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The Mayan Ruins of Tulum

While I was in Mexico last week, I had the chance to visit Tulum. Tulum is an ancient Mayan city located right on the beach. In fact, a popular thing to do here after working up a sweat from walking around is to go swimming in the ocean. There’s nothing like swimming in the shadow of some ruins, right?

Tulum was a thriving capital and trading city until the Spanish came and destroyed it in 1518. After that, the city was abandoned and left to the jungle. Now, it’s one of the most popular and largest Mayan ruins in Mexico. It’s incredibly beautiful, especially given its location near the ocean. This is one of those places where my words could never do it justice, so I’ll let my pictures talk for me:

The Observatory
The Observatory

black and white observatory

The Observatory and a beautiful backdrop
The Observatory and a beautiful backdrop

plants and sand

The Cenote House
The Cenote House

El Castillo
El Castillo

The beach where everyone goes swimming
The beach where everyone goes swimming

old pedestals

Imagine this as your view. The Mayans had great beachfront property!
Imagine this as your view. The Mayans had great beachfront property!

fortress

fortress and greenery

A protected area for turtle nesting
A protected area for turtle nesting

For more information on travel to Mexico and the Mayan Riviera, plan your trip using my guide.

Note: My trip to Mexico was sponsored by Riviera Maya tourism.

Disclosure: Please note that some of the links above may be affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, I earn a commission if you make a purchase. I recommend only products and companies I use and the income goes to keeping the site community supported and ad free.

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  3. Simon

    September 17, 2011 at 8:25 am

    Unless you’re a complete ruin buff, a variation in backdrop very quickly becomes important if you are to maintain interest in visiting different sites. I went to Tulum in 1992, early on during my first proper trip in Latin America, and it remains a vivid memory. These pics explain why but you really do have to be there to appreciate! Definitely worth a visit if in the vicinity.

  4. Bret Love

    September 17, 2011 at 10:41 am

    Great pics, Matt! If you ever get a chance, I HIGHLY recommend exploring the ruins at Coba, in the Riviera Maya. The backdrop isn’t as beautiful, but the ruins are far more extensive than Tikal and are still in the process of being excavated. Because the area is still surrounded by the native vegetation, exploring it feels a little like an Indiana Jones expedition (without all the guns, poison darts and massive boulders trying to crush you before you getaway with a priceless artifact).

    • NomadicMatt

      September 18, 2011 at 5:57 am

      I got to Coba too! I climbed the big ruin there and almost freaked out. I hate heights and it took me about 2 hours to go up and down the temple as I crawled up and went butt first down.

    • crys

      March 2, 2015 at 8:58 pm

      yesssss I loved Tulum, but was amazed at Coba!! Right in the jungle, shaded, interact with more locals, taxi (cart service) around the ruins if you get tired and more intact ruins only downfall is that it didn’t have the amazing beach of Tulum

  9. Mode Dresden

    September 20, 2011 at 1:38 pm

    Oh, how much I enjoyed Tulum. Arriving there from Isla Mujeres, I had an awesome time there. Slept in one of the hammocks, got killed by mosquitos, yet still loved it.

  10. Gloria

    September 22, 2011 at 4:48 pm

    The Mayan ruins in Tulum were some of our favorites of all of Central America – not as spectacular as Palenque or Tikal in Guatemala, but the setting by these bright turquoise Caribbean waters is just stunning. Like you say – the Mayans did well finding the perfect ‘beach front property’ 😉

  11. Marc

    September 30, 2011 at 1:53 pm

    I visited to Tulum while on a cruise about 5 years ago. It’s a beautiful place view a great view of the ocean. We had a great tour guide who was of Mayan descent so he took a lot of pride in the history and he did a great job of sharing that with us.

  12. aaron

    April 13, 2014 at 11:43 am

    The beach at Tulum is amazing however I think Chichen Itza and Palaenque offer far more comprehensive examples of Mayan history. They’re lacking a crystal clear beach with fresh cocktails though..

  13. Amber

    July 26, 2015 at 4:34 pm

    The scenery at Tulum is beautiful and it is a great archaeological site. However Chichen Itza is spectacular and definitely a wonder of the world.

  14. Noel Cancun

    February 5, 2016 at 6:21 pm

    Beautiful pictures of Tulum Matt! I believe Tulum is one of the most beautiful places, but it is more about the view than the archaeological site itself!

  16. NomadicMatt

    April 11, 2017 at 9:58 am

    Hey everyone! Due to the age of this post and the difficulty in moderating lots of posts spam, comments here have been turned off. If you would like to continue the discussion, head over to the forums at http://forums.nomadicmatt.com and chat there! I post frequently and reply to threads on the boards! See ya there! Thanks! – Matt