Visiting Playa del Carmen or the Riviera Maya in general, the archaeological sites are definitely worth visiting. This area is rich in Maya heritage. The Maya people once lived in all of the Yucatan Peninsula, in cities and towns located in the beautiful jungle and on the beaches. Although many of these sites are now archaeological zones, or ruins, there are still plenty of Maya people living in the area.
In fact, over half of people living in state of Yucatan nearby are of Maya heritage. There are more than a million people who speak Mayan languages or dialects in the area. The Maya culture has influenced food, music, dress, and many other customs. From Playa del Carmen, you can find quite a few different ruins worth visiting. Here are a few of the best archaeological sites to visit from Playa.
Xaman-Ha
Let’s start with the Xaman-Ha site. Located in the community of Playacar, Xaman-Ha is the original settlement of Playa del Carmen. Believed to be founded in the 13th century, this site in the Ekab chiefdom served as the portal to Cozumel. Cozumel was home to the temple honoring Ixchel, the goddess of love and fertility. People went to Ixchel to seek blessings in getting pregnant, giving birth, and finding love. The name Xaman-Ha means water from the north,
The Xaman-Ha ruins are really a spread out group of different sites. The biggest site with the most excavated buildings is the one in Playacar, located here. You won’t find gates or entrances to the ruins, nor any guides. In fact, there’s relatively few plaques or explanations. There’s a nice little grass area, and the beach of Playacar is right there. If you’re staying in Playa del Carmen, they’re an easy walk or taxi ride away to see a little bit of Maya history.
Tulum
You almost certainly are familiar with the town of Tulum as it’s quite the hot spot these days. We’re not going to go into the town or resorts. The actual site of Tulum was the major port for the nearby Maya city of Cobá. It was a fully walled-in city that reached its peak in the 14th and 15th centuries. It really was one of the last major cities the Maya inhabited in the area. The name, Tulum, means fence or trench. This is in reference to the walled nature of the city.
This site sites on cliffs overlooking the Caribbean. Tulum is the most visited archaeological site in Quintana Roo, and the third most visited in Mexico. It’s a beautiful location for a city, there are plenty of guides, and you can find a ton of information on the placards around the zone. It’s one of the more crowded ruin sites, coming in only second to Chichen Itza in this regard. There’s also a ton of sun and not a ton of shade. So if you head to the Tulum ruins make sure to pack sunscreen and hats. You can also bring swimwear as you can step down to the beach and take a swim here, which we highly recommend!
Chichen Itza
Chichen Itza is certainly one of the most well-known archaeological sites in Mexico. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, has the largest Maya ball court, and is home to El Castillo, a picturesque temple in the middle of the site. Believed to be constructed because of access to water in the nearby Xtoloc cenote, Chichen Itza is a big and sprawling city. It gets awfully hot and crowded, so if you go, make sure to go early. It’s a few hours from Tulum and Playa del Carmen, but absolutely worth checking out.
When we went to Chichen Itza, we stayed at the Mayaland hotel. They literally had rooms with views of the ruins, and a back door into the site. We did a sunrise tour, which was awesome. However, it seems they closed in 2022 temporarily due to some legal disputes. However, I still strongly recommend trying to do a sunrise tour. When we did the tour, we were some of the only people in there with our private tour. By the time we completed our tour and were leaving, the place was filling up. The parking lot alone was intimidating with all of the big busloads of people. If you can, do the sunrise tour and enjoy the peace!
If you are staying in the area, make sure to check out the light show at night. We weren’t too sure about going to this, but are glad we did. They offer a history of the Maya and the site in a beautiful setting with the pyramid of Kukulcan sitting behind you. It may sound a big cheesy, but I promise it’s fun and interesting.
Ek Balam
In my opinion, Ek Balam is one of the most underrated sites (along with Cobá). It’s just 25 kilometers north of Valladolid, and about 56 km from Chichen Itza. It was the seat of the Mayan kingdom during the Preclassic and Postclassic periods. Whereas people go to Chichen Itza to see the Castillo, the thing people see at Ek Balam is the plaster on the side of the largest pyramid. A tomb of Ukit Kan Lek Tok, the plaster has been preserved wonderfully and you can still see color in the artwork.
Ek Balam is home to 45 structures including defensive walls, a beautiful entrance arch, the Oval Palace, a ballcourt, and more. The Acropolis has some incredible wall paintings and calligraphy, as well as capstones depicting deities. In my opinion, it’s one of the best sites to visit. At the time I last went (2020) you could walk on some of the buildings. There also were way less crowds than other sites like Chichen Itza and Tulum.
Cobá
Moving out of the Valladolid/Yucatán area, we have Cobá. This is one of my favorite sites to take family and friends to when in the area. Located about 40km inland from Tulum, Cobá is believed to be one of the most important cities in the area. Still largely unexcavated, it is estimated that over 6,000 total structures exist. The site is actually a bunch of different settlements connected by the white roads. You can get around the site by walking, or using one of the bicycle taxis to take you around (highly recommended).
The site of Tulum was believed to be the port to Coba. It had over 50,000 people living there in the 7th-10th centuries, and they traded with other Maya populations as far away as Guatemala and Honduras. There are also pieces of evidence that inhabitants had contact with people from Central Mexico. The power of the city came from farmlands, trade routs, and control over the two nearby lagoons. In the 10th and 11th centuries, Cobá and Chichen Itza battled for power of the area, with Cobá eventually losing. If you do visit Cobá, make sure to check out one of the many beautiful cenotes in the area.
Muyil
Finally, we have Muyil. This is a relatively “unknown” site. It doesn’t make a lot of people’s lists of must-visits, but it should. In fact, it’s perhaps my favorite archaeological site in the area.Located just south of Tulum, Muyil sits right on two lagoons and the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve. In the last 5-10 years, they’ve done an amazing job and excavating more, putting in more paths, and making it a more pleasant experience. There are many well-preserved buildings, placards to learn about each building, and guides available.
At the back end of the ruins, there’s also an entrance to the biosphere reserve. You can walk along beautiful wooden paths through the mangroves. At the end, you’ll come out on the shore of the lagoon. Here you can take a boat tour through the lagoon and the canals dug by the Maya people centuries ago. This Muyil river float is seriously one of our favorite activities to do with visitors. We’ve done it a dozen times with family and friends when they visit, and it always seems to be a hit.
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