Last Updated on: 17th May 2024, 11:09 pm
Situated between the modern city of Mérida and the Gulf Coast, Dzibilchaltún long played a pivotal role in the regional salt trade. While not the most elaborate Mayan ruins you’ll find in the region, the site is easily accessible from the city while featuring some unique and well-preserved structures.
Originally settled around 800 BC, Dzibilchaltún is considered one of the earliest settlements in the region. The main trading hub, however, was originally located several kilometers away.
It wasn’t until around 700 AD that Dzibilchaltún centered itself around the Xlacah Cenote which you’ll find at the heart of the archaeological site today. The city would gradually expand outward, consisting of 8,000 structures spread out across 19 square kilometers. What visitors can see today, of course, is just a fraction of that.
Notably, Dzibilchaltún’s decline coincided with the rise of Chichén Itzá from around 1000 AD. But the city would continue to be visited by religious pilgrims until the arrival of the Spanish.
At the time of writing, entry to Dzibilchaltún costs $95 MXN, and the site is open from Tue.-Sun., 8:00-17:00. Entry should include access to the on-site museum, though it was closed at the time of my visit. Also note that while visitors used to be able to swim in the local cenote, it appears to permanently off-limits.
For more information on reaching Dzibilchaltún and where to stay in Mérida, be sure to check the end of the article.
The Temple of The Seven Dolls
Entering the site, you’ll have the choice of either turning right to start with the Main Plaza or heading left toward the Temple of the Seven Dolls.
Given its proximity to central Mérida, you’re unlikely to have the site to yourself – even on a weekday. As such, you’ll probably want to start with whatever section has fewer people.
In my case, nobody happened to be near the Temple of the Seven Dolls, so that’s where I began my journey. To get there, you’ll have to walk about 400 m down Sacbe 1.
The Mayans commonly built elevated stone roads known as sacbes to connect different districts of a city to one another. And some long sacbes even connected distant cities.
While the 20-m wide Sacbe 1 was the most prominent at Dzibilchaltún, it’s just one of eleven found here in total.
Approaching the temple, you’ll first encounter a platform with a smooth stone column standing in its center.
It’s one of 20 such stelae discovered at Dzibilchaltún, and mysteriously, all of them lack markings. Archaeologists believe, however, that they were once covered with painted stucco which has long since dissolved.
Before long, you’ll reach The Temple of the Seven Dolls which was influenced by both Palenque and southern lowlands Mayan architecture. But eventually from the 9th century, Dzibilchaltún would start to become more influenced by the Puuc style.
The square structure atop the base is somewhat unique in Mayan architecture. It features four identical doorways that are oriented to the cardinal points, while god masks can be spotted above each one.
When looking up pictures of Dzibilchaltún, you’ve likely come across images of the sunrise shining right through the temple doors. This phenomenon happens precisely at the vernal equinox, indicating that much of the city was likely built with astronomical alignments in mind.
But how did the structure get its name? Mayan pilgrims continued to come here well after Dzibilchaltún’s heyday. And sometime after 1200 AD, seven clay figurines were buried beneath the temple.
They’re said to be on display at the on-site museum, though as mentioned above, it was closed at the time of my visit.
Backtracking along Sacbe 1, you can spot some additional structures in the nearby forest, though they mostly have yet to be restored. The area was largely a residential area occupied between 600-1000 AD.
Also back near the beginning of Sacbe 1, you’ll find a row of unmarked stelae that mysteriously extends deep into the jungle.
The Main Plaza & Surroundings
Heading toward the main plaza, you’ll immediately encounter Dzibilchaltún’s main pyramid, also known as Structure 36. It’s far from being the most impressive pyramid in the region, but it is uniquely climbable.
Built in the 9th century, the four-tiered pyramid was likely the last major construction here before the city’s gradual decline.
It was surely a bit more impressive in its prime, as much of its stone was usurped by the Spanish to construct the chapel in the center of the plaza.
Climbing to the top, you’ll get some great views of a building complex off to the side, as well as the massive Structure 44 on the opposite end of the plaza.
Beyond it, some modern skyscrapers will be visible in the distance, reminding you of how close these ruins actually are to bustling Mérida.
Heading toward the middle of the plaza, you’ll encounter the Chapel which, as mentioned, was later constructed by the Spanish. While the city was largely abandoned in the centuries before the colonial era, religious pilgrims continued to conduct ceremonies here.
And this concerned the Spanish priests, who were intent on converting the entire population to Catholicism. And so they decided to construct a chapel where important Mayan rituals had been taken place.
The worshippers would gather in an open-air area in front of the main altar. Not only was it quicker cheaper to build churches this way, but the local Mayans were already accustomed to open-air worship.
Heading to the far west end of the archaeological site, you’ll find an interesting building known as Structure 38. One of the city’s oldest vaulted buildings, it was constrcuted sometime between 600-830 AD.
In front of it is residential area, though not much of these buildings remains.
