Towns of the YucatánTowns of the Yucatán |
Akumal is named after a beautiful lagoon, and the general area has many resort complexes. This area makes a good base for visiting Tulúm and Cobá. You may find inexpensive hotels along the beaches. The area has excellent water sport activities. It is about a 20 mile drive to Tulúm. |
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Campeche is the capital of the state with the same name. It is a small and colorful place, often pillaged in its early years by pirates. There are remnants of a protective wall around the city, and a museum recounting this history. It is within driving distance (via a toll freeway) of the Edzná archeological site (75 miles). |
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Cancún is well known as a luxury resort town, with some of the
finest hotels in the world. It is however split into two parts. There is the Isla
Cancún, which is a strip along the Caribbean shore with expensive hotels, shopping
centers and water activities. The older part of the city, Ciudad Cancún, is not
to be missed. It has markets for native crafts, many excellent restaurants, and a
Wednesday bullfight at the Plaza de Toros. Cancún can serve as a base for visiting some of the archeological sites nearby on one or two day excursions. South of the city are Tulúm (80 miles) and Cobá (110 miles) on Highway 307. The Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve with tropical forests, lagoons and coral reefs, home to many types of birds and animals, begins in the same region. It is also possible to go inland to the ruins at Chichén Itzá, which is about 125 miles inland. There are bus tours to all these sites originating from Cancún. |
This city in itself does not offer a wide range of interesting things for the tourist. It does have a very good interactive museum of Mayan Culture, the Museo de la Cultura Maya, and is really the gateway to Belize and to the ruins along Highway 186 such as Kohunlich, Rio Bec, Xpujil, Becán, and Chicanná, which are between 30 and 75 miles away.
This Island close to Cancún is reachable by air, by passenger ferry from Playa de Carmen, car ferry from Puerto Morelos and hydrofoil from Cancún. It's main town, San Miguel de Cozumel, has an artisan market, jewelry stores, a Hard Rock Cafe, and a small museum. Many of the Caribbean tour ocean liners stop here. The Island is most renowned for its excellent scuba diving environment, other water sports, some small Maya ruins and a modest museum.
This is only a truck stop where Highway 261 from Campeche and Highway 186 coming from Chetumal along the Caribbean and continuing towards Palenque meet. This is a good place to fill your gas tank for the next stretch of road in any direction.
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This town represents the conflict between the Maya and Spanish cultures, since it originally was a royal court of the Itzá Mayas, and later became the center for Father Diego de Landa's Spanish Inquisition in the Yucatán. Originally, there were four pyramids in the town center. Landa destroyed these and used the stones to build the impressive Iglesia de Izamal y Convento de San Antonio de Padua - the largest church complex in the Yucatán, claiming to have the largest church atrium in the world and covering the entire top of the ancient Maya pyramid. The church houses the Virgin of Izamal statue, one of the most sacred religious icons in the Yucatán. |
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This is the Yucatán's largest city and its capital. It
serves as a great base for visits to Maya sites in the Chichén
Itzá (75 miles) and Uxmal (50 miles) areas, as well as the
smaller site at Dzbilchaltún (about 10 miles away). The
city has a rich Spanish tradition with much beautiful colonial architecture,
historic churches, palaces and mansions in plentiful supply. Although the city has a
large population, many of the key objects of interest can be seen on a walking tour in the
downtown region. There are two large artisan markets, the Curios Lucy and Bazar de Artisanías Mexicanas on Calle 56. There are lots of street vendors and other interesting shops selling everything from sandalwood fans, to hammocks, panama hats, silver and embroidered huipiles. The town holds a fair each Sunday called Domingo en Mérida with the downtown blocked from all traffic for the day. Almost every evening there is a free concert or performance in one or more of the city's many public parks. On Fridays, for example, the University of Yucatán Folklore Ballet performs at the University's enclosed patio. The Museo Regional de Antropología houses a large exhibition of Maya works. Within driving distance you can also see the Celestún Wildlife Refuge (flamingo sanctuary) and Progreso, a Gulf Coast city with good beaches. |
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Palenque is a small rural town which has very little to offer in itself except that it is about 5 miles from the Palenque archeological site, and can be used as a base to see other unique tourist spots such as Misol-Ha Waterfall Natural Park and Agua-Azul Cascades along the road to San Cristóbal. It has hotels for a wide range of prices from frugal to luxurious, and a number of tour agencies which can arrange day and overnight (camp in the jungle) trips to other more remote sites such as Bonampak and Yaxchilán. Since this region is in the State of Chiapas which has been politically active in the past few years, you can expect more military patrols here. |
This is the Caribbean terminal for the ferry to Cozumel. It has many moderately priced hotels, lots of shops, and good beaches. It is quickly becoming a resort center with time-share apartments and condos.
There are many small hotels and good restaurants in this small town, and three deluxe hotels (Hotel Hacienda Chichén, Hotel Mayaland and Hotel Villa Arqueológica) are on the Chichén Itzá site itself.
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This is a colonial town at about 7,000 feet elevation, widely
populated by present day Mayas. It is a market center for the Maya, which attracts a
good many visitors. This was the center of a revolt in 1994 which utilized e-mail
and Internet techniques extensively for dissemination of information, so the town has
excellent communications facilities. Military patrols are still highly
visible. Although a minor church, the Church and Museum of Santo Domingo is gilded
throughout and has a baroque facade. The marketplace is on its grounds. The surrounding villages offer unique crafts for sale. However, the native populace here does not like to have their pictures taken, and visitors to some of these places are required to sign an explicit agreement not to photograph on penalty of camera confiscation and even jail. |
A small town which can be visited from Mérida (50 miles) and nearby Maya archeological sites such as Uxmal. The town has its open market selling native handicrafts, especially huipiles (Maya women's shift dresses), straw hats, shoes, jewelry and several craftsmen producing Maya artifacts. These artisans can be found near the edge of town on Calle 23.
There are a few modest motels along the highway in this small town, but with Highway 307 running all along the coast you have your choice anywhere along this route. The Tulúm archeological site, the only Maya site on the Caribbean coast and one of the most beautiful , and the Cobá site, are both within easy driving distance from Cancún, and have become popular tour-bus destinations. Go early to avoid the crowds. The area is also spanned by the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve which protects a wide range of native animals and plants.
A very small village with limited accommodations, but near the Chicanná, Becán, Rio Bec, Xpujil and Kohunlich Maya sites. It is within driving distance of Chetumal.
