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CONTENTS
THE HISTORY OF EK BALAM 🇲🇽
The Mayan site of Ek Balam is in the Yucatán, just 30 km north of Valladolid, where Adeline and I stayed for 5 days in October 2021. That let us discover Ek Balam, as well as Chichén Itzá the next day and several cenotes nearby. In Mayan, Ek Balam means “Black Jaguar” 🐆.
The site has been known since the 19th century, but for a long time, all you could see were hills covered in vegetation in the middle of the jungle. The major excavations by INAH (the National Institute of Anthropology and History) only began in 1994, led by archaeologists Leticia Vargas de la Peña and Víctor R. Castillo Borges. And that’s when the real surprise emerged 💥.
In pre-Hispanic times, Ek Balam was an important city, protected by three large walls used to control access by outsiders. Under what looked like a simple mound of earth, archaeologists uncovered an acropolis about 30 meters high, which the inhabitants themselves had covered with earth. Thanks to that, its stucco sculptures have stayed incredibly well preserved!
THE MAP OF OUR MEXICO ROAD TRIP 🗺️
To help you plan your itinerary, we’ve gathered every place from our 30-day road trip in Mexico 🇲🇽 on an interactive map: cenotes, Mayan sites, beaches and stopover towns, from Yucatán to Quintana Roo. Click on each pin to discover the place in detail 📍. And to keep it handy during your trip, open it in Google Maps: you’ll find it easily on your phone 📱.
Our itinerary
Our trip to Mexico
1 month8 stops2 states: Yucatán & Quintana RooCar + ferry to the islands
The stops, in order
- 1
Cancún
1 night
Arrival by plane, then last night before the flight home
- 2
Holbox
3 nights
Beaches, sunsets and a timeless vibe
- 3
Valladolid
5 nights
Suytun, Oxman, Ik Kil, Chichén Itzá, Ek Balam
- 4
Mérida
3 nights
Uxmal and the 3 cenotes of Cuzamá
- 5
Bacalar
5 nights
The lagoon of seven colors and its cenotes
- 6
Tulum
4 nights
Ruins, Coba, Sian Ka'an, Cenote Azul and Calavera
- 7
Cozumel
4 nights
Scuba diving and snorkeling
- 8
Isla Mujeres
3 nights
Jet skiing, beaches and the end of the road trip
VISITING THE MAYAN CITY OF EK BALAM 🤠
THE SACBÉ AND THE WALLS
To enter the city, you walk along a sacbé, a road 🥾 built by the Maya, raised between two low stone-filled walls and covered with lime mortar to protect it from the weather ⛈️. These “white roads” linked the cities together and stayed visible even at night 🌙 (they were pretty clever!). You then pass through the walls and a small patch of jungle, following in the footsteps of the Maya.
We arrived around 9:30-10 a.m. and stayed about 1.5 hours on the site. There’s no set route, but the path flows quite naturally among some forty structures: the entrance arch, the ball court, the palaces and the twin temples.
THE ACROPOLIS AND THE JAGUAR’S MOUTH
The building that will dazzle you is without a doubt the acropolis 😍. It’s nothing like Chichén Itzá: the pyramid is huge, with several levels, and halfway up hides the jaguar’s mouth, a temple entrance sculpted in stucco with teeth and winged figures. It’s the tomb of Ukit Kan Le’k Tok’, one of the city’s rulers, and it’s one of the most beautiful Mayan sculptures we’ve seen.
Ek Balam’s big advantage: you can still climb the acropolis! That’s become rare, since climbing has long been banned at most sites, like Chichén Itzá. I highly recommend going up, even if you’ll probably sweat buckets given how hot and humid it is 🥵. Once you’re at the top of the 30 meters, the view over the endless jungle is just incredible 🤪.
HOW TO GET TO EK BALAM ⏳
BY CAR
It’s the easiest option, and it’s what we did. Allow about 30 minutes from Valladolid, 2 hours from Mérida and 2.5 hours from Cancún or Playa del Carmen. The parking lot is right in front of the entrance. We recommend staying in Valladolid, the best base for visiting Ek Balam, Chichén Itzá and the local cenotes. It’s all in our article What to see in and around Valladolid?
