The Wonders of the World: Chichen Itza, Mexico

If you’re to believe most online reports, Chichen Itza isn’t entirely deserving of its place among the 7 wonders of the world (which is really just an arbitrary list anyway). People say it’s too crowded, too commercialised and that it’s not even the best set of ruins in Mexico. Can that really be true, or is it just fashionable to claim that more off the beaten path, authentic sites are more worthy of your time? I set out today (how’s this for real time blogging) to find the truth.

El Castillo (The Big Pyramid)

After seeing a whole lot of ancient pyramids and ruins in Mexico, I was half expecting to be underwhelmed at the sight of El Castillo. It was exactly the opposite – it really is an amazing building and probably the most impressive single structure I’ve seen in Mexico. Sure, other sights might be more atmospheric and have better settings, but you’d really have to be trying (or be Karl Pilkington) not to be impressed by it. Are there hipper, less commercialised pyramids in Mexico? Sure, but I can’t imagine too many beating this for the sheer wow factor.

Further reading: Interested in big Mayan pyramids? I also wrote a post on Tikal, Guatemala!

The Finer Details

We visited Uxmal about a week before Chichen Itza and we really liked the detail there – the facades on some of the buildings really showed what fine craftsmen the Mayans were. I was surprised to see even more intricate detail at Chichen Itza, from snake heads to a wall of skulls, the carvings in the walls really are works of art.

The world’s first game of tic tac toe?

A huge ball court

The first (and pretty much only) time I heard of the Mesoamerican ball sport was in the movie El Dorado – basically the players had to get the ball through a small hoop using their hips (this is just one version of the game though).  We saw a nice little ball court at Monte Alban, near Oaxaca, but the one at Chichen Itza was huge in comparison. You can imagine some pretty intense games of ball going on here, with the losing team probably on their way to an early sacrificial grave.

The outer limits

The Chichen Itza complex is surprisingly big and it’s hard work seeing it all in the searing heat.  There is some shade around thankfully and it is worth it see some small pyramids and other buildings in various states of decay. There are rows and rows of columns (I saw an almost identical scene at an old temple complex in Sri Lanka), some statues and even a sacred cenote (Cenote Segrado) to explore. Cenotes are flooded sinkholes and are awesome places to swim, but unfortunately you can’t at this one (which might actually be a good thing because the water didn’t look great, possibly due to the fact they used to sacrifice people in there!).

Death and destruction

No one knows exactly why Chichen Itza was abandoned and left to decay for centuries, but one thing we do know is that death was a big part of life for the ancient Mesoamericans. Human sacrifices were common place – people were thrown off pyramids, (and other things I’m sure) and into cenotes in huge numbers – I reckon you’d be wanting to avoid places of worship (or just anything tall) back then for fear of being thrown off it.

A cenote you can swim in

Around 7 km from Chichen Itza lies a little natural wonder known as Ik Kil. It’s a great place to swim if the heat is getting you down but it’s definitely not relaxing. Tour buses stop by regularly, but don’t let that put you off – this big hole in the ground, with tree roots cascading down into cool, clear water is something you need to see. If you’re not a strong swimmer you can rent a life jacket but still check it out even if you’re not keen on getting in the water.

Further reading: Love cenotes? Check out Centoe Calavera near Tulum

Chichen Itza: How to explore this wonder of the world

The key to having a good experience at Chichen Itza is to get there early. It opens at 9 am and we arrived about 9.15 am – it was really quiet and we were able to breathe in the atmosphere of the place without being bothered by too many people. If we had arrived at lunchtime I might not be singing Chichen Itza’s praise quite as much. In order to get there early it’s best to spend the previous night in Valladolid – it’s a pleasant enough town and apparently there are quite a few cenotes within cycling distance. We’ll be visiting them tomorrow so I’ll keep you posted (update – we visited them and they are amazing, I’ll be writing a post about them soon). If you’re visiting Chichen Itza from Merida, Tulum or Cancun (or anywhere else) you’ll have to deal with the crowds but it’d still be worth it. The entry ticket to Chichen Itza is $220 pesos (around $15 USD) and you can get a one way ticket there (which takes around 45 minutes) on the bus for only $26 pesos. A lot of people visit Chichen Itza as part of a tour but it’s so easy (and cheap) to do independently. Ik Kil cenote was $70 pesos and you’ll probably need to hire a locker for $30 pesos. You can get a taxi there from Chichen Itza for around $60 pesos.

Further reading: Looking for more information on Chichen Itza? Check out Unesco’s page on this awesome wonder of the world

Have you been to Chichen Itza or any other wonders of the world? Let me know!

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Jon Algie

A travel blogger from New Zealand who hates talking about himself in the third person and has no imagination when it comes to naming websites.

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