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| Central Pyramid at Tulum |
The second half of our Tulum Xtreme Adventure (see my previous post – Zip-lining over the Yucatan Jungle) was a guided tour of the Mayan ruins at Tulum. This was the “culture” part of the day and I was looking forward to it since we’d had a less than stellar guide at Chichen Itza and no guide at Ek Balam.
Roberto of Aventuras Mayas was everything I could ask for in a guide. He answered everyone’s questions and gave an excellent overview of the Mayan civilization and how it was absorbed into the Toltec empire. He even answered a question I’d had about hurricanes – as in how the population survived such devastating storms.
The answer? When the Mayans saw the wind whip up and the storm swells begin, they climbed down into the cenotes for protection and rode out the storm since the cenotes didn’t flood. How smart is that?
Tulum is listed in Frommer’s 500 Places to Take Your Kids Before They Grow Up and it is definitely an easy ruin to tour with kids.
No cars are allowed near the area so you can either walk the short distance or take a tractor-driven trolley.
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| Tractor trolley to Tulum |
Unlike Chichen Itza, the ruins are very compact and after entering through a protective wall . . .
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| Defensive wall at Tulum |
you’re gazing at some beautiful beachfront property. No wonder the Mayans built a temple here.
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| Nearby beach at Tulum |
We listened to Roberto, then wandered off to explore the Fertility Temple (also known as the Temple of Frescoes), which has some pretty unique carvings. If you stand at each corner of the building, the carving on either side of the wall forms a face.
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| Carving of a face at the Fertility Temple |
The king’s palace was nearby . . .
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| Palace at Tulum |
And before we knew it, it was time to meet up with Roberto and head back to our hotel.
Fantastic photos Anne – looks and reads like you all are really taking it in.
The blue sky that is accompanying you is stunning.
Enjoy, Jenny
Lovely post Anne! I'm truly happy that you and your family scored a great guide. They really do make such a difference. Much love, Terrah
Sounds fantastic! I would love to visit Mayan ruins
On a serious note though anyone reading this may want to consider taking out travel insurance if you are visiting tourist hot spots, as pick pocketers are rife in these areas. My personal preference is flexicover as they are specialists in travel insurance, so seem to know what they are talking about 
Thanks Anne, it’s an outstanding post. I hear the Mesoamerican ruins and the cenotes in Yucatan are the top notches for tourists! Haven’t been there though