Awesome Selvatica Videos

The Bungee Swing is such a RUSH!

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Scare (hehehe)!

The Scare Swing

Its all in good fun =D

Adventure guide showing off.

Exciting News

We have very exciting news to share with you!
Selvatica has been given public recognition from the Presidente Municipal (Mayor) of Playa del Carmen in appreciation of what Selvatica has done in the community! Several members of the Selvatica family donate their time and money to helping different projects in the community. As a guest you get to participate in the Seed of Life Campaign. We believe that when you visit Selvatica you take a part of us with you when you leave. As a way to leave your legacy behind with us and contribute to the project, we invite you at the end of your tour to plant a seed with the name of your choice. 
But Selvatica does more than just this! The Selvatica Foundation has several projects within the community and you can follow this link to the blog post "Beyond the Jungle" to read more about it. See what the staff at Selvatica do to make our community better and make a difference for others. The foundation also has its own Facebook page where you can view photos of the the progress that the team has made. Wile you are there please give it a "LIKE". 
                Join us in celebrating this achievement!  
 Great Job to all the members that donate their time to making a difference!

MySelvatica.com

Congratulations! This is your new Citizen of the Jungle Passport. It works kinda like a frequent flyer card. Some of our guests are repeat offenders...meaning they join us for a heart pounding, adrenalin rushing, super fun day in the jungle every year. Why is this passport so valuable? Here are the perks of having one:

• After your 1st visit, this passport gives you a 10% discount on all in-store and online merchandise.
• After your 2nd visit, the passport is valid for a 20% discount on any Selvatica tour reserved online.
• After your 3rd visit, enjoy a free pass for an accompanying guest per every paid guest for the same, day tour and time. So if you have a family of four, 2 pay and 2 are free. 

It's very quick and easy to create a Selvatica Passport, just go to the myselvatica.com website, fill in your info, upload a photo and print! Once there you will also find other links to some important pages. If you didn't have the opportunity to purchase your photos or video while you were at the park or decided once you got home you couldn't live without them, this is the site to go to for viewing and ordering. Here's a tip, if you would like to only order 1 or 2 photos they are $15 USD each OR you can order the Full PicPak which will include all the photos that you are featured in for only $20 USD. That's a great deal. Once you order we send you a link to download your photos.

One of my favorite links is to the "Meet the Staff" page. There you will find photos and descriptions (some pretty funny) of the staff that make your day with us possible. This page will soon be updated with the most recent additions to our jungle family, so if you don't see your favorite guide yet, check back again soon.
If you are planning another trip to Selvatica in the future, be sure to create and print your Citizen of the Jungle Passport! We hope to see in the jungle again very soon!

Celebrating a Tree Called "Hope"

This is Hope, Planted December 2011

Our Seed of Life campaign has been in full swing for some time now. Many of our guests that visit Selvatica and plant a seed do so with a funny name, some plant it in dedication to a friend or loved one, and some plant the seed for a meaningful cause. We would love to share the story of a little seed that was planted in the name of  Hope. This seed that was planted in December of 2011 has a tremendous meaning for one of our favorite guests. Her name is Gretchen from Colorado. She visited the park while on vacation with her family, little did she know how that day spent in the jungle would effect her life. Not only did she spend an amazing day zip lining and enjoying time with her family, she gained an entire new family in Mexico.
The following was written in December and posted in her personal blog. You will find a link at the end of this post.
Gretchen's words..."We are home now after nine wonderful days in Mexico – celebrating Christmas and spending quality time with my family. It was great to get away from the holiday madness and re-center.  It’s amazing how much peace is found in sunshine, waves and sand!  I had plenty of time for my family and quiet walks on the beach alone for reflection and prayer.  What a beautiful escape and respite between surgery and the next step in treatment, radiation.  It was hard to leave and get back to reality!"

“For whatever we lose (like a you or a me), It’s always our self we find in the sea.” ~e.e. cummings

"One of the highlights of the trip for all of us was ziplining over the rainforest canopy.   It was terrifying climbing the first set of stairs up the side of a tree but before I had time to think about it our guide smiled and gave me a push, “Bye, bye, Señora!” and I was screaming over the jungle!  Altogether there were 12 ziplines, all connected.  We arrived at the end of each, breathless and grinning, climbed another tree platform and took off again.  It was such a metaphor of life – the climb can be terrifying and challenging, but the ride is unexpectedly exhilarating and the view is unbelievable if you take time to stop being afraid and notice."

