• HOME
  • ABOUT
  • WORK
  • COURSE
  • PODCAST
  • DESTINATIONS
  • Nav Social Icons

  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • WORK
  • COURSE
  • PODCAST
  • DESTINATIONS
  • Mobile Menu Widgets

    Connect

    Search

Bucketlist Bri

Bucketlist Bri

Adventurous Slomad Travel

  • Start Here
  • Destinations
  • Digital Nomad
  • Responsible Travel
  • Slow Travel
  • Van Life

Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries

Last Updated: November 3, 2021 · Mexico, Riviera Maya

As one of the Wonders of the World, the ancient Maya city of Chichén Itzá in Mexico is at the top of many people’s bucket lists!

It was on mine for the longest time, until I finally got to see all its wonder and mystery in person last year when our families came to visit us in Mexico over the Christmas holidays. We took a Chichén Itzá day trip from Valladolid, having already explored around the other iconic Riviera Maya hotspots like Tulum, Playa del Carmen, and Cancun.

Here are the top things to do and see in Chichen Itza and what to know before visiting!

Read what it’s like to visit Cenote Ikkil (Mexico’s most famous cenote near Chichen Itza) and find out the best places to eat and stay near Chichen Itza. I also jot down some itinerary suggestions for Chichen Itza day trips so you can plan your trip easily from wherever you are.

Table of Contents show
10 Things to See, Do, and Know When Visiting Chichen Itza
1. Line up before opening time
2. Visit the site counter-clockwise starting with El Castillo
3. You can tour Chichen Itza on your own
4. Don’t miss seeing the Temple of the Warriors (and other structures)
5. Wear sunscreen or take a sun umbrella
6. Be wary of vendors & scammers (& bring your own bag)
7. Learn about the Sacred Cenote beforehand
8. Beat the lunch rush and eat in Pisté
9. Don’t even try to swim in Cenote Ikkil in the afternoon
10. Stay overnight or nearby if you can
Chichén Itzá Day Trip Itineraries
Tulum to Chichen Itza
From Cancun to Chichen Itza
From Playa del Carmen
Chichen Itza from Merida

10 Things to See, Do, and Know When Visiting Chichen Itza

Visiting Chichen Itza can be much smoother if you know a thing or two before you go. Otherwise, you might end up sacrificing on time or overall good experience. Here are 10 tips for visiting Chichen Itza on a day trip.

El Castillo Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links that may earn me a small commission should you decide to click through and make a valid purchase (at no extra cost to you). Thanks so much for your support!

1. Line up before opening time

Like other World Wonder’s, Chichen Itza attracts the masses. So going early doesn’t even cut it. You need to get there even before the entrance gates open to line up with the crowd. If that doesn’t sound appealing, just know that the line will continue to grow in size and number throughout the morning as more tour buses arrive.

Getting in line at Chichen Itza even before they open the gates will give you a (short) headstart on visiting the ruins! It gave us just the time we needed to snap a few family photos in front of El Castillo without other people in the shot.

Save time waiting in line! Get a unique skip-the-line admission ticket to Chichen Itza when you pre-book.

2. Visit the site counter-clockwise starting with El Castillo

Beyond the gates begins the Chichen Itza archaeological site. First, you’ll walk a few minutes until the path opens up to a clear field and you start to see ruins.

I noticed some people going off in various directions, but we headed straight to El Castillo (Temple of Kukulcan) – the most iconic structure representing Chichen Itza. And I’m glad we did, as this set us on a counter-clockwise track that naturally guided us to some of the most popular sites at Chichen Itza right from the getgo.

Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries

3. You can tour Chichen Itza on your own

Can you visit Chichén Itzá alone without a guide? Sure! But is it a good idea? That depends. If you’re like us, we do a bit of research and studying up on popular sites so that we can tour them on our own.

Touring Chichen Itza without a guide might give you the flexibility to explore on your own, but the downside is that you miss out on lots of the storytelling side to all the fun facts. Hiring a guide is better if you want to learn about the site in real-time, and is especially handy if you’re in a group to offset the costs.

Alternatively, you can book an all-inclusive Chichen Itza tour here with a guide and transportation.

4. Don’t miss seeing the Temple of the Warriors (and other structures)

El Castillo isn’t the only thing to see in Chichen Itza, Mexico! Lots of tourists are surprised to realize how large the ancient Maya city really is. There are at least a dozen top attractions to see, one of which is the Temple of Warriors.

This structure is actually quite massive, and I can’t imagine what it must have been like at the height of its existence. The site was named as such because of the near 200 columns adorning artistic depictions and carvings of warriors. It lies on the north-east corner of the Chichen Itza grounds.

