Chichén Itzá

 
How to get there

By bus or car via the MEX 180 from Mérida (1.5-2.5 hours; 116km/72mi) or Valladolid (1 hour; 42km/26mi). An air taxi service is also available.

History

Chichén Itzá, 116km/72mi east of Mérida, is one of Mexico's largest and best restored archaeological zones. With only the briefest of interruptions it was a sacred Mayan site for over 700 years, and in the 11th and 12th centuries ad was the political and religious capital of a renascent Mayan empire under Toltec rule. Today Chichén Itzá is a UNESCO world cultural heritage site.

Chichén Itzá (Mayan: "near the well of the Itzá") was probably founded around ad 450 by Mayan tribes migrating from the south. Experts assume that the site continued in occupation beyond the end of the Mayan Classic era (around AD 900), in contrast to those in central and southern Mayan regions (Campeche, Chiapas, Guatemala, Honduras) which, up to that time, had been of far greater importance.
Address: Chichén Itzá Tourist Information, Chichén Itzá, Yucatan , Mexico
Facilities: Gift shop, Restaurant or food service

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More Mexico Resources
Iguana resting on the rocks of Chichén Itzá.Iguana resting on the rocks of Chichén Itzá.
Steps at the ruins of Chichén Itzá.Steps at the ruins of Chichén Itzá.
Pyramid at Chichén Itzá.Pyramid at Chichén Itzá.
Ancient columns at Chichén Itzá.Ancient columns at Chichén Itzá.
A carving at Chichén Itzá.A carving at Chichén Itzá.
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