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Tucked into the southwestern corner of the Yucatán Peninsula, Campeche state is home to low-key villages, vast stretches of tangled jungle, bird-dotted mangroves and lagoons, and some of the region’s most imposing Maya ruins – many of which you might have all to yourself. On deserted beaches endangered turtles lay their eggs, while offshore playful dolphins frolic in the surf. The walled capital city of Campeche is the region's cultural epicenter, providing a great jumping-off point for your adventures into this offbeat hinterland.
Campeche is the least visited of the Yucatán’s states, laced through with lonely back roads, friendly people, quiet coastlines and a provincial, lost-land charm. It makes a welcome break from the tourist hordes that descend on the peninsula's more popular destinations; here you'll find peace, surprising attractions and very genuine local experiences.
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Campeche State.
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Edzná’s massive complexes, that once covered more than 17 sq km, were built by a highly stratified society that flourished from about 600 BC to the 15th century AD. During that period the people of Edzná built more than 20 complexes in a melange of architectural styles, installing an ingenious network of water-collection and irrigation systems. (Though it’s a long way from such Puuc Hills sites as Uxmal and Kabah, some of the architecture here has elements of the Puuc style.)
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Quite unlike any other Maya city you'll visit in Yucatán, Calakmul was ‘discovered’ in 1931 by American botanist Cyrus Lundell, and is located deep in the jungle miles from modern civilization. The site bears comparison in size and historical significance to Tikal in Guatemala, its chief rival for hegemony over the southern lowlands during the Classic Maya era. It boasts the largest and tallest known pyramid in Mexico's Yucatán, and was once home to over 50,000 people.
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The Maya word for ‘canyon’ or ‘moat’ is becán, and indeed a 2km moat snakes its way around this must-visit Maya site. Seven causeways provide access across the moat to the 12-hectare site, within which are the remains of three separate architectural complexes. A strategic crossroads between the Petenes civilization to the south and Chenes to the north, Becán displays architectural elements of both, with the resulting composite known as the Río Bec style.
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A collection of small but significant structures in 74 groupings, Río Bec covers a 100-sq-km area southeast of Xpujil, and is the only place where all five elements of Río Bec style can be seen in one building: twin towers, a roofcomb, checkerboard pattern sides, false stairs and pillars carved at the base. The remoteness of this site and ongoing excavations give it a certain mystique that’s lacking in more established sites.
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Campeche’s largest colonial fort, facing the Gulf of Mexico some 4km southwest of the city center, is now home to the most important of Maya museums, the excellent Museo Arqueológico de Campeche, the city's one must-see museum. Here you can admire emblematic pieces from the sites of Calakmul and Edzná, and from Isla de Jaina, an island north of town once used as a burial site for Maya aristocracy. Much of the info is in English.
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Lying at the heart of the vast, untrammeled Reserva de la Biosfera Calakmul (which covers close to 15% of the state’s total territory), the magnificent ruins of Calakmul are surrounded by rainforest, an endless canopy of vegetation. While wandering amid the ruins, you might glimpse ocellated turkeys, parrots and toucans among the over 350 bird species that reside or fly through here.
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Climbing the enormous Estructura II, at the south side of the Gran Plaza, is a must. Each of this pyramid’s sides is 140m long, giving it a footprint of just under 2 hectares – making it by some estimates the largest and tallest known Maya structure. After a good climb you’ll come to what appears to be the top of the building, but go around to the left to reach the real apex.
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Though less excavated than Edzná, Uxmal or Calakmul, Santa Rosa Xtampak is considered to be the largest and most important site in the Chenes region, and was perhaps the area's one-time capital. The long drive in means you're likely to have the ruin entirely to yourself, and (for now anyway) it's off the bus-tour circuit. The excavated area is compact and impressive, with ornate Chenes-style decorations surrounding temple doors, and around 50 chaltuns (wells).
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At sundown every evening some two to three million bats swirl up from the depths of a dry cenote, forming a tornado of fur and wings that's a surreal experience. There's only a few parking spots at the end of a small dirt entry. From there it's a 15-minute hike to the lip of the cave. Look for the bat crossing signs on Hwy 186, each about 500m from the turnoff.