Here are other highlights and attractions to see in Chichen Itza, other than El Castillo:

  • Temple of Warriors
  • Tomb of the High Priest
  • Temple of the Skulls
  • Sacred Cenote
  • Temple of the Bearded Man
  • House of the Deer
  • El Caracol
  • La Iglesia
  • Akab Dzib
  • Great Ball Court
  • El Mercado
  • Casa Colorada
  • and more!
Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries
Temple of Warriors at Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries

Temple of Warriors

5. Wear sunscreen or take a sun umbrella

Chichén Itzá is spread out across a large plain. With that in mind, there is hardly any shade to seek relief from the sun’s blistering rays. Lots of people find themselves exhausted from walking around Chichen Itza.

Here’s what you can expect and good-to-know tips for visiting.

  1. Expect to walk for at least 2-3+ hours
  2. Bring protection from the sun, either sunscreen or an umbrella
  3. Take plenty of water in a small day backpack
  4. Bring your own shopping bag if you plan to buy from vendors and merchants, which leads me to…

6. Be wary of vendors & scammers (& bring your own bag)

I was quite surprised to see just how many vendors had set up their own little stalls all around the grounds at Chichen Itza. I mean, it’s quite astonishing, actually! Being a protected UNESCO World Heritage Site, it would make much more sense to keep merchants from selling goods at nearly every attraction.

You’ll know what I mean once you walk down the road to reach the Sacred Cenote! But be that as it may, just know there are lots of local vendors trying to earn a buck or two. As such, not every vendor offers fair prices. In fact, shopping inside Chichen Itza can go one of two ways. You can get a good deal at a fair price if you can haggle a bit in Spanish, or you walk away buying the same souvenirs you could find offsite for half price.

Tip: Just in case you find a good deal, bring your own reusable bag to store your souvenir in.

Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries

Vendors setting up for a full day of tourists at Chichen Itza

7. Learn about the Sacred Cenote beforehand

The cenote at Chichen Itza isn’t for swimming, at least it’s not anymore. What used to be the sacred site to the underworld and place of immense spiritual and ritual significance for inhabitants of Chichen Itza, is now a site to marvel at from a distance.

The Sacred Cenote at Chichen Itza now looks like a thick-green pool. At the depths of the cenote, researchers found a number of sacrificial artifacts like gold, gems, and other treasures; most of which were found alongside the remains of many women, warriors, and even children who had been sacrificed.

Tip: There are no signs explaining the interesting history and rituals behind the Sacred Cenote. So it’s wise to learn about it beforehand from blog research or on-site with a tour guide. Otherwise, you’re kinda just staring at a green pool of water shrouded in mystery.

Sacred Cenote Mexico

  Sacred Cenote

8. Beat the lunch rush and eat in Pisté

Beating the lunch rush definitely has its perks. For one, you get to go to lunch earlier. And two, you really don’t want the lunch crowd to catch up with you. All the restaurants near Chichen Itza, especially the ones on-site, are going to be packed. Trust me, I know.

So if you have a rental car, drive just five minutes up the road to a nearby town called Pisté. In Pisté the restaurants will be way less crowded and touristy. You can get an authentic Mexican meal without feeling like you’re at a weird buffet-style cafe, unlike the restaurants near Chichen Itza.

9. Don’t even try to swim in Cenote Ikkil in the afternoon

Most Chichén Itzá tours will take you to Chichen Itza mid-morning, provide lunch on-site, and then whisk you away to arguably the most iconic and popular cenote in Mexico: Cenote Ikkil.

But if you enjoy nature without a crowd, or even just enjoy swimming without a hundred pairs of legs competing with you, then hear me out: Do not visit Cenote Ikkil in the afternoon! If you want to go, then early morning is your best shot. We went around 2:00 pm and decided to wait to get in the water until 5:00 pm (an hour before closing). Despite waiting, the crowds never dissipated and more buses rolled in every half hour.

Tip: Going in the morning to the cenote and visiting Chichen Itza afterward might mean you will sacrifice on having more people at Chichen Itza. But a bigger crowd at Chichen Itza doesn’t spoil the experience as much as it does at Cenote Ikkil.

Also Read — 25 Epic Cenotes in & Around Tulum You MUST See

Cenote Ikkil
Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries

Cenote Ikkil

10. Stay overnight or nearby if you can

The best way to optimize your time at Chichén Itzá (and nearby cenotes and attractions) is to stay overnight nearby Chichen Itza the day before you visit. Alternatively, you can spend the night nearby after your visit, and save the cenote (for example) for the next morning.

