Among the many activities and attractions at Xcaret Park, the Jungle Tour is one of the most relaxing. On the Jungle Tour you can see many of the over 100 species that are native to the Yucatan Peninsula and that you won´t see anywhere else in the world! Starting with a guided tour through a specially cultivated area you can see how the staff at Xcaret Eco Park has really gone to great lengths to preserve the natural species that call Xcaret Eco Park their home.
Each type of plant is tagged with its scientific name, Mayan name and its English name. As you walk along you can get a sense of just how unique the Mayan Riviera really is. Each plant is protected and many are considered endangered. At Xcaret Park, they haven’t forgotten how important the natural flora and fauna are to the people that call the Mayan Riviera home and they strive to protect and educate.
The staff at Xcaret Eco Park also participates in a relocation program that helps to protect these unique species by moving them to safe locations when their natural home has been disturbed by human activity or by natural disasters such as hurricanes.
After a peaceful walk through the jungle the tour then boards a raft for a calm and relaxing ride through the jungle on the Paradise River. For about twenty minutes you can sit back and relax to enjoy the sights and sounds of the Mayan jungles. Let your imagination run as you think about the trees that have been there since the ancient Mayan ruled this land and all the things those trees have seen!
At the end of the raft ride you come to a Chicle Camp. Chicle means “chewing gum” in English, but the first chicle was actually made by the Mayans! Using the sap from the Zapote and the Sapodilla trees, the Mayan used to make the very first version of chewing gum. Even today you can still see trees around the Mayan Riviera with long slashing cuts up and down the trunks and those marks were made by the Mayans to extract the sap for their chicle! At the Chicle Camp you can learn how they made the chicle and taste the very first chewing gum ever made. It sure is different from the chewing gum of today!
You can also learn how Xcaret Eco Park makes even more efforts to conserve and recycle with the environment in mind. At Xcaret Eco Park, the staff makes their own compost to keep the native flora strong and healthy. Using only organic materials that are produced in Xcaret Eco Park, the compost is completely safe and healthy for the land, flora and fauna and is completely recycled! Rather than let all the organic matter that is generated at Xcaret Park go to waste, it is transformed into a healthy formula that keeps the park healthy and as beautiful as always!
Xcaret Eco Park is always doing its part to make the Mayan Riviera a better place for all plants and animals to be and the Jungle Tour is just one of the ways that you can see for yourself all the efforts the staff at Xcaret Park make everyday!