               ”When your vision fills up with the greatness of God,  you become fearless.” – Kevin Miller

"The happy bonus at the end of the day was the opportunity to plant a palm tree seed.  I love the idea of leaving a place better than we found it and planting a tree in the rainforest after an amazing day was so fulfilling.  Not only that, we each got to name the future tree we planted - I named mine HOPE."

I sent a note to the owners and managers of the zipline company (Selvatica Adventure Kingdom) to compliment the staff, thank them for a wonderful day and explain why planting a seed was meaningful to me.  They replied, in part, “That’s awesome!!!  You are in our thoughts and our prayers and we are sending you all the positive energy the jungle can muster.  PS – Hope is alive and growing by the second!”
"Radiation starts next week.  January 4th I go for a practice run and start treatments on the 5th.  I’ll go five days a week for four weeks.  The next step is genetic testing and counseling – I’m taking it one day at a time and crossing each bridge as I get to it!"

On January 27th, after keeping a watchful eye on Hope she finally decided to say hello to the world and fulfill her destiny of letting us know Hope was alive.
Planting a seed after an adventure of a lifetime may seem to some like just a small gesture, but for some it means the world. The contact and friendships that have been made because of this small gesture surpasses the ends of the universe.

Gretchen has had a courageous fight against breast cancer and currently winning that fight. If you or someone you know needs an encouraging friend leave a comment and contact info on her blog.

Just Grateful is the link to Gretchen's blog.

We love you G and just know that your family south of the boarder will always keep you in our hearts that beat united.

To share a green idea visit our Facebook page, it needs some great ideas!

Tree Huggers

Thanks to everyone who participated and submitted photos! 

Selvatica's Hug a Tree Photo Contest

What is the one key element that you need to zip line through the jungle? TREES of course! Thousands of people have visited Selvatica over the past seven years since the park opened April 7, 2005. As a way to say "Happy Birthday" and show our appreciation for everything that Selvatica is and does, we are going to have a photo contest. A simple gesture to show that you love, appreciate, care for, adore, long for someone/something is with a hug! The concept of this contest is to submit your most creative photo of a tree hug! We hope that not only you, but any of your friends will take part in this event, this contest is open to everyone, not just past guests! The top winning photos will be exhibited in a very special way! The winners will be determined by the panel of judges as well as number of "likes" for the photo.

Rules of the contest:

• All photos must be submitted to the Official Selvatica Facebook page on or before Selvatica's birthday, April 7, 2012.
• Somewhere in or on the photo must say "Happy Birthday Selvatica" and show some form of a tree hug. 
• Tag yourself in your photo AND Selvatica-The Adventure Kingdom.
• No carving, nailing signs, or harming the tree.
• One entry per person, but you can be in more than one photo.
• We must have at least 50 entries, so make sure to involve your friends.

Prizes:

-We understand that not everyone will be able to make a trip to Mexico this year, this is why we are letting you choose the prize you want! 

• 1 Free entrance to Selvatica.
• Selvatica T-Shirt (just like the staff wear) personalized with your name.
• If you were at Selvatica and didn't purchase your video, we can send it.
• If you want a photo that you haven't purchased yet.
• Selvatica Hat
• Personalized Selvatica Coffee Mug

Tips on finding the right tree:

• Walk along the trees until you find the one that you feel a connection with, one that fits your mood, you will know which one is right for you.
•  Don't be afraid to talk to the tree.
• Feel free to choose more than one tree, then choose the best photo.
• Try to find a unique looking tree or one that easy to climb.

As some of you know we are full swing into the Seed of Life campaign. Our guests have been planting tree seeds at Selvatica for a few months now and Arbor Day is coming soon. This holiday falls on different days of the year depending where you live. To see the official day for your state and other great information, you can check out The Arbor Day Foundation site.

A Lasting Impression part 2

With all of the wedding planning, me, the bride, was going crazy! There was the dress, the cake, OMG another bridesmaid opted out!! But oh my I wouldn’t trade it for anything! My soon to be husband was ALL about the honeymoon and that is ALL he would talk about. I let him win the “where” I wanted Paris, he wanted “tropical”!!

