Visiting Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula? Discover the most remarkable pre-Columbian city in the Americas during your stay on one of these amazing Chichén Itzá tours.
(Photo: Viator.com)
While spending most of your holiday on the gorgeous white sand beaches of Cancún and Playa del Carmen is always a good choice, one of the wonders of the modern world is only a few hours inland. Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula has long harbored complex and vibrant societies, which often mingled with other pre-Hispanic cultures at the highly revered site of Chichén Itzá, a set of ruins so remarkable and well preserved that it may just be the highlight of your holiday. Check out these five best tours from Cancún and Playa del Carmen.
Chichén Itzá, Valladolid & Cenote Tour
Thousands of people have taken this tour, which is one of the best-value Chichén Itzá trips available. Hotel pick-up and drop-off from Cancún and anywhere along the Riviera Maya are included and, as is common with most tours in these parts, multiple attractions are included in the itinerary over the 12-hour tour. Besides the fabled ruins, you’ll have chance to swim in Saamal Cenote, explore Valladolid town for 20 minutes and eat at a buffet. Please note that the Chichén Itzá entry fee (around $30 per person) is not included in the price of this tour. From $55 per person.
(Photo: Getyourguide.com)
Classic Chichén Itzá Day Tour from Cancún with Lunch
The classic tour option is a little less ambitious with its scheduling, instead allowing a little more time to swim in the cenote at Ik Kil and a 90-minute guided tour of the extensive, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Chichén Itzá. Such tours are highly recommended to help make sense of the ruins, as the site is rich in carvings and statues of great significance. After this, you will have more free time to explore the site on your own. From $70 per person.
Chichén Itzá Sunrise Tour with Lunch
Perhaps unsurprisingly, given its designation as one of the seven top human-made wonders on the planet, Chichén Itzá can often get quite busy. When the other tour buses spill visitors out into the site in their thousands later in the day, some of the magic of the site is often lost. This unique tour from Cancún departs nice and early, ensuring you beat the crowds, and the heat, to the ruins. The rest of the day is given to dining at a buffet restaurant, capped off with a tequila tasting. From $74 per person.
(Photo: Getyourguide.com)
Cancún or Playa del Carmen to Chichén Itzá, Ik Kil and Cobá
Perhaps the most ambitious tour schedule on this list is ideal for anybody who wants to visit the region’s top, and hardest to reach, sights into one day. You’ll get to visit the more obvious and popular sights, such as Ik Kil, where you’ll have the chance to swim in one of the finest cenotes, unique to this region. Cobá is another Maya site of formerly great importance, buried deep in the forest and feeling far wilder than Chichén Itzá. Please note that entry fees for Chichén Itzá, Ik Kil and Cobá are not included in the tour price here. From $122 per person.
Xcaret Plus & Chichén Itzá 2-Day Combo Tour
There really is too much to see and do on the Yucatán Peninsula to fit into one holiday, so the best you can do is pick a couple of cool places to visit and be sure to give them enough time. This two-day tour gives you that option to tackle top sights in the area without feeling the need to rush. Each day you will be picked up from your Cancún or Playa del Carmen hotel, spending one full day at Xcaret and one full day in Valladolid and Chichén Itzá. Entry fees and meals are included. From $252 per person.