There are only a couple of places to stay with ideal an ideal location at Chichen Itza or in Pisté:



Booking.com

Popular option: Many people stay overnight in Valladolid or Uayma since it is a short 30-minute drive to Chichén Itzá.

Chichén Itzá Day Trip Itineraries

So if you only have one day to visit Chichen Itza, what’s the best way to see and do all there is to well…see and do?! Here are some popular day-trip itineraries to tour Chichen Itza.

Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries

You can still see the original reddish color of the carvings (underneath the protected roof). Unlike today, Mayan temples used to be adorned with color.

Tulum to Chichen Itza

Reaching Chichen Itza from Tulum takes about 2 hours driving. Lots of people are strapped for time, so you might wonder which is better? Tulum Ruins or Chichen Itza?

If this is you, just know Chichen Itza deserves at least one full day to appreciate, including driving time to get there and back. You could wake up early and visit through the afternoon, swing by a cenote in the evening, and then make it back to Tulum before sundown.

Rent a car from Tulum to do the day trip on your own. Want to do an all-inclusive day tour from Tulum instead? Book a Tulum-Chichen Itza day trip.

From Cancun to Chichen Itza

Apart from an alternate route, it’s possible to visit Chichen Itza from Cancun. The drive takes 2.5 hours by car, making a day trip to Chichen Itza still feasible if you plan accordingly. Since you pass just outside of Valladolid, you could consider stopping here for a late lunch or quick jump in the less-crowded cenote in town.

From Playa del Carmen

Playa del Carmen, like Tulum, is only a 2-hour drive to Chichen Itza, making it a popular day trip for lots of travelers. The only downside with staying 2 hours away is that you have to condense your sightseeing and activities within daylight hours to avoid driving at night.

Chichen Itza from Merida

Yucatan’s sprawling capital of Merida is a beautiful place to visit. If you are coming from Merida to Chichen Itza, the drive will only take an easy 1.5 hours. It’s a quick drive and you can easily work in other activities into your day, like exploring the cenotes of Cuzama or visiting the yellow city of Izamal (since it’s more or less along the same route).

Wherever you are in Mexico, getting to Chichen Itza will be an extra step unless you’re staying close by. But with buses and group tours, visiting Chichen Itza in one day is largely hassle-free if you don’t mind less flexibility.

Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries

  It was the first time either of one of our families traveled in Mexico. Me & mom. <3 

Have you ever been to Chichén Itzá, Mexico? If not, is it on your bucket list? 

  • Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries
  • Chichén Itzá: 10 Things to Do and Know + Day Trip Itineraries
  • Share on TwitterShare on Twitter
  • Share on FacebookShare on Facebook
  • Share on PinterestShare on Pinterest
  • Share via EmailShare via Email

By: Bri · In: Mexico, Riviera Maya

you’ll also love

San Juan Chamula Church & Square with Chamula Locals in Chamula, Chiapas MexicoHow to Visit San Juan Chamula & Its Church of Syncretism & Sacrifice
palm trees and palapas on akumal bay from tulumHow to Get From Tulum to Akumal Beach
Huichol Nayarit woman selling handicraftsWhat to Do in Tepic, Nayarit in a Weekend

Join the List

Stay up to date with the latest adventures and travel guides.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Next Post >

Kayaking in Bacalar, Mexico’s Lagoon of 7 Colors

Primary Sidebar

hello!

I’m Bri, an adventurous digital nomad living abroad full-time since 2015. It is my hope to inspire you to live a life of adventure, seek out meaningful experiences, and travel slowly and mindfully!

About Me

Connect

join the list

Featured Posts

Colorful hostels, restaurants, and buildings line cobbled street in Oaxaca City Historic Center.

9 Best Hostels in Oaxaca City, Mexico (A Backpacker’s Guide)

Colorful houses of the Alfama district and the Castelo de Sao Jorge on the top of the hill in Lisbon, Portugal.

Where to Stay in Lisbon — Best Hotels & Neighborhoods

Digital nomad girl holding juice at a tropical beach bar at a chic beachfront restaurant on Bonaire Island.

15+ Best Places to Eat on Bonaire Island

QUICK LINKS

  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • WORK
  • COURSE
  • PODCAST
  • DESTINATIONS

Search

Let’s Connect!

@bucketlistbri

Here’s how I did it! 🦋

↯ ↯ ↯

THEORY 📚

1.  Getting familiar with SEO, better blog writing, structure, site speed, etc. I grew two successful niche blogs before ever turning my focus on my travel blog, so when I finally did start, I already had a good foundational knowledge of what to do + how to improve!
 
