hat are connected via a canal that Mayans dug more than 800 years ago to allow boats to travel between Chunyaxche and the coast. The company now offers a variety of tours, since those crystalline lakes and canals offer excellent conditions for swimming, fishing, kayaking and bird watching. They also offer a hiking tour in the rainforest, where tourists learn how chicle – a tree sap that was the original basis for chewing gum – is harvested.
Cen is upbeat about tourism’s potential and is happy that he has been able to earn a decent living close to home for so many years. He said that he enjoys showing tourists the structures that his ancestors built and the lakes and rainforest that have long provided his people with food and medicine. He added that even though he learned English to guide foreigners, he continues to speak Yucateca Maya and practice the ancient ceremonies at home.
Because it lies relatively close to popular beach towns, Muyil is one of the few Mayan communities that receive a significant number of tourists. Most villages lie farther inland and are rarely visited by foreigners. However, Roman Caamal, the manager of Community Tours Sian Ka’an, explained that they recently began taking tourists to several of those communities.
With the help of the local conservation group Amigos de Sian Ka’an and other non-profit organizations, the company developed an overnight tour into the hinterland that combines the Muyil lake excursion and archaeological site with time in traditional Mayan communities. Called the Circuito Ximbal Maya, that two-day tour provides exposure to Mayan history, culture and daily life in the communities or Señor, Tihosuco and Felipe Carrillo Puerto.
“The idea is for people to have work in their community, so they don’t have to leave to earn money,“ Caamal said.
Community Tours Sian Ka’an – Mayan Owned and Managed
Community Tours Sian Ka’an, a Mayan owned and operated company, offers a selection of half-day tours to archaeological sites, lakes and the rainforest near Muyil (15 miles southwest of Tulum and 97 miles south of Cancun). The company recently launched an overnight tour, Circuito Ximbal Maya, that combines the lakes and archaeological sites of Muyil with time in the Mayan communities of Tihosuco, Señor and Felipe Carrillo Puerto, where travelers can experience the local culture and learn about the region’s history.
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