Well, after we set up our reservations at the resort, an awesome place, we had many little adventures awaiting! (Doesn’t help I was scared to leave the resort!) He found this place called Selvatica, I was skeptical, I don’t like heights or bugs or well anything dangerous! (I am a BIG wus!) But I again, obliged my fiancé!

Skip forward to me on my FIRST plane ride into Mexico, once checked in it was off to the day we had planned at… Selvatica.

Like I said, I have never been anywhere, I think Florida is the farthest from home I have ever been! So we are driving down the road, bobbing and weaving like CRAZY! Then we get “out of town” and we keep driving, all the while our grouch driver, doesn't say a WORD or crack a smile, nadda!! We kept driving and when we passed the Selvatica sign, I start to panic (omg, this only happens in the movies!!!) Well to my surprise, we pull up to another resort and pick up some loud folks (thank goodness!!) Well then we start driving into the Jungle area, the loud gentleman we picked up gets nervous and starts bugging the grouch driver, who says NOTHING!! 

My first impression was, I don’t think I can do this!! My husband’s was, and I quote, “Let’s DO this!!” J

Then we got introduced to everyone and EVERYONE was ALL smiles!! It was a sight to see, there were people zipping through the air, the sounds of music, people, animals, it all seeped into me, making me excited! We went through the tutorials and got started. (I started to shake, like I said, WUS!)

We get up to the first platform to start our “take-off.” Me and hubby were the first in line, Hubster took off like he has been doing it all his life, me I balked! But the silly guy next to me laughed and told me to “come on, it’s not as bad as it looks, plus you’re honeymooners, how can you resist being so far away from him!” This made me crack up so bad that I couldn’t disagree, so off I flew. WOW, AMAZING, OH MY LORD, all running through my head as I flew through the tops of trees, I let out a meek “woohoo” before I landed. I gave Terry a HUGE hug and kiss and screeched about how “I made it!!” Then it was my turn to laugh like a seasoned pro at the other girls who freaked out!

The rest of the time was similar, our guides were so nice and funny, teaching me a little Spanish, like how I went from being a Señorita to a Señora. 

It was so wonderful! Even when I lost it trying to go up-side-down (yup SOOOO not happening, but Hubby did great though!)

When we got back, we went swimming! Oh and to get to the Cenote, we got onto the fun little Segway contraptions… I crashed mine, and you can SOOO tell on our video that I didn’t enjoy it very much, but it is still held high in “craziest things I have EVER done!”

Here comes another long one about this little (I use that word lightly!!) swimming hole! 

First of all, I have NEVER seen anything like this, I remember thinking that this was CRAZY and that this was part fantasy!! The sun filtered down into the HUGE pool there were little turtles and fish here and there. There was a HUGE tree growing on the top with its roots making up one wall, at the top of the water there was a little cave, you could hear the bats in there!!! I got told that it was 40 ft deep and you could see CLEAR to the bottom!! I was in awe! Then it came time to get in… haha. I was daring and decided to take the zip-line it. It took a lot of “You can do it’s!” from the crew and Terry telling me to move it, he wanted a turn!!! I screamed loud and took off, scared that my arms where going to fall out of my shoulder sockets, I let go…

I hit that cold A$$ water with a “WHOOP”!! Very soon after (and I have video of this!!) I start thrashing for the rope, trying desperately to look like I did this every day and didn’t need help! (Yes, I pushed off my savior with a floaty! So proud!) From then on I believe that I wore that zip out! I loved it more and more I did it!

I was honestly SAD when we had to go… It was depressing that I was going to have to leave this tiny piece of fantasy and heaven! You can’t find many places like this where I live…

When we got back we got fed!! I totally hadn’t relized that I was STARVING!! While we scarfed down the BEST food ever! We got to see our movie, played on the big screen, just for us (and everyone else there!!) I bawled and hugged everyone! I was so proud of myself!! I made it through some of the scariest things I could imagine. I cannot even begin to Thank everyone there enough for opening my eyes to the fact that a little adventure never hurt anyone.

It was SUCH a bonding experience and eye opening experience for me that I now sport the “Selvatica” symbol in tattoo from designed by my husband!!! My husband (by the way, happily married almost 2 years this April!!) is getting his done VERY soon!

I can’t wait to go again!

Thank you,

Samantha Henry