Beach Buggy Excusion

Carnival has an excursion titled Amazing Beach Buggy, Mayan Ruin & Beach Escape. Has anyone booked this? Is there a private company that offers this? I’d rather not have to book through Carnival.

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Has anyone done this excursion that can give us a review? We sail on Triumph in June, our first time in Progreso, this sounds like fun, but can't find anyone who has done it.

We did it in March. We had a wonderful time. The buggies are not in the best visual condition but they worked fine for us. It definitely takes some time getting used to driving them. Our guides were Amos and Manny and they were wonderful.

Once off the ship we walked to the port area where they were easily identifiable by their sign. We signed some liability waivers and were quickly on our way to the air conditioned bus that drove us to the area where the buggy’s are kept. Once getting into the buggy we were on our way to the Mayan salt mines. The drive starts through the streets of Progresso and you end up on what is probably considered their highway the speed limit posted was 80 kmh or almost 50 mph. The buggy’s probably go almost that fast but we were passed by many vehicles going much faster. I wouldn’t recommend it for someone that doesn’t enjoy a little thrill.

Once we arrived to salt mines we exited our buggy’s and went up to view the mines and meet a Mayan family. Who knows if they were actually Mayan but it was a nice educational moment. The lady was making homemade tortillas which they passed out for us to try. Here you could also purchase a kilo of salt for $1 or $2. Next we were on our way to the ruins after a quick stop at some public restrooms.

After arriving at the ruins Manny gave us a brief history lesson on the ruins. We were able to climb and explore the ruins for about 20 minutes or so. There was a man and wife at the ruins selling homemade ice cream, it was delicious. After leaving the ruins we went to Silcer Beach Club for the beach part of our experience. Once at Silcer we were given the option of purchasing the Buffett. The food was really good but $12 per person including kids. My niece only ate a few chips and queso so definitely not worth $12 for her. I wish they would have had other options for kids in particular. The food was very good though. The pool area was very nice but separated from the beach. I don’t know if it is also windy there or if it was just the day we were there. It was so windy it made it impossible to truly enjoy the beach. There were two large floating water toys for the kids to climb on out in the water. There were also lots of shells in the sand. There was a volleyball court and hammocks to enjoy.

After our beach time we headed back to town. Once we parked the buggies we had a short walk (maybe 2 blocks) to the market to get on a bus to get back to the ship. The vendors in the market were very very pushy and rude if you declined to purchase their products. I was glad we only had to wait a few minutes in the market area.

Recommendations:

Wear a hat with a string to go around your neck to keep it from blowing off

Bring lots of sunscreen

Bring extra water (they give you one bottle)

Use restroom before leaving the port area.

Be aware a lot of time is spent driving the buggy

Be aware you don’t drive the buggy’s off roading or on the beach.

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Thank you so much for all the info & the pictures!!! The resort area looks better than I would have imagined! Looks like a great excursion! Did you book through Carnival or a private tour company? We have cruised many times & do a lot on our own & with private companies, but I'm not sure about Progreso since we've not ported here before.

We booked through Carnival. It was the only time I’ve ever booked through the ship but I was glad we did. I honestly didn’t see many other options for tours that weren’t through the ship. Progresso was unlike any port I’ve been to before.

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Thanks for all the info, I think we will give it a try! 5 more weeks til we sail! :cool::cool::cool: