This itinerary is designed to maximize wildlife viewing in the southern area of the Yucatan Peninsula . We have included two amazing spectacles of nature with bats but also included activities that give participants the opportunity to see large mammals including big cats.
Mixed into the activities is visiting some lesser known but spectacular Ancient Maya sites. If you enjoy bats, birds, bugs or mammals with cultural history, you will enjoy this trip.

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Day 1: Felipe Carrillo Puerto Day 2: Kantemo Day 3: Kohunlich Day 4: Calakmul Day 5: Departure

Day 1: Cancun to Felipe Carrillo Puerto
Upon arrival at the Cancún airport we will transfer to town of Felipe Carrillo Puerto about 3 hours south of Cancun. Guests are asked to arrive in Cancun before 2:30 PM . Night: Hotel Esquivel, Felipe Carrillo Puerto

Day 2 : Laguna Azul de Senor, Caste War Museum, Hanging Boa Bat Cave
This is an active day. We start with a visit to a small inland community of Senor. We will spend the morning exploring the Laguna Azul de Senor by kayak with our Mayan guides. We will have a traditional Maya lunch prepared by the families of our guides. In the afternoon we will be immersed in the local Maya culture visiting some of their artisan product workshops, learning about traditional medicines from the local forests and seeing how traditional musical instruments are made. Late afternoon we will visit the Caste War Museum in Tihosuco. (You need a good map to find these places!) At sunset we have a special treat, visiting a bat cave that has boa constrictors hanging from the roof of the cave that feed on the passing bats. In addition to the snake/bat spectacle, a water source in the cave is home to albino blind catfish and shrimp. We mountain bike to the cave entrance just before dusk and participants can opt for the thrilling night-bike-back or walk the 1 kilometer. We will have a late dinner, but snacks will be provided to carry us over. Night: Hotel Esquivel , Felipe Carrillo Puerto

Day 3: Kohunlich – Chicanna – Calakmul Biosphere Reserve
After an optional birding walk and breakfast, we depart the coastal area and drive inland to visit some of the more interesting and less visited Maya Archeological sites. We plan to visit Kohunlich and Chicanna, but may opt for another of the many Maya sites in the area. These sites are usually very good wildlife viewing with Howler and Spider Monkeys common. With luck we may see some other large mammals like family groups of coatimundis, agoutis, and tamandua. We will also see several distinct Ancient Maya architectural styles since this region was a mixing of several major Classic Period influences. We will check into our extremely comfortable ecolodge surrounded by tropical forests. We will have an optional night hike both nights we are staying here. Night: Hotel Ecovillage Chicanna

Day 4: Calakmul Biosphere Reserve
This is an amazing day filled with wildlife and Maya history. We begin the day with a wildlife viewing drive to Calakmul Archeology site. This is usually spectacular with many of species of wildlife observed crossing the road. This is one of the best opportunities to view one of the big cat species in the region and we have seen all five species on this drive including jaguar, puma, jaguarundis, margay and oceolots. The drive is just the beginning. The Ancient Maya site of Calakmul dominated the Classic Period having defeated its rival, Tikal , twice. Both Spider and Howler Monkeys are common, crocodiles in the nearby lagoon, and numerous tropical birds including trogons and toucans. On our drive out we have a special stop where we witness our second planned spectacle of nature – observing the nightly exit of 12 million bats from a nearby cave. An amazing event! Night: Hotel Ecovillage Chicanna

Day 5: Becan and departing flights home
Morning birding and then we will have time for a quick visit to Becan Archeological Site. Small but beautiful and one of the few ancient sites that is surrounded by a mote. Flight option to Mexico City departs Chetumal at 12:30 PM in time for connecting flights back to the states, or transfer back to Cancun for late PM arrival.

