(Chichen Itza) is an ancient city founded by the Maya Indians in the 6th century. The pyramids of Chichen Itza are one of the most visited places in the Yucatan. The name Chichen Itza itself is translated from the Mayan language as " Mayan well”, due to the fact that on the territory of the ancient city there are 13 cenotes (natural wells). One of them, the Sacred Cenote, served as a sacrifice to the God of Rain.
In the X century, the city of Chichen Itza was captured by the Toltecs, and in 1194 the city was deserted. Why the inhabitants left Chichen Itza is still not known.
Ancient city and the pyramids of Chichen Itza located on the Yucatan Peninsula, 205 km from famous resort and 120 km from Merida. Chichen Itza is one of the most popular and most visited attractions in the Yucatan Peninsula. Almost all tourists who come to Mexico, to Cancun, consider it their duty to visit the archaeological complex of Chichen Itza, so there are always a lot of people here. It is advisable to come to the opening, then there is a chance to walk around the complex alone 😎
The ancient city and pyramids of Chichen Itza are protected by UNESCO.
How to get to the pyramids of Chichen Itza, Mexico
- By bus. ADO buses run from Cancun and Merida. Ticket price Cancun - Chichen Itza 80 - 140 pesos (depending on the bus class). Travel time is 3-4 hours. Ticket price Merida - Chichen Itza 50-80 pesos, travel time 1.45 - 2.5 hours
- Can buy organized tour to Chichen Itza, group or individual. The tour can be booked at any hotel or agreed in advance with an individual guide. To order a tour, just follow the link.
- On the rental car . As for me, this is the best way to get to Chichen Itza. Other sights can be seen along the way. Read about how to rent a car in Mexico in Cancun. From Cancun, you can get to Chichen Itza on toll or free roads.
Opening hours and cost of visiting the archaeological complex of Chichen Itza
The Chichen Itza complex is open to the public from 8:00 to 17:00. The evening light show takes place at 19:00 in winter and at 20:00 in summer.
Cost of tickets to Chichen Itza: a ticket to Chichen Itza consists of two parts - a ticket for 125 pesos and a ticket for 57 pesos, total admission costs 182 pesos ($14.5). These are the most expensive pyramids we've been to in Mexico 😎
Parking near Chichen Itza is also paid - 22 pesos (a little less than $ 2).
We knew that we needed to arrive in Chichen Itza as early as possible, so we left at 6:30 in the morning! It's good that the time difference with Moscow is 10 hours, in the first days we got up at 6 in the morning without any problems.
We drove to Chichen Itza on a toll road to save time. Travel on the toll road Cancun - Chichen Itza is not at all cheap: we paid twice, the first time 251 pesos, the second time 61 pesos, total 312 pesos (almost 25 dollars !!!) ....
Toll road Cancun - Chichen Itza …and for what? For a little less than 200 km. We drove these 200 km in 3 hours, I don’t know how people manage to drive them in 2 hours? We do not break the rules, we did not exceed the speed limit, we stopped once at a gas station for 5 minutes.
We arrived at the entrance to the archaeological complex of Chichen Itza at 9:30 in the morning. 
There were already cars of independent travelers in the parking lot, but not as many as I thought. We bought tickets, guides immediately began to pester us, but we, of course, refused them. At the entrance to the complex there is a toilet (free of charge), souvenir shops, cafes.
The first thing that catches your eye upon entering the archaeological zone is the main attraction of Chichen Itza - (or El Castillo, translated from Spanish as “castle”).
The main attraction of Chichen Itza is the Pyramid of Kukulkan This is a nine-tiered pyramid, 24 meters high, on top of which there is a temple in which sacrifices were made. The pyramid of Kukulkan is symmetrical and has four stairs. And each staircase consists of 91 steps. If the number of steps 91 is multiplied by the number of stairs 4 and one is added (the upper platform), then we get the number 365 - the number of days in a year!
The central (northern) staircase of the pyramid of Kukulkan 
Not the main staircase of the pyramid of Kukulkan 🙂 Pyramid of Kukulkan is also known as Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent . Every year, on the equinoxes, March 20 and September 21, many people come to the Kukulkan pyramid to look at one very interesting phenomenon: at about 3 pm the sun illuminates the main staircase of the pyramid so that shadows are formed - triangles, together similar to the tail of a snake, as the sun moves, the triangles go out and form the effect of a snake crawling down.
