Chichen Itza Tours — Attraction in Yucatán

Chichén Itzá was a major focal point in the Northern Maya Lowlands from the Late Classic (c. AD 600–900) through the Terminal Classic (c. AD 800–900) and into the early portion of the Postclassic period (c. AD 900–1200). The site exhibits a multitude of architectural styles, reminiscent of styles seen in central Mexico and of the Puuc and Chenes styles of the Northern Maya lowlands. The presence of central Mexican styles was once thought to have been representative of direct migration or even conquest from central Mexico, but most contemporary interpretations view the presence of these non-Maya styles more as the result of cultural diffusion.

Chichén Itzá was one of the largest Maya cities and it was likely to have been one of the mythical great cities, or Tollans, referred to in later Mesoamerican literature.[2] The city may have had the most diverse population in the Maya world, a factor that could have contributed to the variety of architectural styles at the site.[3]

The ruins of Chichén Itzá are federal property, and the site's stewardship is maintained by Mexico's Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (National Institute of Anthropology and History). The land under the monuments had been privately owned until 29 March 2010, when it was purchased by the state of Yucatán.[nb 2]

Chichén Itzá is one of the most visited archeological sites in Mexico with over 2.6 million tourists in 2017.[4]

Name and orthography

Elaborate stone facades in Chichen Itza's "Monjas" complex in 1902 The Maya name "Chichen Itza" means "At the mouth of the well of the Itza." This derives from chi', meaning "mouth" or "edge", and chʼen or chʼeʼen, meaning "well". Itzá is the name of an ethnic-lineage group that gained political and economic dominance of the northern peninsula. One possible translation for Itza is "enchanter (or enchantment) of the water,"[5] from its (itz), "sorcerer", and ha, "water".[6]

The name is spelled Chichén Itzá in Spanish, and the accents are sometimes maintained in other languages to show that both parts of the name are stressed on their final syllable. Other references prefer the modern Maya orthography, Chichʼen Itzaʼ (pronounced [tʃitʃʼen itsáʔ]). This form preserves the phonemic distinction between chʼ and ch, since the base word chʼeʼen (which, however, is not stressed in Maya) begins with a postalveolar ejective affricate consonant. Traditional Yucatec Maya spelling in Latin letters, used from the 16th through mid 20th century, spelled it as "Chichen Itza" (as accents on the last syllable are usual for the language, they are not indicated as they are in Spanish). The word "Itzaʼ" has a high tone on the "a" followed by a glottal stop (indicated by the apostrophe).[citation needed]

Evidence in the Chilam Balam books indicates another, earlier name for this city prior to the arrival of the Itza hegemony in northern Yucatán. While most sources agree the first word means seven, there is considerable debate as to the correct translation of the rest. This earlier name is difficult to define because of the absence of a single standard of orthography, but it is represented variously as Uuc Yabnal ("Seven Great House"),[7] Uuc Hab Nal ("Seven Bushy Places"),[8] Uucyabnal ("Seven Great Rulers")[2] or Uc Abnal ("Seven Lines of Abnal").[nb 3] This name, dating to the Late Classic Period, is recorded both in the book of Chilam Balam de Chumayel and in hieroglyphic texts in...

This was the highlight of our stop at the Cozumel port while on a week-long Caribbean cruise. This shore excursion r included boat and car transportation, and entry into the area. We originally wanted to see it by air but the activity got canceled due to low participation; a good thing because you need to see this from the ground.

GETTING THERE: Because we were at the Cozumel port, we had to endure an almost hour long boat ride from Cozumel island to the Playa Del Carmen port on the mainland. From there, it was a 2-hour drive to the site.

THE SITE: We had just under 2 hours at the site which wasn't nearly enough to see it all as I noticed we missed quite a few things on the southern end after looking at a map, such as the Sacred Cenote and many other structures.

The site is infested with street peddlers selling the same things. The only interesting retail item was volcanic glass that was shaped into a smooth disc. Other than being able to look through it at the sun like they're safe solar glasses, it would be just a hockey puck collecting dust in your showcase.

El Castillo is the centerpiece of the site and is the first to greet you. At nearly 100' high, the 4-sided pyramid temple looked to be in great condition for being constructed in the 12th century. While it would've been cool to walk to the top on one of the four stairways, I totally agree with the hands-off approach as these treasures need to be preserved. There is, however, something interactive you can do with El Castillo. Stand close to the perimeter ropes at the center of the staircases. By doing a loud clap, the sound travels up to the pyramid's temple and reverberates back to you in the form of a bird's chirp. Also, be sure to check out the excavation site next to El Castillo that reveals some of its impressive foundation.

The Temple of Warriors was very impressive as well. While not as tall as El Castillo, the numerous columns that front the pyramid which represent warriors, featured intricate carvings like a deeper petroglyph.

The Skull Platform is a low wall filled with carvings of skulls. The mix of deep carvings, light colored stone and black mold from the elements makes for awesome contrasted photos in color or black & white.

The Great Ball Court is a long field flanked by two structures full of etchings/carvings that also acted as a scoreboard. The main sport was the Mesoamerican ballgame, similar to raqcuetball.

TIPS: Allow yourself the entire day if you want to see everything.

Food isn't allowed inside but drinks were okay.

OVERALL: When is a UNESCO World Heritage site not worth...

If you are at Mexico, this is a must - one of the 7 world wonders. You will need, at least, 3 hours to visit the full complex but it will be worthy. It’s breathtaking. Even though it’s not the tallest pyramid (cobá pyramid has 40 meters and Kukulcán has 30 meters) its definitely the most spectacular. You feel the energy.

Some things you must know before visiting it:

bring food and water and a hat (the sun can be really hard on you) bring sunscreen there are a lot of people trying to offer rides to the entrance or parking slots even before you are there. Please go to the entrance. The parking there costs 80 pesos and it’s right next to the entrance. buying tickets online are more expensive as they “sell” a no line ticket. It’s not worthy 😅 we have arrived at 10am and even though there were a lot of people, it took us 5 minutes to buy two tickets (1228 pesos). Online was 1000 pesos more. don’t be scared with the people outside. There are a lot of visitors but the complex is really big so we didn’t find it crowded. if you came via Valadollid there are some officials stopping you to , supposedly, granting you a parking slot (as, supposedly, only 194 cars csn park at the time). The intention is great and they offer you some other things like the entrance to a cenote or lunch when you go back. For us, it was not what we wanted so we took the stamp, gave a contribution but didn’t buy the package. It turned out to be the best thing we did as it would be more expensive. there are a lot of tour guides that offer you good deals onsite. They have a price per group so if you find more people, it can even be cheaper. Tours normally take 1h30. inside the complex, a lot (really, a lot) of people try to sell you something. Be prepared to be approached over and over again and to negotiate if you want to buy something there. it’s not possible to swim in the cenotes ;) from 10 am the tours buses start to arrive.

Hope this helps you enjoying your visit to Chichen itza....