Maya Archaeological Sites
Coyote Místico is in the heart of the Puuc region where the ancient pyramid building Maya lived a thousand years ago.
Very few of our visitors skip visiting the extraordinary archaeological site of Uxmal. The stone buildings of Uxmal spread out beyond the visitor’s center at the entrance, starting with the legendary pyramid, The Pyramid of the Magician. This impressive stone structure is a pyramid with rounded edges, five levels and many secrets. You cannot climb the pyramid anymore, but do spend time walking around it and seeing the sculpted stones that grace the entrances and stairs. The Nunnery Quadrangle is just beyond, a vast interior courtyard surrounded by low, columned buildings and decorated with sculpted snakes and other depictions of Maya deities. The grounds of Uxmal continue and you can walk for hours exploring the Governor’s Palace, the ball court, the Cemetery group and more.
Exploring the Enchanting Trio: Labna, Kabah, and Sayil
When you head east from Santa Elena towards Campeche, there are a trio of Maya sites: Labna, Kabah and Sayil. All interesting sites in their own right, Kabah is actually the second largest ruin in the Puuc region after Uxmal. At Kabah you’ll find the Palace of the Masks, where hundreds of stone masks of the rain god Cha’ac cover the façade. On the other side of the street past the parking lot is the grand arch marking the beginning of the sacbe, or white road. Sayil features the two-terraced Great Palace, the El Mirador temple, and the primitive Yom Kip statue. But perhaps the most beautiful of the three is Labna, where stone buildings of various sizes are gathered in a beautiful park-like setting. Labna’s beautiful Gateway Arch looks today as magical as it did when Frederick Catherwood first drew it in 1842.
Another nearby site, in the opposite direction down the road, is Oxkintok, where stone ruins include a fascinating small spiral structure and many as-yet-unrecovered pyramids hidden under grassy knolls.