By the way, you can look at this spectacle at the nightly light show.
Temple of the Warriors 
Let's go to "Group of a Thousand Columns"
, there is a place called the market.
In general, in this part of the archaeological zone of Chichen Itza, it is rather sparsely populated and calm. And the sun does not bake, it's nice to take a walk or relax under the crown of trees. 
Attracts attention ball field
. This is one of the largest fields on the territory of the complex, its length is 166 m, width is 68 m, the height of the walls is 12 m. Stone rings are fixed at a height of 8m. The Mayans used to play ball here. The game was called "pot-ta-pok", they played with a rubber ball, which weighed about 4 kg and could only be beaten with the hip. The game is supposed to end with a sacrifice.
Field for playing ball: on the wall there is a ring where, according to the rules of the game, it was necessary to score the ball You cannot climb the pyramid of Kukulkan and other ruins. They say that earlier it was possible to climb the pyramid, but then this business was banned. Either someone fell from the pyramid, or they are simply afraid that the pyramid will deteriorate and collapse ... Therefore, a walk around the Chichen Itza complex did not take us so much time - only two hours. 
When we headed to the exit, at about 11:30, crowds of tourists began to come towards us, there were many Russian-speaking groups.
Watch a short video of this amazing place 😎
Immediately, local merchants have already laid out their stalls with souvenirs. By the way, here you can buy cheap souvenirs. Much cheaper than in Cancun. Many interesting masks are sold here, which we have not seen anywhere else during our further trip to Mexico. Later we regretted that we did not buy anything from souvenirs near Chichen Itza. If you need souvenirs, buy them here and be sure to bargain!
Souvenirs in Chichen Itza for every taste and cheaper than in Cancun 
You can spend the night near the Chichen Itza complex in one of the hotels. Choose according to your taste and enjoy your vacation 😎 At the same time, you can visit the archaeological complex of Chichen Itza twice: in the afternoon to see the sights, and in the evening to come to see the evening light and music show, for which you do not need to buy separate ticket, the cost is already included in day tickets.
And two simpler hotels (3 stars):
We did not spend the night near the pyramids of Chichen Itza, but went further, an interesting rich program was waiting for us, so subscribe to the site's newsletter to receive notifications of new blog articles! 😎
X - XIII centuries AD, where a kind of architectural skill reached its perfection. It was an important political, cultural and religious center of the Maya. The cenote and the pyramid are two amazing sanctuaries discovered here by researchers of the culture of an ancient civilization.
Among the ruins ancient capital rises the temple of Kukulkan - the main deity of the Mayan pantheon during the New Kingdom. The majestic building is a pyramid, on the truncated top of which there is a small temple. Scientists believe that the inner temple was built in 900 AD, and the temple that covers it a little later. The pyramid rises to a height of 25 meters. The length of the base from the south and north sides is 65 m, from the east and west - 67 m. The slopes of the pyramid face the four cardinal points. Each of the slopes has a staircase with 91 steps, which symbolize the seasons, months and days. A snake in bird plumage, a symbol of the supreme power of Kukulkan, became the main motif of the ornament adorning the pyramid. The temple, erected on top, has one door on each side, facing east, west, north and south. The door facing north is wider than the others and leads to a 30-meter gallery. At the entrance there are two massive columns, decorated with original sculptural ornaments. In the sanctuary of the pyramid, sacrifices were made not only to the Sacred Serpent, but also to other deities.
The pyramid of Kukulkan in Chichen Itza has another name - the pyramid of El Castillo.
Cenotes in Chichen Itza are huge rounded pits filled with water, reaching a diameter of 70 m, with steep, steep banks. The water in all cenotes is at the same level, so many scientists suggest that they are supplied with underwater water.
At a distance of 300 meters from the pyramid there is a deep well - a kind of pyramid on the contrary, going into the depths of the earth for several tens of meters. The Maya considered the "Sacred Cenote" to be the home of the rain god Chaka, to whom they offered human sacrifices in times of drought. This is evidenced by the remains of fabrics found in the well, gold and silver jewelry, human skulls and bones.
Video: Mexico. Chichen Itza. Sacred cenote.
Video: Chichen Itza - Secrets of history.
