Day 6 - Dec 29 - Coba + Clemson

Our last full day in Tulum turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip for sure! Up til this day, we debated whether or not to visit Chichen Itza. We knew we would be short on time, and Chichen Itza is a 2 hour drive away from Tulum. We also were not thrilled about stories of how crowded and touristy it would be. But everyone says you gotta see it, it’s one of the 7 ancient wonders of the world, etc. Well, we decided to skip Chichen Itza and it turned out to be our best decision of the trip! Here’s why:

The archaeological site of Coba.

The Mayan ruins of Coba lie halfway between Tulum and Chichen Itza in a remote location on the Yucatan peninsula. Because of their remote status, they are lesser-known and less crowded - for now. Which means you are still able to climb some of the structures built by the Mayans, which is an incredible experience that rewards you with breathtaking views of the jungle. As sites become more popular, eventually climbing the structures becomes restricted to preserve the sites and protect people from injury. My mom told me that she was able to climb to the top of Chichen Itza when she visited the area as a teenager. In a few decades, I’m sure Coba will be restricted too. But for now we were able to experience something truly unique to Mexico and the Yucatan.

Coba is famous for its network of important roads called sacbes, or white roads, that connected clusters of Mayan buildings to their pyramids and water supply. Fun fact: researchers have no proof that Mayans used the wheel - we have no idea how they got around!

Today, you can walk, take a bike taxi, or rent a bike to explore the network of ancient structures, some still partially overgrown by jungle. We loved the feeling of wandering through the trees and uncovering new structures that aren’t as excavated as other archaeological sites.

So we rented bikes and started off through the jungle to the various ruins until we came to the heart of the city, the pyramid Ixmoja. We climbed up 138 ft (42m) of steep steps to the top to behold the astounding views of the jungle in every direction. The sun beat down on us as we gazed out at miles and miles of trees. In the distance, we could see mounds of unexcavated Mayan structures rising above the jungle canopy. The view from the top of the pyramid really gave us an understanding of how rugged and expansive the site of Coba was.

You can only imagine what it must have looked like all those thousands of years ago during the height of their civilization. I really enjoy visiting ancient ruins and archaeological sites when I’m traveling. Definitely a major highlight of this trip. When we returned the bikes we noticed a lot more people seemed to have arrived. The trick to touristy places is to arrive in the early morning. We certainly learned our lesson this trip!

We ate lunch right outside the Coba ruins at a Mayan restaurant with delicious enchiladas in roja sauce.  Yum. Drove back to town and freshened up a bit before going out to search for a sports bar to watch the Clemson football game. Yes, that’s right, we watched the Clemson vs Notre Dame football game in Mexico. We found an awesome sports bar, Hermana Republica, again just a minute away from our airbnb, with great food and a TV that was right in front of us with the volume turned up and we were the only ones in the bar.