2. Believing I could do this and actually saying out loud that I was a blogger / writer. 
I waited a LONG time to give myself permission to take action. I used to say allll the time, “If only I had started sooner” — so much so, that I got sick hearing myself repeat it — so I decided to start. I took my travel blog seriously at the end of 2019, right before you know what… But that didn’t stop me and after travel picked back up, so did my traffic (and quickly!)

PRACTICE 💻

3. I adapted to the changing blog landscape and prioritized valuable long-form content and originality > shortcuts

4. I put my head down, grit my teeth, and focused on my output. 
For a month straight, I’d wake up at 6AM, make tea, and then blog until 12PM. After lunch, I’d write a 3k-word blog post for my freelance client, and then I’d spend the remaining afternoon and evening publishing my blog post from that morning, and starting on the next one. I grew so much during that time (from 12k to 30k+ sessions), & it showed me just how powerful FOCUS was. I was quickly ranking in organic search results so traffic (+ earnings) came in fast. 

5. I grew authoritative content hubs and internal links 🕸️

6. I prioritized my goals: writing, and earning sustainable, passive income from my blog > growing on social media to score brand deals that would take me away from writing 

7. I started another (niche) travel blog to keep learning, experimenting, and putting my skills to the test!

8. I created a mastermind and community of travel bloggers @bootstrapblogging. The community helps SO MUCH in overcoming stagnancy & loneliness (because blogging can be a lone-wolf gig). 

9. I keep my blog ethics close to heart and keep my focus on what impact I want to have. This is crucial because burn out happens so quick with blogging!

IF I CAN, YOU CAN TOO!! 💛

#travelblogging #travelblogger #blogtips
The adventures that your soul craves, that mine cr The adventures that your soul craves, that mine craves, originates from a curious desire to go beyond — to seek, to learn, to travel deeper beyond what is known, what is familiar.

If you dare not to live outside your comfort zone, then you will default to comfort. 

It is not easy to choose different or difficult, but it is always, always worthwhile ⚡✨

#traveldeeper #slowtravel #mindfultravel #liveadventurously #adventureanywhere
How to travel more locally ⬇️ I believe local How to travel more locally ⬇️

I believe local travel / responsible tourism can have a long-lasting, positive, and powerful radiating effect on both the individual and on the communities and destinations they visit — starting with an internal (and eternal) spark, a seedling… one of inspiration, love, and connection 🥹💛

(Add a healthy dose of adventure, and voilà — my favorite travel recipe!)

🎥 footage is all from my 3-night stay with the indigenous Tharu women and families of the Barauli village nearby Chitwan National Park, in the lowlands of Nepal.

Read below if you want to have more local experiences like this ❤️

🏡HOMESTAYS
Not all destinations offer homestays, but many around the world do! I found this homestay in Nepal through @communityhomestaynetwork 

*If I don’t lodge with a homestay, I’ll seek out eco boutique hotels, guesthouses, or local Airbnbs

🔍RESEARCH / DEEP TRAVEL
Do research about local activities and organizations in advance and make the effort to include these off-beat or underrated places/things to do in your itinerary. 
Search Google for the destination + words like ecotourism, responsible travel, local, community tourism, women-owned businesses, etc, to see what surfaces. I’ll also check Instagram and tourism board websites + social accounts.

🌿BOOK TOURS RESPONSIBLY
Really take a moment to vet the tours you find online before you book!
> How do they operate? Are they local, employing locals, benefiting local communities? Do they operate transparently? Can you find more info about their mission, sustainability actions, certifications, etc? 

💰WHERE DOES YOUR MONEY GO?
Local bus vs private taxi,
Local food vs international restaurants
Local shops vs commercial stores
… Being mindful of how your money supports your host community/destination is meaningful and can totally transform your travel experience(s) 🙏

Choosing the local route opens up so many new opportunities for discovery and connection!! 