See where Chichen Itza is located on the map:
Sorry, the map is temporarily unavailable Sorry, the map is temporarily unavailable
in front of you detailed map Chichen Itza with city names and settlements in Russian. Move the map by holding it with the left mouse button. You can move around the map by clicking on one of the four arrows in the upper left corner. You can change the scale using the scale on the right side of the map or by turning the mouse wheel.
What country is Chichen Itza in?
Chichen Itza is located in Mexico. It's wonderful beautiful place with its own history and traditions. Chichen Itza coordinates: northern latitude and eastern longitude (show on a large map).
virtual walk
The figurine of a "little man" above the scale will help to make virtual walk in the cities of Chichen Itza. By pressing and holding the left mouse button, drag it to any place on the map and you will go for a walk, while inscriptions with the approximate address of the area will appear in the upper left corner. Choose the direction of movement by clicking on the arrows in the center of the screen. The "Satellite" option at the top left allows you to see the relief image of the surface. In the "Map" mode, you will get the opportunity to get acquainted in detail with highways Chichen Itza and the main attractions.
In the north of the Mexican Yucatan, the largest center of the Mayan people, Chichen Itza, was once located. The city in translation meaning approximately “The mouth of the well of the Itza tribe” was founded in the 7th century AD. In the 10th century, the Toltec army captured this city-state and formed its capital here. In 1178, the city was captured by neighboring city-states, and from 1194 it fell into complete disrepair. No one can now say what caused the residents to leave. The Spaniards who came here in the 16th century stumbled only on the ruins of Chichen Itza.
The excavations carried out in our time on the site of this ancient city made it possible to find many interesting architectural monuments from the culture of the time. One of the most famous was the temple of Kukulkan, which is a 9-step pyramid. Another interesting building is the temple of the Warriors on a 4-step pyramid, decorated with paintings. Stadiums for violent ball games, a 50-meter well for sacrifices, a sacred cenote, an observatory of the statue of local gods were also discovered.
Stadium ball ring
Interestingly, the land with these structures until 2010 was in private hands. But competent actions of the government allowed it to be returned to the state for $17.8 million. The ancient Mayan city is very popular among tourists. A monument of this magnitude, of course, was taken under the control of UNESCO. And in 2007 he was awarded the title of one of the new wonders of the world.
Temple of Kukulkan at Chichen Itza
The main interesting architectural buildings in Chichen Itza were built in the so-called Mexican period - the time after the capture of the city by the Toltecs. Then it was built main temple Maya city - Temple of Kukulkan. The temple was dedicated to the Toltec god Kukulkan, whom they called the Feathered Serpent.
The temple, due to its expressiveness and popularity, has become a symbol of all of Mexico. Any inhabitant of our planet has seen this 24-meter nine-step pyramid at least once in his life.
The building has a square plan, massive appearance. It is not surprising that the Spaniards who came here called it a castle. The temple is set on a huge terrace (18 hectares) along with many other famous buildings of Chichen Itzi. On the right is the temple of the Warriors, on the left is the temple of the Jaguars.
Four staircases lead to the top of the temple, oriented to the cardinal points. The stairs are accompanied by a balustrade starting with a snake's head. On the days of the equinox, the lighting creates an interesting effect: it seems as if the Serpent Kukulkan begins to crawl out of its lair.
Serpent head
In addition to its orientation to the cardinal points, the temple is also distinguished by other astronomical details. There are 91 steps on each staircase, which gives a total of 364. And if we add the upper platform to this number, we get the total number of days in a year - 365. The nine main steps of the pyramid are separated by a staircase, which actually doubles them to 18. With the number 18 in the Maya is associated with the number of months in a year. Each wall depicts 52 reliefs - the number of years in the calendar cycle.
At the top of this large pyramid is the temple itself, with four entrances. The main entrance to the sanctuary is in the north. There are two columns depicting snakes. Inside are two more pairs of the same. In the old days, it was here that terrible human sacrifices were made.
Temple of Kukulkan
An interesting fact is the presence of another of the same nine-step pyramid in the main pyramid. The entrance was found relatively recently, and it was here that the symbol of Mayan power, the Jaguar Mat, was hidden.
Jaguar Throne
The Jaguar mat is the ruler's throne, carved from stone, resembling the figure of a jaguar. The throne is inlaid with 73 jade disks in the form of jaguar spots. They are filled with the eyes of the beast. The first owners of the throne include Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl, the founder of the Toltecs.
Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza
Another well-known temple of the city of Chichen Itza is located to the right of the pyramid of Kukulkan. The Temple of the Warriors is also located on the pyramid, the approaches to which are guarded by a detachment of patterned columns.
This building completely copies the temple of Quetzalcoatl in Tollan. The Toltec leader Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl, before uniting the tribes and making major conquests, lost this city. So that in the new place he would be reminded of the past glory, a copy of this temple was built.
In front of the stairs of the temple there are 60 patterned columns 2.6 meters high, arranged in four rows. Previously, these columns had a roof, from which, alas, nothing remains now. Everywhere in the temple there are images of warriors - hence its name. As well as in all the temples of the Toltecs, human sacrifices were made here.
The pyramid of this temple is smaller - only 11.5 meters and consists of five steps. Balustrades of the central staircase are decorated with stone male figures. The top is decorated with the actual temple, which consists of two rooms - the front hall and the sanctuary itself. The entrance to the sanctuary is decorated with columns with snakes already familiar to us. In the sanctuary there is an altar for sacrifices supported by figures of people. Nearby stands an idol of the demon Chak-Mool, holding a dish on which the priests threw people's hearts. There are not so cruel assumptions of researchers on this idol. Some also believe that the dish serves as an offering in the form of intoxicating drinks, and the idol itself is a rain god or guardian of the temple.
Chuck Mool
Inside the temple, outwardly, everything is calmer and does not remind of a cruel past. There are many sculptures and frescoes, familiar images of snakes, jaguars, eagles. The warriors on the reliefs of the temple depict typical Indians of that time. They move in a march or stand majestically in place. The frescoes depict the history of the Mayan capture by the Toltecs, as well as the peaceful life of the inhabitants of this place. Temple of the Warriors is undoubtedly one of the interesting buildings to study the Maya-Toltec culture.
And although after the defeat the city fell into decay, the rudiments of a great civilization retained their cultural heritage and passed it on to their descendants. Chichen Itza in Mexico is indeed one of the the most unique places our planet.
Video about Chichen Itza
The ancient city of Chichen Itza- Mayan heritage in; the oldest city in the Yucatan Peninsula. Located 120 km from the capital of the region - the city of Merida, and 205 km from popular resort Cancun. Probably everyone who has ever been to Mexico wanted to see the remains of this ancient settlement, which is ranked among the new wonders of the world. Chichen Itza is included in the version of our site.
This special place where the Mayan Indians once lived and worshiped their gods. For unknown reasons, they were forced to leave the city, which later became the prey of the conquerors: first the Toltecs, and then the Spaniards. In the Mayan language, the sonorous name of the settlement was translated as "The mouth of the well of the Itza tribe." It is no coincidence that the word "well" appears in this phrase, because 13 cenotes, the so-called natural wells, were dug on the territory of the city.
By the way, one of these wells "Sacred Cenote" served for sacrifices to the God of Water. On the territory of the deserted settlement, the famous Temple Kukulkan, which is associated with a lot of symbolic. This is a pyramidal structure, on top of which stands a temple for sacrifices. Visitors are not allowed to go up to the temple. 4 wide staircases lead upstairs, each of which consists of 91 steps.
If you multiply the number of stairs by the number of steps and add one to the resulting number, you get the number 365, that is, exactly as many as there are days in a year. In addition, every year on the days of the spring and autumn equinoxes, an unforgettable show takes place on the stairs of the pyramid. At about 3:00 pm, the sun illuminates the front staircase so that shadows appear in the form of triangles that form the tail of a snake. Because of this, Kukulkan is sometimes called the Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent. In the evenings in Chichen Itza, you can see the same artificially created light show.
Many tourists linger on a huge playground created for violent ball games. The ball of the ancient Maya was so heavy that it could only be hit with the hip. Well, as expected, each game ended with a sacrifice. According to chronology, the city was founded, perhaps, in the 7th century AD. as the religious center of the Mexican tribe. Today, the remains of buildings are conditionally divided into two parts: old and new. The most significant structures are located in the new central part. At the entrance to the complex there are souvenir shops and cafes.
The most convenient way to get to the ruins is by bus from Merida or Cancun. You can also drive to Chichen Itza with a rental car. The path runs both on a toll (shorter) and on a free road.
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