BY COLECTIVO OR TAXI FROM VALLADOLID
There’s no direct ADO bus to the site. From Valladolid, you can take a colectivo to Ek Balam (cheaper, but irregular schedules) or a taxi for the round trip, negotiating the price and waiting time before you set off 💰.
BY TREN MAYA
The Tren Maya serves Valladolid station, from Cancún, Playa del Carmen or Mérida. From town, you then need to get to the site by taxi or colectivo.
RENTING A CAR IN MEXICO 🚗
To explore Yucatán and Quintana Roo, we think a rental car is the best option: you’re free to string together cenotes, Mayan sites and beaches at your own pace, without depending on bus schedules or organized tours 🌴.
We did our whole one-month road trip by car, and everything went really well. Here’s the agency we used and recommend, plus an alternative if you’d rather compare 👇
Our rental tip
Renting a car in Mexico
The agency we used, and an alternative to compare.
TouraCancun
Car rental in Mexico
We rented with them for our whole road trip: we recommend them without hesitation!
Our budget€95028 days, insurance included · ~€34/day
- Tested for 1 month
- Pick-up in Cancún
- Our go-to in Mexico
DiscoverCars
Rental comparison site
To compare several rental companies in a single search.
Excellent rating290,000+ Trustpilot reviews
- 1,000+ rental companies compared
- Free cancellation
- 24/7 support
To compare before you choose
Good to know before you rent
- Third-party liability insurance is mandatoryIn Mexico, it's often not included in the price shown online: check before you pay.
- A deposit on a credit cardAn amount is held on your card for the whole rental. Bring a card with a high enough limit.
- Your French driving license is enoughIt's accepted for tourists. The international driving permit is optional: only if you want one.
- Photos and video at pick-upFilm the car from every angle when you collect it, to avoid any dispute when you return it.
- Filling up at the gas stationCheck that the pump meter is at zero before the attendant starts.
- Watch out for “topes”These speed bumps are everywhere, sometimes without a sign: slow down as you enter villages.
👉 As I explain in all our articles, the car was essential on our trip: it let us be 100% independent 🚗 and do Ek Balam, Cenote X’Canché and Cenote Ik Kil back to back without relying on public transportation. All our tips are in our article on renting a car in Mexico without getting scammed.
DISCOVER THE NEARBY MAYAN SITES 🦎
Explore the Mayan sites near here through nearly 40 articles about the Yucatán and Quintana Roo 🌍. Discover our best tips, itineraries, history, reviews and much more to make the most of your travel experience and dive 100% into discovering Mexico! It’s the perfect time to carefully plan your vacation ✈️.
DISCOVER THE NEARBY CENOTES 🧐
Now’s the time to explore the cenotes near here on my Mexico travel blog to make the most of your stay 🌟! You’ll find details on the history of these cenotes, our honest review, and captivating photos of your future discoveries 🌍. These articles will be essential resources for planning your trip to Mexico! 🗺️📸
PRICES AND HOURS FOR VISITING EK BALAM ⏰
- 🕰️ Hours: every day from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., last entry around 4 p.m.
- 💸 2026 price: 691 pesos per person for foreign visitors (210 pesos for INAH + 481 pesos Yucatán state tax), about 237 pesos for Mexicans.
- 🎥 Video: a 63-peso fee is charged for filming with a camera.
- 🅿️ Parking: at the site entrance.
- 🧑🏫 Guides: lots of guides offer their services at the entrance. The price depends on the number of people: feel free to team up with other travelers to share the cost 👥.
In October 2021, we paid 440 pesos per person (about €18). The price has gone up a lot since, as at all sites in the Yucatán: entry to Mayan sites is expensive compared to the cost of living in Mexico 💰. Check the price before you go, it changes almost every year.
THINGS TO KNOW 🥰
As always, here are our tips for visiting Ek Balam:
- ⏰ Arrive early for the best photos and cooler temperatures: the crowds often show up around 11 a.m.
