Visit Chichen Itza site

Chichen Itza tour from Cancun

Don't take the risk to get to seat for your travel dates ! Don't miss the best place to see from Cancun : Chichen Itza ! - Chichen Itza tour from Cancun

History of Chichen Itza

Although excavations have been going on at this most famous of Mayan sites for over 100 years now, archaeologists can still only speculate about what happened here and why. When the Spanish arrived in 1517, they found this site already long empty and silent. The site flourished in the Classic period of the Maya between 300 and 900 AD and then appears to have been abandoned, then re-inhabited around 1000 AD when the Toltecs arrived from central Mexico. Today the combination of Maya and Toltec architecture is clearly evident, although only the lifeless stones know the true secrets.

Pictures - Photos & Videos

Please visit our photo & video gallery : Chichen Itza pictures - photos & videos - The best pictures spot is clearly the Pyramid of Kukulkan - El Castillo : It’s quite a climb to the top, but once you’re there you’ll have a terrific view of the rest of the ruins !

Pyramid of Kukulkan - El Castillo

By far the most impressive structure of the complex is the "Pyramid of Kukulcan" * (usually called "El Castillo"). This is a square-based, stepped pyramid approximately 30 meters tall (with the temple on top), constructed by the Mayans ca 1000-1200 AD, directly upon the multiple foundations of previous temples. It was mysteriously abandoned along with the surrounding city of Chichen Itza by 1400 AD.  The pyramid has special astronomical significance and layout. Each face of the pyramid has a stairway with ninety-one steps, which together with the shared step of the platform at the top, add up to 365, the number of days in a year. The pyramid's design reflects the equinoxes and solstices of our solar year in a spectacular game of light and shadow.

The Ball Court (Juego de Pelota)

The game itself involved two teams, each able to hit the ball only with elbows, wrists or hips, and the object was to knock the ball through one of the stone hoops on the walls of the court. Games in the Ball Court were used to settle disputes and many believe the losers were put to death ...

The Cenote of Sacrifice

Cenote is the Spanish equivalent of the Yucatec Maya word for a water-filled limestone sinkhole. In Mexico's northern Yucatán Peninsula, where there are few lakes or streams, cenotes provided a stable supply of water for the ancient Maya people who settled there. The great city of Chichén Itzá was built around a cluster of these natural wells, including the one known as the Cenote of Sacrifice.

The Temple of the Warriors & Group of the Thousand Columns

On a platform in front of the Temple of the Warriors and extending in two strips to the south and east are a myriad of upright sentinels known collectively as the Group of the Columns. The Group of the Columns encloses three sides of a plaza now overgrown, but on its east side is an interesting little complex consisting of buildings decorated with a typically Puuc kind of motif.

The Caracol - Observatory

On the east side is a large, low platform housing a curious and famous construction labelled the Caracol (Snail). This is a circular building with a spiral interior and roof structure. From slits carved into the walls, it has been ascertained that this edifice served as an observatory.