Must-see attractions in Yucatán Peninsula

  • ba01413.jpg

    Tulum Ruins

    Tulum

    Tulum is one of the most visited archaeological zones in Mexico and for good reason: it’s sublime. The ruins sit on seaside cliffs, high above turquoise…

  • Aerial of a path between palm trees on Isla Contoy.

    Parque Nacional Isla Contoy

    Cancún

    A white sand beach with manta rays gliding through the shimmering turquoise waters. No hotels. No nightclubs. No roads or cars of any kind. It’s hard to…

  • SFER IK

    Tulum

    Wandering barefoot through the contemporary art museum at Azulik hotel, you feel like you’re in a giant cocoon. Nature surrounds you, inside and out:…

  • Museo Maya de Cancún

    Cancún

    Surrounded by dense tropical forest, the contemporary Museo Maya de Cancún is a welcome respite from the beach and buffet lines of the neighboring high…

  • San Miguelito

    Cancún

    You don't have to leave the Zona Hotelera to find Mayan culture in Cancún. Before the beach umbrellas, resorts, banana boats and  Spanish conquistadors…

  • Destroyed jetty on a white sandy beach at Isla Blanca.

    Isla Blanca

    Cancún

    Driving down a narrow sand road, the turquoise Caribbean on one side, the glimmering Laguna Chacmuchuch on the other, you feel like you’re a thousand…

  • Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve

    Reserva de la Biosfera Sian Ka'an

    Tulum

    While floating down a canal that Mayans dug by hand centuries ago, you see tall grasses on either side and colorful birds flying overhead. You hear the…

  • Beautiful Cenote Manatee, ( a.k.a. Casa Cenote, and Cenote Manatí ), in Tankah Bay, Quintana Roo, Mexico.

    Tankah Tres

    Tulum

    At the end of a sand road is the hamlet of Tankah Tres (aka Tankah Bay), a seaside community of vacation homes and small hotels in Mexico, all facing a…

  • Mexico, Quintana Roo State, Riviera Maya, Cancun, Playa Delfines

    Playa Delfines

    Cancún

    Unfolding from the base of a mild seaside bluff, Playa Delfines is one of the most scenic beaches in Cancún. A languid stretch of sand with turquoise…

  • Gran Museo del Mundo Maya

    Mérida

    A world-class museum celebrating Maya culture, the Gran Museo houses a permanent collection of more than 1100 remarkably well-preserved artifacts,…

  • The Mayan ruins of the Coba pyramid in the Yucatan Peninsula.

    Cobá Ruins

    Cobá

    Cobá's ruins include the tallest pyramid in Quintana Roo (the second tallest in all the Yucatán) and the thick jungle setting makes you feel like you’re…

  • Regional Museum of Anthropology, housed in a 19th century building, Paseo de Montejo, Merida, Yucatan State, Mexico, North America

    Palacio Cantón

    Mérida

    This massive mansion was built between 1909 and 1911, though its owner, General Francisco Cantón Rosado (1833–1917), lived here for only six years before…

  • Flamingos

    Reserva de la Biosfera Ría Celestún

    Celestún

    The 591-sq-km Reserva de la Biosfera Ría Celestún is home to a huge variety of animals and birdlife, including a large flamingo colony. You can see…

  • Chacchoben

    Mahahual

    Chacchoben means 'Place of Red Corn' in Maya and like so many ruins, its origin and use remain a mystery. It has several impressive structures, including…

  • Casa de los Venados

    Valladolid

    Featuring over 3000 pieces of museum-quality Mexican folk art, this private collection is interesting in that objects are presented in an actual private…

  • Síijil Noh Há

    Costa Maya & Southern Caribbean Coast

    About 8km south of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, off Hwy 307, you'll find a bumpy 3km dirt road leading to this sublime, solar-powered ecotourism center. Run by…

  • Templo de las Pinturas

    Tulum

    This two-story temple has some of Tulum's most intricate decorations, including relief masks, carvings, columns and partially restored color murals on an…

  • Laguna Milagros

    Chetumal

    Paddle out on a kayak or simply have a swim in the azure waters of Laguna Milagros, about 23km west of Chetumal, in the town of Huay-Pix. Waterfront…

  • El Cielo

    Isla Cozumel

    Living up to its heavenly name, El Cielo's shallow turquoise waters are ideal for snorkeling and swimming among starfish, stingrays and small fish…

  • Punta Mosquito

    Isla Holbox

    On the eastern side of the island, Punta Mosquito is about 2.5km east of the downtown area. It has a large sandbar and is a good place to spot flamingos…

  • Playa Garrafón

    Isla Mujeres

    Head to this beach for excellent snorkeling. It's 6.5km from the tourist center. A cab costs M$100.

