Maya hosts in Mexico and Guatemala

The journey in one line

6 stops in Mexico and Guatemala so far. The first rung is 2 of them, and the list keeps growing.

In Chiapas the road and the river to two of the great Maya cities run through Lacandón and Ch'ol villages, and the villages charge for the passage themselves. In the Guatemalan highlands the two old capitals of the Kaqchikel and the K'iche' are public archaeological parks where Maya spiritual guides still keep altars. This is a short list. It holds only places where an official page names the host or the host's own charge, and where the visit is a public programme rather than a private observance.

Bonampak and Yaxchilán were abandoned centuries before the people who now control the road and the boats arrived, and both communities have spent decades arguing for a share of what the sites earn. INAH publishes the community admission and the boat fare next to its own ticket price, which is the plainest record that the arrangement exists. Iximché and Q'umarkaj were burned or abandoned in the 1520s. They were never forgotten. Kaqchikel and K'iche' ajq'ijab' have kept going back, and Guatemala's culture ministry now states that spiritual practice at protected archaeological sites is permitted.

Bonampak and Yaxchilán are both reached from the Palenque road in Chiapas. Bonampak is entered in Lacandón community vehicles from the Lacanjá turn. Yaxchilán is an hour upriver by boat from Frontera Corozal, and the boat is hired in the village. Iximché is at Tecpán, about ninety minutes from Guatemala City. Q'umarkaj is two and a half kilometres outside Santa Cruz del Quiché. Both open in the morning and close in the late afternoon.

Where it goes

The stops, in order

What a visit means here. A visit means entering the named archaeological zone or museum through its ordinary public entrance.

1. 1

   Bonampak

   Lacanjá Chansayab, Mexico

   

   A small Maya city in the Lacandón forest, known for three painted rooms that survived almost whole. The Lacandón Maya community of Lacanjá Chansayab controls the last stretch of road and carries visitors in its own vehicles. INAH lists the community admission and the community transport charge next to its own entry price.

   What counts as a visit

   The archaeological zone, including the painted rooms.

   Access

   Open daily 08:00 to 16:30, last entry 16:00. INAH lists a separate community admission and community transport charge paid to Lacanjá Chansayab. Roads in the Lacandón region can close at short notice. Checked 2026-09-17.

   Travel advisory

   Check access · last checked September 17, 2026

2. 2

   Yaxchilán

   Frontera Corozal, Mexico

   

   A Maya city on a bend of the Usumacinta, reachable only by river. The boats are run from Frontera Corozal, a Ch'ol community resettled here in the 1970s, and INAH publishes the boat fare as part of the cost of the visit. Entry to the zone itself is free.

   What counts as a visit

   The archaeological zone, reached by boat from Frontera Corozal.

   Access

   Open daily 08:00 to 16:30, last entry 16:00. Entry is free; the river crossing is hired in Frontera Corozal and INAH publishes the boat charge. The border region carries travel advisories. Checked 2026-09-17.

   Travel advisory

   Check access · last checked September 17, 2026

3. 3

   Iximché

   Tecpán, Guatemala

   

   The last capital of the Kaqchikel, founded around 1470 and given up within sixty years. Guatemala's culture ministry records the name from the Kaqchikel words ixim and che'. The site is a national park with a standing ceremonial area that Kaqchikel spiritual guides continue to use.

   What counts as a visit

   The archaeological park and its plazas.

   Access

   Open daily 08:00 to 16:00 with separate national and foreign admission. Ceremonies may be under way at the altars; they are not a visitor activity. Checked 2026-09-17.

   Check access · last checked September 17, 2026

4. 4

   Q'umarkaj

   Q'umarka'aj

   Santa Cruz del Quiché, Guatemala

   

   The capital of the K'iche' kingdom until 1524, two and a half kilometres outside Santa Cruz del Quiché. Guatemala's culture ministry describes it as a sacred place for the K'iche' people and names the temples of Tojil and Awilix. The cave below the plaza is in constant ceremonial use.

   What counts as a visit

   The archaeological site and its plaza.

   Access

   Open 08:00 to 16:00 with separate national and foreign admission. The cave is a place of prayer; do not enter a ceremony in progress. Checked 2026-09-17.

   Check access · last checked September 17, 2026

5. 5

   Museo Comunitario Frontera Corozal

   Frontera Corozal, Mexico

   A community museum in the Ch'ol village on the Usumacinta, begun after two Maya stelae were found nearby. Mexico's cultural information system records it as a participatory community project covering the history and the Lacandón, Ch'ol and Tzeltal languages of the river basin.

   What counts as a visit

   The museum rooms in Frontera Corozal.

   Access

   Recorded by the Sistema de Información Cultural as open Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 17:00, admission free. Confirm locally before travelling. Checked 2026-09-17.

   Travel advisory

   Check access · last checked September 17, 2026

   This entry is marked unsure in the research and is not treated as part of a complete set.

6. 6

   Museo de la Medicina Maya

   San Cristóbal de las Casas, Mexico

   

   A museum run by OMIECH, the organisation of Indigenous doctors of the state of Chiapas, on the northern edge of San Cristóbal. Mexico's cultural information system names OMIECH as the operator and lists rooms on healing specialities, midwifery, prayer and the making of candles.

   What counts as a visit

   The museum rooms and medicinal garden.

   Access

   Recorded by the Sistema de Información Cultural as open Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 17:00, with a small admission charge. Checked 2026-09-17.

   Check access · last checked September 17, 2026

   This entry is marked unsure in the research and is not treated as part of a complete set.

Respect and access

At Iximché and Q'umarkaj you will very likely walk past an altar in use. Keep your distance, do not photograph people at prayer, and do not touch offerings or the fire. Ceremonies are not part of this journey and never will be. The community fees at Bonampak and Yaxchilán are not a tourist trap. They are how the villages are paid for the land the road crosses. Pay them without argument. Ask before photographing anyone, and do not photograph inside homes.

Travel advisory

A government advisory currently applies to this area. Read the current advisory before planning anything.

Opening times, prices, permits and eligibility change. Nothing on this page is a statement about today. Follow the Check access link on a place before you plan around it.

Sources

• lugares.inah.gob.mxhttps://lugares.inah.gob.mx/en/node/5544 · checked September 17, 2026
• lugares.inah.gob.mxhttps://lugares.inah.gob.mx/en/node/5858 · checked September 17, 2026
• sic.cultura.gob.mxhttps://sic.cultura.gob.mx/ficha.php?table=museo&table_id=888 · checked September 17, 2026
• sic.cultura.gob.mxhttps://sic.cultura.gob.mx/ficha.php?table=museo&table_id=67 · checked September 17, 2026
• sicultura.gob.gthttps://www.sicultura.gob.gt/directory-directorio_c/listing/iximche/ · checked September 17, 2026
• sicultura.gob.gthttps://www.sicultura.gob.gt/directory-directorio_c/listing/sitio-arqueologico-qumarkaaj/ · checked September 17, 2026

TravelDay selected and grouped these places. Naming a custodian, a government agency or UNESCO as a source is not a claim that any of them endorsed this journey.