Welcome to Dzibilchaltun, a Guide To These Mayan ruins. We hope to pass on to you the reader’s useable information through our own visit to this Mayan ruins site and writings in this post. By reading this blog post and following the links to adventure and our insights, we’ll provide you with a guide to Dzibilchaltun, a Mayan Ruin.
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Dzibilchaltun, A Guide
Dzibilchaltun Mayan ruins are located 16 km north of Merida towards the coastal town of Progreso. This Mayan ruin site is a smaller site when looking at most Mayan sites in the Yucatan. Located in the extreme north region of the Mayan civilization. Dzibilchaltun had been continually occupied for about 3,000 years until the Spanish arrived in the mid-1500s. See YouTube Dzibilchaltun
Guide to Dzibilchaltun must-see’s
Swim in the on-site Cenote
Visit Temple of the Seven Dolls
Visit on-site Museum its incredible
Arriving at Dzibilchaltun
Dzibilchaltun opens 8:00-5:00, with the museum 8:00-4:00 we arrived at around 10:00. Thankfully not many vehicles or tour buses in the parking lot at this time in the morning; this is a good thing. We find it best to be at popular sites or any sites for that matter first thing in the morning. Arriving early affords two things, you beat the crowds as well as the midday heat.
Signage directions posted on the highway were good and to the site itself (shouldn’t get lost). The use of GPS is always recommended as some sites can be challenging to find. The Goggle maps app is good to have installed on your phone, to confirm, as you never know.
Costs of Visiting Dzibilchaltun
Entry cost to Dzibilchaltun, the parking 30 pesos, and the admission into the Mayan ruins itself was 227 pesos per person. Tour guides are an extra cost and since we were going to hire a tour guide in Uxmal. We opted not to hire a guide here in Dzibilchaltun. Even though hiring a guide is good for the local economy and helps to employ the local people.
Entering, you pass through the Dzibilchaltun complex that has bathrooms, souvenir shops, and a concession. This is where you can hire your tour guide to guide you through the Mayan ruins here at Dzibilchaltun. In general, if you need anything, this is the time to get it. In short, it’s hot walking the grounds, so water and sun protection need to be on your list. We didn’t experience any issues with bugs, but I’m sure that they are around. Leaving this area, the ruins are off to the right down a gravel path, and if you go straight, the path leads you to the Mayan museum.
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Where to go entering Dzibilchaltun
After exiting the gravel path, you come out to the main clearing you head to the right to see most of the ruins themselves. The signage explaining structures or giving any direction is non-existent. I assume this is where a guide would be convenient. Taking a picture of a map before starting would make this part of the tour a lot more interesting.
Later in the morning, tour buses start to arrive, making the site a lot busier; it seems to take away the sense of being part of the Mayan past.
Entering the Main Plaza
The extensive Main Plaza measures 437 feet/133 meters x 343 feet/105 meters. Its surface was once completely covered with a layer of white stucco. It is anchored on the northeast by Structure 36. This is a four-tiered pyramid with a central stairway and rises to about 33 feet/10 meters.
In the center of the plaza is a 16th-century open-air chapel, a common practice of the early Spaniards. To construct these chapels, the Spaniards would use material from the existing Mayan structures. An interesting, and perhaps unique feature here, is that all the Main Plaza structures, excluding Structure 36, have plaza facing stairways that run the entire length of the structure.
Structure 44 is a wonderful structure of 425 feet/129 meters in length, on the south side of the plaza, with a continuous stairway that runs its entire length. It has a platform base that rises 14 steps to the top, about 15 feet/5 meters. Very impressive! This structure was presumably of a civic/administrative nature with equal access to the two parallel hallways that run the top of the platform’s length. 35 entryways open into the hallways. It has a near-identical twin at the Mayan ruins site of Edzna named the Nohoch Na.
Mayan ruins, Backdrop for Selfies, Incredible
Looking, you can see that we took full advantage of this structure and its unique materials to take some exciting selfies. We carry a small tripod with us that we use for selfies. Moreover, we find the Mayan ruins make fascinating backdrops for these pictures.
The east side of the plaza consists of 3 structures. Structure 42 is the most notable, set on a long, raised platform with a west-facing terrace. Backing the terrace are several multi-roomed structures. A tomb of a 9th-century ruler, Kalom Uk’uw Chan Chac, had been discovered here.
The next structure, Structure 41, is a raised platform of about 8 feet/2.5 meters in height. The broad stairway leads up to a flat surface that has the remains of a central masonry structure. The final structure is a simple, low, square platform placed in front of Structure 41.
Taking a swim in Cenote Xlakah
As always, a swim in a Cenote is a great way to cool off from the mid-day heat. This Cenote is located just beside the central plaza itself. You might want to bring a swimsuit, even though we didn’t see a change room near the cenote itself, just saying! Most Mayan ruin sites we have been to do not have such a lovely Cenote to cool off in; this is rather nice.
Xlakah Cenote reaches depths of 44 meters (144 feet). The plaque near the water’s edge states, Xlakah means “old town” in Maya. This cenote was first explored in the late 1950s when thousands of pottery shards and urns were found in the water along with wood, stone, and bone artifacts. The earthenware dates to the Late Classic Periods of 600-1000 A.D.
Temple of the Seven Dolls
Temple of the Dolls is an impressive building on a pyramid base with one short tower on its roof and stelae in front of the building. Archaeologists discovered the temple in the 1950s under the ruins of a larger pyramid constructed on top of The Temple of the Dolls.
Building temples on top of temples was a common practice with the Maya. The dolls were found in the buried temple but are now housed in the museum to protect and preserve these architectural features. Though the dolls have been moved, the ingenuity of this building remains.
The Temple of the Dolls and its temple doorways were constructed in a specific and deliberate direction that confirms the Maya understanding of the solar system. During the Spring and Autumn equinox, the sun’s rays pass through the doorways of the temples.
Since corn remained a major part of the Maya diet, this event had great significance to the Maya as it represented the beginning and end of harvest season honoring Yum Kax, the Maya god of corn. Dzibilchaltun is opened at 5:30 A.M. on those two days so visitors can view the phenomenon, and many do.
Dzibilchaltun Museum
The air-conditioned museum at Dzibilchaltun is full of interesting artifacts of both Mayan and Spanish origin. Carved stone tablets, stelae, and the original carved dolls are displayed alongside Maya huipiles, old textile machinery, maps, Spanish armor, swords, and other weapons. The museum is located by the ruins site entrance and is definitely worth seeing during your stay. The air conditioning can be a relief during a hot day. The museum is a must-see.
Final Thoughts On Dzibilchaltun
- We felt that this Mayan ruin was definitely worth the visit; this site’s grounds are relatively open. Several structures have not been restored; this gives you an idea of what the overall site may have looked like when first discovered. There is a cenote here that would be refreshing; the on-site Museum is worth a visit.
Our Positives
- Easy to as it is not that far out of Merida
- Mayan museum on site
- Grounds easy to walk as they are open and good walking paths
- Refreshments can be purchased on site.
- Some beautiful structures for taking interesting pictures, including great selfies
- Reasonable price compared to others, Uxmal or Chichen Itza.
Our Negatives
- Poor signage of structures
- Can get very busy because of tour groups, arrive early
- I don’t remember a map to use as a guide of the site
Would have, Could have, Should have
- We should have taken a little more time at the site; we stayed 4hrs.
Next Stop
Off to see some Cenotes as this was part of an excursion that we planned with a car rental out of Progreso
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