✨Share this to your story if it resonates + follow for more adventures abroad + local travel tips! ✨

#localtravel #chitwan #adventuretravel #mindfultravel #nepaltravel #responsibletourism #barauli #homestay
Mexico with mummy pt. 1 🌵 Last November, Paul Mexico with mummy pt. 1 🌵 

Last November, Paul and I slow-traveled and lived for 6 months in La Paz, the capital of Baja California Sur where we basked in the sunshine, dove with sea lions, and ate our weight in fish tacos 🌮 

(Peep my La Paz blog guides for all the juicy deets)🧃👀 

Some of you may remember La Paz is also where I started my Invisalign treatment earlier this year (update: my bottom teethies are nearly straight!!) so here we are six months later to pick up my second load of trays, but this time I brought mom along for the ride to show her around some of my favorite places😃 

Highlights from La Paz (except for the first)👇

💀 Face painting for Día de Muertos in Oaxaca
🌊 Playa Tecolote, one of the best beaches next to Balandra Bay
💡 When in La Paz
🍕 The BEST Naples pizza + burrata salad @ La Casa Madre 
🦋 New baby tats thanks to @tattooinknm
🌞 Sunset and sunken ships from the hurricane
💻 Snuck in a bit of blogging 
🍻 Beach beers!
♟️ My favorite little park in La Paz with a giant chessboard (Parque Piedras y Pájaros)
✈️ We got a plane to catch! La Paz > Oaxaca 

Being back in La Paz made me super nostalgic 🥲 
Revisiting a place after spending an extended amount of time there is always a strange feeling; you feel at home yet you're still a visitor, a tourist, with much to discover. You see people from the community you started to build, but before you know it you are packing your bag and saying goodbye again. I even had to go pick up some clothes we left in our last apartment 🙈

As bittersweet as it is, I'm so grateful for the "slomad" life. And also very grateful to be able to share some of the places close to my heart with my mom 🇬🇧 

I'm not sure exactly when I'll be in La Paz again (if not for my teeth, lol, which is not a bad place to "have to go back to" for that, right?) but I know that this wasn't my last visit 🥲 

#lapazmexico #bajacaliforniasur #mexico #mommydaughtertrip #golapaz #lapazbcs
Alone but not lonely is my new mantra 💛 I am s Alone but not lonely is my new mantra 💛

I am so proud of and grateful for the version of myself that solo travel has made me to step into... 🤗

10 years ago, even if I had already been living abroad, the thought of eating ALONE in a restaurant or taking myself out alone (not to mention traveling through different countries alone) just baffled me — literally, I didn’t understand what the attraction was to do such things alone! 
But now... OH MY GOODNESS 😱 total transformation. Now I’ve solo traveled abroad in Portugal, Japan, and Nepal and all three were like stepping stones to the next solo adventure 🥾 🧘‍♀️ 🏔️ 🥰 🏯

Please everyone go solo travel, if you can, and if you feel pulled to!! 

It’s such a powerful way to get to know yourself, step outside your comfort zone, and make connections! 

As much as I enjoy traveling with my partner, I just simply wouldn’t have had the same encounters or made the connections that I did on this trip and to think what I would have missed out on 🥲 ❤️

Because traveling alone literally forces you to *go out there* and in doing so, you realize just how capable you were of doing it all along! 🙏

#solotravel #solofemaletraveler #nepal #soloadventure #nepalnow #nepaltravel #nepaltourism
When you stay open and curious, pretty magical thi When you stay open and curious, pretty magical things can unfold 🥹 ✨ 

I’ve been harboring this story unsure as to HOW TO EVEN BEGIN to tell it, but the how is less important than the why. 

And this experience reminded me of my why ☺️ 

I live for this kind of magic in life, or rather, it’s this kind of magic that lights me up and makes me feel most alive — the adrenaline of an adventure and how a story unfolds right in front of me like a movie, one in which I’m not only the producer, director, graphic artist, etc but the screenwriter too. And perhaps most interestingly, the viewer as well. 

I’ve said this before, and recently too, but whenever I travel, I often let “the story” lead the way. And there’s always a story. Whether you think of it as scripting your own play, directing your own film, or authoring your own book, we get to be both the creators and the audience. And I think that’s pretty neat. 

For a long, long time, I’ve often kept those kinds of travel moments locked away in my journal — for my personal reflections only, unsure that they’d mean anything to anyone else. But what I’ve come home to lately, is that these stories are mine to tell and if they matter to me, then, well, that’s all that matters.

So here’s to sharing stories that matter, for the intrinsic value of the story itself, and for the meaningful seeds of inspiration and magic that take root in our hearts 🥰 ✌️ 

#solotravel #trekking #nepal #langtang #travelstories #travelblogger #travelstories #mindfultravel
Follow My Adventures

Footer

On the Blog

  • Start Here
  • Destinations
  • Digital Nomad
  • Responsible Travel
  • Slow Travel
  • Van Life

Info

  • Work With Me
  • My Blog Course
  • Slomad Stories Podcast
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

adventures await x

Copyright © 2023 · Bucketlist Bri | All Rights Reserved

729 shares