Though less excavated than Edzná, Uxmal or Calakmul, Santa Rosa Xtampak is considered to be the largest and most important site in the Chenes region, and was perhaps the area's one-time capital. The long drive in means you're likely to have the ruin entirely to yourself, and (for now anyway) it's off the bus-tour circuit. The excavated area is compact and impressive, with ornate Chenes-style decorations surrounding temple doors, and around 50 chaltuns (wells).
Santa Rosa Xtampak
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
26.98 MILES
This is the Ruta Puuc site not to miss. Archaeologists believe that, at one point in the 9th century, some 3000 Maya lived at Labná. To support such…
13.89 MILES
Though it only has one significant structure, Dzibilnocac possesses an eerie grandeur that merits a visit. Unlike the many hilltop sites chosen for Chenes…
17.22 MILES
Some of the most significant caves in the peninsula are found 31km north of Hopelchén, shortly before you reach the town of Bolonchén de Rejón. The local…
27.65 MILES
Sayil is best known for El Palacio, the huge three-tiered building that has an 85m-long facade. The distinctive columns of Puuc architecture are used…
28.13 MILES
About 60km south of Hopelchén, Hochob, ‘the place where corn is harvested,’ is among the most beautiful and terrifying of the Chenes-style sites. The…
18.31 MILES
Tohcok (spelled Tacob on signs) is 3.5km northwest of Hopelchén. Of the 40-odd structures found at this Maya site, the only one that has been…
27.04 MILES
The ornate palacio at Xlapak (shla-pak), also spelled Xlapac, is quite a bit smaller than those at nearby Kabah and Sayil, measuring only about 20m in…
22.25 MILES
Supposedly named after a local landowner from Tabasco, El Tabasqueño boasts a temple-palace (Estructura 1) with a striking monster-mouth doorway, flanked…
Nearby attractions
13.89 MILES
Though it only has one significant structure, Dzibilnocac possesses an eerie grandeur that merits a visit. Unlike the many hilltop sites chosen for Chenes…
2. Parroquia de San Antonio de Padua
16.73 MILES
On the central plaza, the 16th-century Parroquia de San Antonio de Padua church features an intricate retablo (altarpiece), with a gallery of saints and…
3. Grutas de X'tacumbilxuna'an
17.22 MILES
Some of the most significant caves in the peninsula are found 31km north of Hopelchén, shortly before you reach the town of Bolonchén de Rejón. The local…
18.31 MILES
Tohcok (spelled Tacob on signs) is 3.5km northwest of Hopelchén. Of the 40-odd structures found at this Maya site, the only one that has been…
22.25 MILES
Supposedly named after a local landowner from Tabasco, El Tabasqueño boasts a temple-palace (Estructura 1) with a striking monster-mouth doorway, flanked…
24.74 MILES
A cooperative known as Koolel Kab produces honey with indigenous melipona bees, which take up residence in hollow trees. Using techniques much like those…
26.98 MILES
This is the Ruta Puuc site not to miss. Archaeologists believe that, at one point in the 9th century, some 3000 Maya lived at Labná. To support such…
27.04 MILES
The ornate palacio at Xlapak (shla-pak), also spelled Xlapac, is quite a bit smaller than those at nearby Kabah and Sayil, measuring only about 20m in…