Has anyone been to Xclack?

[computerjim]

We are considering a Christmas trip to Xclack with friends. They have been there before and love the place, but they are not divers. I would appreciate any comments on the diving and operators there.

Jim

 

[Dectek]

We are considering a Christmas trip to Xclack with friends.
Jim

You might like Xcalak better.

 

[sealab]

hello:
i have been to xcalak about 6 times. i've used xtc dive shop. we were usually the only boat in the water. the diving was great. it is a well run dive shop. i always stay at marina mikes. it's about a 5 minute walk to the dive shop. his web site is www.xcalak.com.
i hope you have a great time.
good diving
jimmy

 

[lhpdiver]

We went to Xcalak last November. It is a pretty remote place. You should check out www.locogringo.com. Somewhere on that site (or from a link there) there are some aerial photos of just about the whole Yucatan coast. If you fly into Cancun it is a LONG drive to Xcalak (5-6 hours) and when the sun sets it gets DARK.

As for the diving - we didn't do a whole lot (we weren't impressed). We dove with XTC. The owner's were out of town and the place was being run by someone else. There was one other dive op but I can't remember the name and XTC is probably the way to go. There were some impressive coral formations but they were dead (from what we saw). We did come across a pretty massive school of tarpon on one dive. Another shallower site kind of reminded me of the keys. They do run a boat out to the Chi... Banks. But the seas have to be very flat.

We stayed at Tierra Maya. The owner is from Tampa (I believe) and owned the XTC dive shop at one time. He and his wife were nice and the accomodations (and food) were great especially considering where you are.

After leaving Xcalak we came back up the road (3 hours) to the Tulum area. Stayed at a hotel on Tankah Bay and dove the ocean and Cenotes. Now THAT was some nice diving.

If you go to Xcalak - BRING DEET ! There are no stores (as you know them) there. You might find someone selling bananas and such. The grocery store is a truck which comes thru town once or twice a week and sells stuff (eggs, vegies etc) out the back.

Overall I'm glad we went. I'm sure that in 10 years it will be a much different place.

 

[Ain'tDeadYet]

Xcalak is one of my favorite places to dive in Mexico. Previous posters are correct - it is remote and a long drive from Cancun if you do it all in one day. If you like the party life of Cancun or PDC, you wil expire of boredom in Xcalak. But - if you like true end of the road places with great accomodations and food, and a well-run dive shop (XTC), Xcalak has no equal. I second the recommedation for Tierra Maya both as a hotel and restaurant. There's also Playa Sonrisa, which is clothing-optional and very relaxed as only a place full of naked people can be.

The diving ranges fro pretty darn good to wowzers. Banco Cinchorro is one of the healthiest reefs I've seen. It's an all-day trip in the boat from Xcalak and they don't go every day, so relax and take it Mexican style: que Dios quiere, si?

This site will tell you all about Xcalak, with photos and links to diving and lodging possibilities.

http://www.xcalak.tv/

If you go, say hi to Eric and Suzanne and Steve at XTC, from Claudia.

con todos bendigas...