Our first ruin tour of the Yucatan peninsula, these ruins are impressive for the magical setting on a bluff overlooking the rocky shore where ultra-blue waters lap over the white sand beach. The ruins, however, are an east coast style that is not as large or as elaborate as inland sites such as Chichen Itza.
We arrived close to 8AM when the site opened. At this hour tour groups were already filling the smallish site. Try to avoid Sundays when the site is free for Mexicans.
The path through the ruins is roped off so you can’t get too close to the more important buildings. This makes it difficult to see the few relief carvings mentioned in guide books. The castillo, in particular, is roped off such that you can’t see the front façade well. It also faces west and is in shadow in the morning. The back however, the side that faces the ocean, is much more accessible but this is the less interesting side of the structure.
The best part of the site is the pretty walk through the ruins along the top of the bluff. At the time of our visit there was no access to the beach below.
If you are in Tulum it’s worth a quick spin through the ruins for the setting but I wouldn’t travel far just to see them and certainly not later in the day when they are filled with cruise ship tour groups.
December 7, 2019
For links to all the posts in this series see the Yucatan Peninsula page.
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