By air
Cancún (CUN), ~2.5 h by road; Mérida (MID) ~1.5 h
North America · Mexico
Chichén Itzá, Mexico
The great Maya pyramid
Getting there
Best time to visit
November to March — cooler for the site
Don't miss
El Castillo
The Great Ball Court
The Sacred Cenote
The Temple of the Warriors
Things to do
The pyramid of Kukulcán
The equinox serpent shadow (March and September)
A swim in Cenote Ik Kil
Where to eat
Sources: Photo: Daniel Schwen · CC BY-SA 4.0
What to pack
A sun hat, water
A quieter corner
Valladolid's Cenote Zací
Questions travellers ask
When is the best time to visit Chichén Itzá?
November to March, when it's cooler for the site. Bring a sun hat and water.
What should I see at Chichén Itzá?
El Castillo, the Great Ball Court, the Sacred Cenote and the Temple of the Warriors. Time a visit for the equinox serpent shadow in March or September.
How far is Chichén Itzá from Cancún?
About 2.5 h by road from Cancún (CUN); from Mérida (MID), about 1.5 h.
Where can I cool off near Chichén Itzá?
Take a swim in Cenote Ik Kil, and seek out Valladolid's Cenote Zací, the hidden gem. To eat, try cochinita pibil or sopa de lima.
About Chichén Itzá
- Inland
Where it is
Chichén Itzá is a ruined Maya city in the state of Yucatán, Mexico, on the flat limestone plain of the Yucatán Peninsula, about 120 km east of Mérida and 40 km west of Valladolid.
History
Chichén Itzá was one of the great cities of the northern Maya lowlands from about the 7th to the 13th century, its buildings mixing Maya styles with others reminiscent of central Mexico. It had lost its power long before the Spanish arrived, though the Sacred Cenote remained a place of pilgrimage; it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988 and in 2007 was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
People
The villages around Chichén Itzá are Yucatec Maya communities where Maya and Spanish are spoken, and many families live from farming, crafts and the site's visitors. Hammocks, embroidered huipiles and carved wood are made and sold in nearby Pisté and Valladolid.
Known for
- El Castillo, the Temple of Kukulcán
- The Great Ball Court
- The Sacred Cenote
- The equinox serpent shadow
- The Temple of the Warriors
Did you know?
El Castillo has about 91 steps on each of its four sides, which together with the top platform are usually counted as 365, one for each day of the solar year.
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.