Right in the heart of the ruins, you’ll find the 44 m-deep Xlacah Cenote. While locals have been coming here to swim for decades – and the chance to take a dip in the water was long touted as a major feature of the site – this is no longer possible.
In any case, it’s a rather ordinary-looking cenote, and you can find plenty of more impressive ones throughout the region.
In an area void of lakes or rivers, natural sinkholes like these served as the only sources of freshwater for the Yucatec Mayans – aside from rainfall, of course. But some cenotes largely served ritualistic or religious functions, such as the large cenote at Chichén Itzá. Like caves, sinkholes were seen as links to the underworld.
Most likely, this particular cenote served as a water source. Nevertheless, archaeologists did discover fragments of offerings inside, along with numerous skeletons!
The skeletons, however, showed no signs of a violent death, so perhaps they were deposited well after the city’s downfall.
Just next to the cenote is a series of structures that you can climb up for fantastic views of the cenote itself, along with the Main Plaza.
I finished my journey at the south side of the Main Plaza, which is completely occupied by the massive Structure 44. The well-preserved building is no less than 130 m long, and it was originally topped with a long temple featuring 35 doorways.
Today, visitors are free to explore the entire thing. And the more you walk along it and take it in from different angles, the more impressive it becomes.
And that concludes the current accessible structures at Dzibilchaltún. But it wouldn’t be surprising to see the site further expand in the future.
At the time of my visit, they were doing massive amounts of construction on some new type of visitor center, likely to capitalize on the buzz created by the recent opening of the Tren Maya.
If more ancient structures haven’t yet been made accessible, you should at least anticipate seeing some new or upgraded modern buildings by the time of your visit.
Additional Info
Despite being just about 16 km north of central Mérida, Dzibilchaltún is not that easy to reach for those not renting a car.
The simplest way to get there is to take an Uber (or via tour – see below). Staying near the Macroplaza in the northeast part of the city at the time, the one-way journey cost me around $150 MXN.
But upon arrival at Dzibilchaltún, you’ll realize that it’s situated along a remote road, so finding an Uber back can be a challenge. Furthermore, cell phone reception here is a bit spotty.
In my case, following my visit, I headed toward the main road outside the ruins, intending to order an Uber from there. But almost immediately, a small moto (local tuk tuk) passed by and asked if I wanted to get in. I asked where he was going, and he said to the town of Chablekal, just about 2.5 km down the road.
The driver assured me that I’d be able to find transport back to Mérida from there. But upon arrival in Chablekal, I waited and waited at the local minibus stop and nothing showed up. And so I ended up just opening the Uber app again.
So despite Dzibilchaltún often being touted as being ‘within Mérida,’ the roundtrip journey from the city cost me about $300 MXN (roughly $17 USD) – considerably pricier than a day trip by bus to a neighboring town.
It might be possible that a shuttle will run there from Mérida’s new Tren Maya station, but only time will tell.
Considering how it’s not the easiest place to reach, you may be wondering if Dzibilchaltún is worth the visit. That depends. It is indeed a cool little site, but it has lots of nearby competition.
If you’re a Mayan ruins enthusiast with limited time in the area, the Puuc sites like Uxmal, Kabah and Sayil, along with sites like Oxkintok and Mayapán, are all more impressive than Dzibilchaltún. But if you still have some time left over, then by all means pay Dzibilchaltún a visit.
If you’re not on a tight budget and/or you have limited time in the region, you can also take a tour from Dzibilchaltún from Mérida.
This tour, for example, combines a visit to Dzibilchaltún with the El Corchito reserve and Progreso beach (learn more about those destinations in this guide).
But first, you’ll want to make sure the site is actually open (more below).
That all depends on when you happen to be reading this, of course. But when planning your visit, you should be aware that Dzibilchaltún seems to be closed more frequently than other sites.
During my first few visits to Mérida, the site was closed for around a year due to a land dispute with the local ejido (communal landowners).
While I did, of course, eventually make it, shortly after the visit described above, Mexico’s INAH shut down Dzibilchaltún again for months. It has to do with new constructions and renovations taking place, and it will hopefully be open again by the time you read this.
Aside from INAH’s own website, the best way to confirm if Dzibilchaltún is open is to check Google Maps reviews and sort by ‘Newest.’ When it comes to disputes with local landowners, INAH will sometimes claim a site is open even when the gates are locked, as these disputes are surely pretty embarrassing for them.
In Mérida, I highly recommend people stay as central as possible. Some popular mid-range hotels in the center include Casona 61 and Kuka y Naranjo. Those on a tighter budget should also enjoy the highly-rated Hotel Santa Maria and Hotel Real Toledo.
As Mérida is so spread out, things may be much farther apart in reality than they appear on a map. Before making any booking, it’s best to confirm the precise walking distance from your accommodation to the city’s main square, Plaza Grande. From there, you can easily get around to most of the major sites and bus terminals.
Also within the historical center is the main ADO bus terminal that can take you to various cities throughout the region, not to mention the Uxmal ruins.