I was excited to go on our cruise to the Western Caribbean as it was for a few reasons:
- It’s a cruise. As I’ve stated before and likely will state again, I love cruising!
- It’s to a warmer climate. After the winter we’ve had, I’m ready for some fun in the sun.
- We’ll get the chance to see Mayan ruins.
It’s actually number three that’s got me all juiced up. I’ve always wanted to see a Mayan ruin. I never realized how many of them there are. Just on our cruise alone we’ll have the chance to visit the following:
- Chacchoben (Costa Maya)
- Kohunlich (Costa Maya)
- Lamanai (Belize)
- Altun Ha (Belize)
- Tulum (Cozumel)
We’ll probably for sure do Chacchoben and Tulum. I’d love to do Lamanai. Norwegian has an excursion called “Lamanai and the New River Safari.” You take a boat up the river (past crocodiles!) to the ruin at Lamanai, which is supposed to be surrounded by jungle and pretty neat.
However, Belize is home to the second largest barrier reef. Only the Great Barrier Reef is larger. That makes Belize a must snorkel spot, so no crocs or Mayan ruins for me in that port.
Other Mayan ruins in the Yucatan Peninsula include:
- Chichen Itza – The most famous of the Mayan ruins and one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
- Coba – The largest of the Mayan ruins and it’s in the jungle, but it’s only partially restored. However, it’s got the tallest Mayan pyramid. That’d be cool to see. Also, it’s the only place that still allows you to climb the pyramids.
- San Gervasio – Not the largest or most impressive, but easily accessible for cruisers who don’t want to do a tour that requires transporting from Cozumel to the mainland.
- Ek Balam – This is a newer Mayan ruins site.
- El Cedral – This is the oldest of the ruins.
If we had chosen a cruise that docked in Progresso, we could’ve had time to get to Chichen Itza. I would’ve liked to see that.
But Tulum, even though it’s smaller, it also said to be worth a visit because it’s set against a beautiful backdrop – perched on a cliff overlooking the sea. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing that.
There’s also a slew more. I truly had no idea how many Mayan ruins there were.
I’m just wondering which of them, if any, are haunted. Naturally. What else would I think about?
I’ll of course be sure to share any Mayan ruins ghost stories I come across.
Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.
Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.
Loading ...
The Mayan ruins are amazing. What is most is amazing is how advanced their culture was. I didn’t realize until I wandered through the ruins with the Mayan guide how far they had come.
Sounds great. My hubby and I got to check out the ruins near Cancun, Mexico. They were awesome and so was the huge lizards running around the place.
Jessica, the ones we saw were small in comparison to the bigger sites, like Tulum or Chitzen Itcha, but it was still amazing and humbling.
I wonder which ones you saw, Julie. Tulum or Coba? We did see the big lizards in Cozumel that you must have seen in Cancun. Silly lizards scared me when they skittered across the road in front of me when I wasn’t paying attn!
Hi Emperor! Thanks for your comment. Funny you mention the Aztecs….so did our guide. Along with the Toltecs. Both the “ecs” were more violent in their sacrifices than the Mayans. And I was expecting to feel more overwhelmed when we visited. Not that I’m a medium or anything, but I expected a different reaction than the one I had. I asked our guide about ghosts and he looked at me as if I was loony. He said “No ghosts. We celebrate Dia de los Muertos for our ancestors. That’s when you might see some spirits.” So….I didn’t get far with him in finding out if Chacchoben was haunted or not. But we did see some cool fruit bats in the hollow of a tree….