Tulúm

Photos are here.

Tulúm is the site of a Pre-Columbian Maya walled city serving as a major port for Cobá. The ruins are situated on 12-meter tall cliffs, along the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula on the Caribbean Sea. Tulum had access to both land and sea trade routes, making it an important trade hub, especially for obsidian.

It is a spectacular spot, with the ruins overlooking white sand beaches, azure sea and coral reefs, trimmed with coconut palms and coastal scrub.

Over 500 years old, El Castillo, the Temple of the Frescoes, and the Temple of the Descending God are the three most famous buildings, all within a larger walled enclosure. The wall is itself quite significant, being some 750 meters in length, 3-5 meters in height and up to 8 meters thick.

One of the temples on top of the castle area is thought to be a lighthouse beacon, as it marks the break in the fringing reef.

Another unusual aspects of this site is that mid-way through you tour, you take a swim at the cove below the main Castile – so we all jumped in and had a nice little surf before the crowds arrived, perhaps where the pirates of old once came ashore with their treasure…….