Boys. I’ve enjoyed his feedback on the dialogue, characters and storytelling from a writer’s POV. We’ve had some good talks and many fun meals together (including IHOP as well as food court favorites that definitely didn’t use purified water).
As I head to Columbia, I’m going to miss having him with me. I said goodbye to Elena in Japan, goodbye to Violet in South Korea, and now Will in Mexico. I never said I didn’t live an amazing life. I’m just saying I will miss my family as they resume their lives in Port Washington, New York. God willing, I’ll be back with them soon enough.