  • Aquarium

    Playa del Carmen

    An impressive three-story aquarium with 200 marine species and 45 exhibits. One of the few options in Playa for nonbeach days.

  • This is one of the well preserved ancient Mayan temples at the Dzibanche's archeological Mayan ruins site about two hours inland in the Yucatan region of Mexico. They still allow visitors to climb to the top of the temples but may need to restrict it in the future due to the expansion of tourism in the area.
Dzibanche

    Dzibanché

    Costa Maya & Southern Caribbean Coast

    Though it’s a chore to get to, this site is definitely worth a visit for its secluded, semi-wild nature. Dzibanché (meaning ‘writing on wood’) was a major…

  • El Castillo (Temple of Kukulkan), Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico

    El Castillo

    Chichén Itzá

    Upon entering Chichén Itzá, El Castillo (aka the Pyramid of Kukulcán) rises before you in all its grandeur. The first temple here was pre-Toltec, built…

  • x-default

    Catedral de San Ildefonso

    Mérida

    On the site of a former Maya temple is Mérida’s hulking, severe cathedral, begun in 1561 and completed in 1598. Some of the stone from the Maya temple was…

  • Hacienda Mundaca

    Isla Mujeres

    A 19th-century slave trader and reputed pirate, Fermín Antonio Mundaca de Marechaja fell in love with a local woman known as La Trigueña (The Brunette)…

  • ring carved on the Great ball court of Chichen Itza

    Gran Juego de Pelota

    Chichén Itzá

    The great ball court, the largest and most impressive in Mexico, is only one of the city’s eight courts, indicative of the importance the games held here…

  • Casa de Montejo

    Mérida

    Casa de Montejo is on the south side of Plaza Grande and dates from 1540. It originally housed soldiers, but was soon converted into a mansion that served…

  • MEXICO - FEBRUARY 16: The Franciscan monastery of San Bernardino, Valladolid, Yucatan. Mexico, 16th century. (Photo by DeAgostini/Getty Images)

    Templo de San Bernardino

    Valladolid

    The Templo de San Bernardino and the adjacent Convento de Sisal are about 700m southwest of the plaza. They were constructed between 1552 and 1560 to…

  • Small PYramid at Mayan ruins of Coba, Caribe. Quintana Roo state. Mayan Riviera. Yucatan Peninsula. Mexico

    Grupo Cobá

    Cobá

    The most prominent structure in the Grupo Cobá is La Iglesia (the Church). It's an enormous pyramid; if you were allowed to climb it, you could see the…

  • Malecón

    Campeche

    A popular path for joggers, cyclists, strolling friends and cooing sweethearts, the malecón, Campeche’s 7km-long waterfront promenade, makes for a breezy…

  • El Cedral Mayan archaeological site, Cozumel

    El Cedral

    Isla Cozumel

    This Maya ruin, a fertility temple, is the oldest on the island. It’s the size of a small house and has no ornamentation. El Cedral is thought to have…

  • San Gervasio Ruins

    San Gervasio Ruins

    Isla Cozumel

    This overpriced Maya complex is Cozumel’s only preserved ruin. It's thought to have been the location of the sanctuary of Ixchel, goddess of fertility,…

  • Bahías de Punta Solimán

    Riviera Maya

    These two beautiful, protected bays are separated by a narrow point, 123km south of Cancún and 11km north of Tulum. To get here, head east (toward the…

  • Parque Punta Sur

    Isla Cozumel

    For the price of admission to this park, you can visit a lighthouse, a small nautical museum and a Maya ruin. The park road leads past an observation…

  • x-default

    Plaza Grande

    Mérida

    One of the nicest plazas in Mexico, huge laurel trees shade the park’s benches and wide sidewalks. It was the religious and social center of ancient T’ho;…

  • Palacio de Gobierno

    Mérida

    Built in 1892, the Palacio de Gobierno houses the state of Yucatán’s executive government offices (and a tourist office). Don't miss the wonderful murals…

  • x-default

    Teatro Peón Contreras

    Mérida

    The enormous Teatro Peón Contreras was built between 1900 and 1908, during Mérida’s henequén heyday. It boasts a main staircase of Carrara marble, a dome…

    • placement: fullWidth
    • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
    • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [300, 250], [320, 50], [1, 1],
    • targeting:
      {
        "position": "superzone"
      }