Chichen Itza: Visiting the Mayan Ruins

Chichen Itza: Transporting back to a time of (but not limited to)  Art, Architecture, and Mathematics constructed by the Mayans

By Bushra Rahman | Thursday, May 9th, 2024

We recently spent the weekend in Tulum for my best friend’s wedding and one of the sights we could not leave Mexico without seeing was Chichen Itza: The Mayan Ruins, considered one of the 7 wonders of the world.

We booked our tour through Mexico Kan Tours and our tour guide was Cesar. Right off the bat, I want to point out that Cesar was by far THE BEST tour guide we could have asked for. They picked us up from our hotel in Tulum, along with another party who signed up for this excursion, and began the two-hour Journey to the middle of the Yucatan Peninsula to the ancient city of Chichen Itza. This location is a privileged city, as it is home to the oldest and one of the greatest Mayan ruins.

During the ride, Cesar spoke about the history of the ancient Mayan Ruins, how long they have been standing, and the culture of the Yucatan Peninsula. He ensured we were always comfortable – providing us with snacks, water, and educational entertainment. He made sure we knew what to expect during this excursion. We took a pit stop in Valladolid on our way to Chichen Itza for a quick bathroom break and continued on our journey. Once we arrived, Cesar took care of our ticket entries into the ruins.

Once we passed the gates, it was a bit of a walk before we entered the field where all of the ruins were found. As we walked through, locals were selling different types of souvenirs, traditional Yucatan clothing, snacks, etc. I’m a souvenir junkie so I personally loved seeing all of the local stands and I loved listening to Cesar talk about the intellect of the Mayan civilization.

The path we walked down was a bit jungle-y, with trees enclosing our path. However, as you get closer to the ruins, the path begins to open and we found ourselves in this massive open field where the main attraction of Chichen Itza was along with other ruins that were built during the time of the Mayans. It was truly jaw-dropping and I think what made it most awe-inspiring for me was understanding the history and how OLD this is. To think that these ruins have been here for an estimated 3000 years was more than remarkable – just extraordinary.

Now, there was the main site, obviously the biggest, where you would see all the pictures and videos. But around this field, there are ruins found everywhere – where the Mayans played sports, where they held their enemies captive, where they performed their rituals, etc. It was MASSIVE and expansive, I mean the entirety of these ruins covered more surface area than an average football field. We saw all of the stone carvings, the art, different types of architecture, and even made friends with some of the local iguanas! I will say weather-wise, it is pretty hot. So be sure to have your water bottle filled and have a nutritious and energizing snack like a protein bar. We were there the last weekend of April and it was 90 and sunny.

Walking around the entirety of the ruins took us about 2-3 hours, including shopping around at the local stands for souvenirs, taking a water and snack break, and a bathroom break. Once we left, we headed straight for the city of Valladolid to have lunch and walk around. Cesar took us to a traditional Yucatan restaurant called El Meson del Marques and it was so delicious. It was beautifully decorated and the ambiance was perfect – not too loud but lively enough to bring our energy levels back up to explore the city. I had the mole with chicken while my boyfriend had the grilled pork and both dishes were filled with so much flavor – we truly got to experience a full Yucatan pallet. Cesar even gave us an extra mole dish to take back to our hotel! Once we finished lunch, we walked around the square, bought some souvenirs, explored the chocolate factory, and wandered into the art gallery. It was great end to our excursion.

Now there was supposed to be a third part to our excursion which was supposed to be visiting one of the grand cenotes, but we were all so tired that we went ahead and asked Cesar if he would be able to bring us back to our hotel early and forego the cenote.

What I’ll conclude with is how amazing this excursion was. We felt safe and comfortable the whole time and it was amazing seeing the culture, history, and food of this region. Cesar was the best tour guide we could have asked for – we even exchanged WhatsApp information to have a friend in Mexico! 😊

I could not recommend this tour company enough. We will definitely be back in Mexico to see more of the country and hopefully see our new friend Cesar again!