Pyramid at Mayapan

Mayapan is an archaeological site in Yucatán, Mexico. It was a fairly large city, built after the demise of Chichen Itza, and it took on the mantle of being the most powerful and influential Mayan city in the Yucatán. It was a place of power struggles and treachery and its demise in 1441 is attributed to rivalries between two powerful ruling clans. Mayapan is known for its architectural similarity to Chichen Itza.

Observatory at Mayapan

Understand

During the late Postclassic period, most of the big Mayan cities were abandoned or fell into steep decline. When Chichen-Itza fell, the ruling king, Kukulcan, led his followers to build Mayapan (which is why the pyramids, observatories, temples, and platforms that you see at Mayapan look an awful lot like the ones in Chichen Itza). Mayapan had a population of about 12,000 in the city and another 4,000-5,000 in the surrounding farmlands. It became the cultural center of the region that smaller Maya cities looked up to during the period 1250 to 1441.

Get in

Be careful using GPS or Google Maps to get directions: there is a town called Mayapan that is nowhere close to the archaeological site of Mayapan. The nearby town is Techaquillo and you'll get good directions using that as your destination. The archaeological zone is 1 km south of Techaquillo on highway MEX-184.

By bus

First-class bus line, Lineas Unidas del Sur, has hourly departures from Mérida to Techaquillo, the trip takes about 50 minutes for the 52 km trip and cost about M$40.

Second-class buses (also LUS) from Mérida to Techaquillo make more stops and take about 90 minutes for the 52 km trip but cost about M$20.

By train

The nearest Tren Maya station to Mayapan is Teya Mérida (a large, full-service station). Shuttles or combis are available at the station or a taxi will be fastest (about 30-40 minutes) and cost about M$500.

Get around

It's an archaeological site: you walk. Wear comfortable shoes and socks.

See

• 1 Temple of Painted Niches - home to several murals, showing five temples painted around each of the five niches with the niche itself representing a doorway into the temple. Cool artistic effect.
• 2 Pyramid of Kukulcan - basically a copy of El Castillo at Chichen Itza, the 15-meter high pyramid has 9 levels (and INAH still allows visitors to climb this one, but will probably prohibit climbing if the site gets more popular). A room to one side houses several good quality murals.
• 3 Observatory El Caracol - the rounded observatory is a fascinating glimpse of the Mayan fascination with astronomy, and especially planetary movements. They believed that Venus and other visible planets were the spirits of the gods, moving across the planes between heaven and earth
• 4 Temple of Venus - four-sided temple with staircases on each side, similar in style to Temple of the Jaguar at Chichen Itza
• 5 Northwest Temple - round temple with murals inside
• 6 Cenote Chen Mul - the cenote is covered by a temple that has openings in the base so rainwater can be channeled to the underground cenote

Portion of a mural in the Pyramid of Kukulcan at Mayapan

There are numerous temples, platforms, and plazas as well as a ballcourt and other structures. The site has a total of about 4,000 structures, most are residences outside the core city, and a guide will tell you about any particularly noteworthy points of interest.

Do

Entrance to Telchaquillo cenote

Yucatán is famous for its cenotes, deep karst caves with underground pools and rivers. One of these cenotes is very close to the Mayapan archaeological zone. Swimming in cenotes is a popular way to cool off on even the hottest afternoons. The cenote is small and not nearly as impressive as others in the area, but it's practically next to the ruins and its the cheapest cenote in the Yucatán.

• 1 Cenote Telchaquillo (Cenote Chen Cha'aac), Telchaquillo. Daily 09:00 - 18:00. Small cenote that's used almost exclusively by locals, who prefer coming in the morning, so you might have it to yourself in the afternoon. The water is shallow (generally no more than 1-1/2 meter deep). If the gate is closed, go in the small adjacent store, Tendejon Ofelia, and the woman will open the gate once you pay the small fee. M$10. 

Buy

This is not a good area to try shopping for anything. The town of Telchaquillo has a couple small stores, but they mostly sell beer, cigarettes and peanuts (just the necessities of life). There is no established marketplace, but the town has a tianguis (like a farmers market or flea market) in the main plaza on Sundays. Major markets and shopping malls are in the city of Mérida.

Eat

Mayapan is in a remote area and has no on-site food services within the archaeological zone. The nearest food is 2 km north of the site in the village of Telchaquillo. Day trip visitors will find one small restaurant open for lunch with 2 pizzerias open limited hours on weekend evenings (Friday-Sunday only). A large selection of excellent restaurants is in Mérida.

• 1 Cocina Ancona, 15 50A, S/N, Telchaquillo. Daily 11:00 - 15:00. Telchaquillo's only restaurant that opens every day serves regional Yucatecan cuisine at lunch only. 

Sleep

There are no hotels, hostels, or camping areas close to Mayapan. Within 50 miles there are numerous historic hacienda hotels, most of which are upscale boutique hotels offering a luxury experience for very well-heeled guests. The hotels are rich in history and cultural value as they were once the center of henequen production during the colonial era. Some of the hacienda hotels are up to 400 years old. There are at least 20 of these haciendas within reasonable driving distance of the Mayapan ruins, but none with regular bus or combi transportation and none close to any major town.

Budget travelers and families seeking more moderate lodging choices will find the best selection of rooms available in Mérida, though there are a couple of property owners in Telchiquillo who will rent a room in their home for the night at very affordable prices. These may or may not be listed on Airbnb and there are not so many of them that you should depend on them being an option.

Connect

Cellular service is available close to the Mayapan site and in the nearby town of Techaquillo, but it's 3G service and can get spotty in remote areas. Cell service improves as you travel the highway back to Mérida, where 5G service is widespread and dependable.

Go next

• Uxmal
• Ruta Puuc
• Chichen Itza
• Cenotes of the Yucatán