One of the best-preserved ancient cities belonging to the bygone Mayan civilization, Chichen Itza is the most popular day trip for tourists from Cancun.
It is ranked number one on TripAdvisor and draws millions of visitors every year, thanks to its Wonder of the World status.
Indeed, it is a fascinating ensemble of ancient ruins of the kind you’d expect to find in an Indiana Jones installment, but there’s one major downside to Chichen Itza that often gets downplayed:
As it is the most visited archeological site in Mexico, it can be excessively crowded, and if you’re not chaperoned by a local guide, you should beware of on-site scams.
Mexico’s rich Mayan History is not confined to Chichen Itza, however, as there are hundreds more lost cities we’re yet to discover: one of them is a mystical Ichkabal that is fully opening for tourists for the first time this fall:
One Of The Largest, Oldest Mayan Monuments Still Standing
Located in southern Quintana Roo, a 4h30 drive from Tulum and an even shorter one-hour drive from the up-and-coming resort lake town of Bacalar, Ichkabal is an abandoned Mayan settlement that archeologists have established dates back as early as 250 BC.
For comparison purposes, despite being more famous, Chichen Itza is much younger, having been constructed from 600 AD onward, over eight centuries later.
Unlike other popular Mayan sites in the Yucatan Peninsula, like the aforementioned Itza and the monumental Coba Ruins, Ichkabal was only discovered in the mid-90s. It was located in a particularly dense patch of jungle left largely undisturbed by urban development.
Since the discovery, archeologists have conducted extensive research into the area, uncovering overgrown temples that had been all but buried with the passing of time, as well as a monumental step pyramid.
With demand for cultural tourism growing in the Mexican Caribbean, a leisure destination that was previously almost exclusively associated with upscale resorts and beaches, Mayan monuments are up there with colonial cities as some of the most popular attractions.
Mayan Ruins Are Incredibly Trendy To Visit Right Now
Based on statistics provided by the Mexican National Institute for Anthropology and History––phew, that one was a mouthful––Chichen Itya alone registered a 26% growth year-on-year.
Visitor numbers in Tulum have also risen in recent months, particularly following the opening of an international airport within driving distance of the local ruins.
Though Ichkabal remains essentially a virgin site and is, in theory, harder to get to, as there are no public transportation options traveling to and from the site (as of right now), it is also predicted to become a major point of interest for tourists.
For starters, it is one of the largest archeological complexes of its kind in the state of Quintana Roo, measuring 30 square kilometers.
That makes it much larger than Chichen Itza, which only occupies an area of 4 square miles.
Secondly, the landmark Ichkabal pyramid rises 46 meters in height, 16 meters taller than Chichen Itza’s world-famous, and extensively-photographed Temple of Kukulcan.
Last but not last Ichkabal is a far older Mayan city with a historical importance that may rival, or even trump its Northerly sister’s, playing host to a plethora of millennia-old artifacts and historic structures presenting varying levels of preservation.
On top of that, there’s the fact that Ichkabal is yet to know the spoils of mass tourism, providing culture buffs some respite from the surging crowds of Chichen Itza, Tulum and the like.
Maya Train Launching To Southern Quintana Roo This Fall
At this point, officials have not announced an exact date for when the ruins will open to the public, but they have confirmed Ichkabal’s gates will be flinging open in the fall.
Considering the southern route of the Tren Maya is set to start operating from September 15, linking Cancun to Southern Quintana Roo (SQR) by rail for the first time, we suspect Ichkabal’s grand debut will coincide with the train’s pending launch.
Should Mexican authorities carry through with their schedule, from September onward, travelers will be able to board a train in Cancun and travel a whopping 932 miles south to Bacalar.
Bacalar is the gateway to SQR’s Mayan wonders, including Ichkabal and soon-to-be-opened Chakanbakán, yet another heritage site undergoing restoration for a potential opening in the near future.
Once Ichkabal opens, we expect local tour operators to add it to their ever-growing portfolio of Mayan attractions––and maybe, maybe we can hope for shuttle buses to be added leaving from Bacalar Station to ensure train passengers have a smooth transfer to the site?
One can hope.
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