Yucatan Peninsula - La Ruta Puuc

This route traverses the Pucc Hills and is located between Campeche and Merida. This whole region was populated by twenty five thousand people during the fourth and tenth centuries. The population dwindled after the Spanish arrival, which introduced a wide variety of diseases (mainly small pox). During that period the Mayans withdraw deeper into the unfriendly jungle, leaving behind their mighty cities and centres. A slow recovery process began after the eighteenth century. Yet, even after such interaction the Maya in the region survived as people and managed to preserve their tradition; women continue to wear traditional embroided huipiles, and Mayan remains the dominant language.

Probably the easiest and safest way to experience La Ruta Puuc is to rent out a car in Campeche or Merida. The ruta puuc is one of the most fascinating and pleasurable driving experiences in this part of Mexico. As you progress the winding road Puuc, you go through many inhabited Mayan villages and can experience life as if the time stood still, or revisit the old days. Many tourist agencies offer organized tours through sites such as the Convent Route and the Hacienda Route. As I said the best way to visit these sites is to rent a car, but if you like to struggle and save few bucks you can use Public second-class buses which traverse Rte. 261 and stop very often making the journey quite unbearable. Another minus of this mode of transportation is that the public buses do not travel on the Sayil-Oxkutzkub road, these are the sites that must be visited in this part of Yucatan Peninsula. The buses spend very little time at other less impressive sites and leave without due warning, in fact some tourists complained that they got abandoned, and as a result stranded at the site by 'funny' bus drivers. You can also try to use another mode of transportation quite popular in Mexico; Mexicans make their living by driving combis which frequently pass through and between the sites at Ticul, Santa Elena, Oxkutzkub and Muna.

Unfortunately, with both combis and buses, return trips are not always quarantined. Three sites which should be visited are Oxkutzkub, Uxmal and Sayil which showcase best ruins of all sites in this region of Yucatan Peninsula. The site at Ticul offers great inexpensive dinning and sleeping arrangements can be made. You can start your journey from Ticul and go around the sites, then return sleep at Ticul again and then the next morning travel to the next site. Basically, you will need two to three days to fully explore the sites in these parts of Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. What is quite convenient is that you can use accommodations in Uxmal, this is the only site that provides nightly accommodation, right by the site. The main draw of these accommodations is that the prices are exorbitant. I preferred to stay at Ticul, use it as a base and travel to the sites from there in my rented car. You can check out

By: FunTom

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Visit other travel destination tips in to read more stories and travel tips in Mexico. Tom Witek Ottawa Sellers Buyers My name is Tom Witek. I have completed Bachelor of International Business and Master of Arts degrees from Carleton University.