After leaving Izamal, day 11 of our Gate 1 tour brought us to our hotel at Chichen Itzá, Mayaland Hotel & Bungalows. This was a one-night stay before heading to the archaeological site in the morning. The History This beautiful hotel is nestled in the jungle, right in the heart of the archaeological park…
Campeche, a historic seaside town on the Gulf of Mexico, was our destination after our delicious lunch in Champoton. Campeche, Campeche The city of Campeche, technically named San Francisco de Campeche, was founded in 1540 by Spanish conquistadores on the site of the Maya city of Can Pech. Campeche, the city, is…
As we mentioned in a previous blog, our itinerary included a visit to this park, but they had slightly changed the day’s activities. They had decided to take us to the Anthropology Museum in Xalapa and said we may not have time later to squeeze in the park. As you can see from the title…
After seeing the Olmec heads and the Museo de Antropologia in Xalapa, we were off to Villahermosa and La Venta Park to learn more about the Olmecs. Along the way, we made a quick pit stop and then a second stop for lunch. Both included foods that are very traditional for that region…
After settling into our hotel, we explored the city of Puebla. The Basilica Cathedral of Puebla The first stop was a quick visit to the cathedral known as the Cathedral of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception. It’s one of the most iconic buildings in Puebla’s city center, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. …
We arrived at our hotel in Puebla City after having a delicious lunch and exploring the Uriarte Talavera pottery studio. The hotel was the iconic Quinta Real Puebla. But it’s a hotel with a past. And the convent was just part of its history. Quinta Real Puebla The hotel is located in the center of…
On the first official day of our Gate 1 tour, we started with a delicious buffet breakfast at our hotel. We then took our motor coach south of Mexico City to Xochimilco. What is Xochimilco? Xochimilco is best known for its incredible floating islands known as chinampas. The chinampas created a unique canal system…
We arrived in Mexico City a day before our Gate 1 Travel Mexico road trip was to begin. Even though this was just a quick flight from Merida, we always arrive a day early to chill and explore a bit on our own. Hotel Marquis Reforma Our host hotel for the start of the trip…
We find the most incredible stuff around our new hometown of Merida! We were on the highway heading east outside of Merida when we saw these HUGE figurines. But, of course, they were off the side of the road and on the opposite side of the divided highway. As it turned out, the…
Exploring cenotes is one of the most amazing adventures we’ve had visiting the Yucatan. Cenotes are technically sinkholes. They are underground wells formed by a collapse in the limestone bed. Rainwater is filtered through the stone and runs through underground rivers that connect many of the Yucatan Peninsula’s nearly 6,000 cenotes. Many were water sources…