Tenam Puente Maya Ruins

Top choice in Chiapas


These sprawling Maya ruins feature three ball courts, a 20m tiered pyramid and other structures rising from a wooded hillside. Tenam Puente was one of a set of Classic Maya settlements in this region that seem to have survived in the post-Classic period, possibly to as late as AD 1200. Although the main structures have been fully restored, the lesser ones remain half buried in the undergrowth, which, combined with the lack of visitors, gives the site a reflective, dreamy atmosphere.

A 5km-long paved road leads west to the site from Hwy 190, 9km south of Comitán. Transporte Ejidal Tenam Puente runs combis (M$25) every 45 minutes from 7am to 7pm. The last combi from the ruins returns at 4pm. A taxi costs about M$300 return (with an hour at the ruins).