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Crystal-clear turquoise pool inside Cenote Dos Ojos, with limestone stalactites hanging from the cavern ceiling — Riviera Maya Cenotes

Riviera Maya Cenotes · Mexico · Cenote · Lagoon

Laguna Kaan Luum

A shaft to about 80 m under a turquoise lagoon

Area photo: diego_cue · CC BY-SA 3.0

A wide shallow lagoon outside Tulum with a swimming area, hammocks along the edge and a cenote shaft in the middle that reaches depths of up to 80 m. The turquoise shallows and the darker water over the shaft read as two different colours from the surface, and the deep centre is what draws divers rather than just swimmers.

Also known as Kaan Luum Lagoon.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Laguna Kaan Luum: typical dive to 80 m (to 262 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit80 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 90 m (295 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

20.1662° N, 87.5526° WPublished position for this site.

The dive

Entry is from the shore of the lagoon, which is broad, shallow and turquoise, with a marked swimming area and hammocks along the bank. Most of a visit here happens in that shallow water, so the dive is a swim out from the edge towards the centre, with the colour of the water changing under you as the bottom drops away.

The centre holds the cenote itself, a shaft that reaches depths of up to 80 m and stands out from the surface as a dark patch against the shallows. That is well past recreational limits for its full extent, so what a dive here amounts to depends entirely on training: a look over the rim at the colour change for most divers, and a planned deep descent only for those equipped for it.

Marine life and season

The sources we used don't single out particular species here.

Month-by-month season rating for Laguna Kaan Luum
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
GoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGood

Season follows Riviera Maya Cenotes: Cenote water temperature holds steady all year; Dos Ojos gets busier in the December–April peak season while most other cenotes stay quiet.

Know before you go

  • The central shaft drops to around 80 m directly beside shallow water, so depth builds quickly once you cross the colour line and leave the turquoise.
  • The site is a day-visitor lagoon rather than a dive centre, so plan gas, depth and turn points before entering rather than on the fly.

Questions divers ask

How deep is Laguna Kaan Luum?+

The lagoon itself is shallow, but the cenote in its centre reaches depths of up to 80 m, which is what draws divers to an otherwise swimmable lagoon.

Can you snorkel at Kaan Luum?+

Yes. The lagoon has a swimming area and hammocks along the edge, and the shallow turquoise water around the central cenote is easy to snorkel.

Sources

  1. Laguna Kaan Luum - Scubago — Scubago
  2. Tulum — Wikivoyage

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