Accommodations Listing
Hotel Esquivel, Felipe Carrillo Puerto, 1.5 star, clean, basic, A/C, half block from the Central Plaza , best in town.
Ecovillage Chicanna, 3 star, luxury ecolodge surrounded by tropical forests.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION
This trip will have a general interest interpretive component focusing on mammals, birds, butterflies, conservation efforts, and tropical plants and ecosystems. Culturally, we will be hosted by in-country Maya partners.

WEATHER:
The weather will vary from warm and sunny to cloudy and rainy. We can expect daytime temperature highs in the mid 80s to low 90s. Precipitation is one of the key factors in creating tropical ecosystems and we can expect heavy rain any day even in the dry season. This trip is timed for the beginning of the dry season and considered the best time to visit the Yucatan.

TOUR SIZE:
This tour will be limited to a maximum of 14 participants and a minimum of 5 participants.

TRAVEL DOCUMENTS:
A US passport valid beyond your anticipated date of return to the US and tourist cards are required. Currently no visas or immunization certificates are required. Those with foreign passports should contact the Embassy of Mexico for details.

FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTS:
The fee for the tour is $1,398 per person based on double occupancy from Cancun . Single rates are an additional $300. This includes all food, three meals per day, from dinner on Day 1 to lunch on Day 5; all lodging for 4 nights during the tour; ground transportation; and guide services provided by the tour leaders and local conservation professionals. It does not include international airfare, departure tax, alcoholic beverages, special gratuities, phone calls, passport fees, or items of a personal nature. Rates are based upon group tariffs; if the group does not have sufficient registration a small party supplement may have to be charged. An additional pick-up/drop-off fee may be charged for arrivals and departures from regularly scheduled international flights.

HEALTH PRECAUTIONS:
For comprehensive information please contact the Center for Disease Control and Prevention on the Internet at www.cdc.gov or by phone at 404-332-4559. The CDC information is a comprehensive listing of any disease reported in a particular region or state. Please consult a health care professional with any questions.

STATE DEPARTMENT TRAVEL ADVISORIES:
Currently there are no travel advisories for traveling in Mexico. You will be updated on any significant developments that pertain to our trip. http://travel.state.gov

TOUR REGISTRATION:
To register for the tour, complete the registration form and return it with a deposit of $500 per person. Full payment of the tour fee is due ninety days before departure date. Single supplements are an additional $300.

CANCELLATION POLICY:
Refunds are made according to the following schedule: If cancellation is made eighty days or more before departure date, the deposit less $150 is refundable. If cancellation is made between seventy-nine and sixty days before departure date, the deposit is not refundable, but any payments covering the balance of the fee will be refunded. If cancellation is made fifty-nine days or less before departure date, no refund is available except for amounts recoverable through our agents. We recommend that you purchase trip cancellation insurance which you will receive upon registration.

If the Mesoamerican Ecotourism Alliance (MEA) cancels the tour or the tour must be postponed during a time period starting seven days before tour departure and /or through the duration of the tour, MEA will refund all money recoverable through our agents, not yet spent and/or all refundable deposits. MEA reserves the right to cancel, postpone or suspend any tour based on the judgment of MEA, its staff and representatives, in order to insure the safety of our guests.

RESPONSIBILITY:
MEA, and/or their Agents act only as agents for the passenger in regard to travel, whether by railroad, motorcar, motorcoach, boat, or airplane and assume no liability for injury, damage, loss, accident, delay, or irregularity which may be occasioned either by reason of defect in any vehicle or for any reason whatsoever, or through the acts or default of any company or person engaged in conveying the passenger or in carrying out the arrangements of the tour. They can accept no responsibility for losses or additional expenses due to delay or changes in air or other services, sickness, weather, strike, war, quarantine, or other causes. All such losses or expenses will have to be borne by the passenger as tour rates provide for arrangements only for the time stated. The right is reserved to substitute hotels of similar category for those indicated and to make any changes in the itinerary where deemed necessary or caused by changes in air schedules. No refund will be made for any unused portion of the tour. The right is reserved to decline, to accept, or to retain any person as a member of the tour. Baggage is at owner's risk.