- 🧗 You can climb the acropolis, so make the most of it, it’s become rare!
- 🚶 No lines and no set route to follow.
- 🅿️ The parking lot is guarded: we left 20 to 30 pesos for the attendant when we left, which seemed fair to us.
- 😌 Few people when we visited: it’s not the most touristy site in the Yucatán.
- 💻 No need to book online, tickets are sold on site.
- 🏡 Stay in Valladolid: less driving, and Cenote X’Canché is right next door.
- 🚲 Go to Cenote X’Canché by bike, which is what we did (we tell you all about it just below 😂).
- 🛍️ There are a few street vendors, so it’s up to you if you’re interested.
- 🧑🏫 To understand the city’s history, hire a guide: we didn’t, and we kind of regret it.
- 💧 Bring water, it’s very hot and humid 🥵.
EK BALAM AND CENOTE X’CANCHÉ BY BIKE 🚲
Right next to the site is Cenote X’Canché, one of our favorite cenotes of the whole trip 🤙. To get there, we rented Mexican bikes… and it’s still one of our best Mexico stories 😂.
The bikes had no brakes, no gears, nothing at all! We rode about 1 to 1.5 km on the trail like that. Adeline wasn’t relaxed at all: “But how am I supposed to brake?!” 😅. We’d never done anything like it in our lives, and we laughed so hard. When we visited, the rental was included and we didn’t pay anything extra: ask on site, as the conditions may have changed.
Doing Ek Balam in the morning and Cenote X’Canché right after is the perfect combo for us: the heat of the acropolis, then a refreshing swim in a cenote 💚.
EK BALAM OR CHICHÉN ITZÁ? 🤔
We did both, Ek Balam one day and Chichén Itzá the next, and they’re two very different visits.
- 🏛️ Chichén Itzá: Mexico’s most famous site, named one of the New 7 Wonders of the World. Huge and spectacular, but very crowded, with lots of vendors, and you can no longer climb the pyramid.
- 🐆 Ek Balam: smaller and much calmer, with the chance to climb the acropolis and unique stucco sculptures. A visit of about 1.5 hours, easy to combine with Cenote X’Canché.
If you’re staying in Valladolid, do both! We chose Ek Balam precisely because it was close to where we were staying: on a month-long trip, we wanted to see as much as possible. And if you’re torn between other sites, also take a look at Uxmal and the Cobá ruins, where you can also climb the pyramid.
VISIT EK BALAM ON A TOUR
It’s never easy to know whether to book your activities in advance or not. For 90% of our visits, we didn’t book anything, because the rental car made us independent. It’s perfectly possible to do Ek Balam on your own, and it’s cheaper. But if you’d rather go on a tour, often combined with a cenote or Valladolid, here are a few 👇
OUR REVIEW OF THIS UNIQUE MAYAN CITY 💭
If you’ve been reading our articles from the start, you know we love Mexico: it’s a very diverse country, with stunning landscapes 🤩. During our month-long road trip, we were blown away! Ek Balam is a beautiful Mayan city, with the huge advantage of being able to climb the acropolis and admire the jaguar’s mouth up close.
The climate is tough, as it’s very hot and humid: the slightest effort becomes hard, and being soaked the minute you step outside just isn’t for us 😂. But the place is stunning, peaceful, and perfect for great photos 📸. The price has gone up a lot since our visit, but if you’re staying in Valladolid, go, you won’t be disappointed. Especially with Cenote X’Canché and its brakeless bikes right next door 🤙!
👉 What about you? Do you prefer big sites like Chichén Itzá, or quieter cities like Ek Balam?
FAQ: YOUR QUESTIONS ABOUT EK BALAM ❓
Here are the questions we get asked most often about Ek Balam. Got another one? Ask it in the comments 😉.
In 2026, expect 691 pesos per person for foreign visitors (INAH share + Yucatán state share). In October 2021, we paid 440 pesos. The price goes up almost every year, so check it before you go.
The site is open every day from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with last entry around 4 p.m. Arrive at opening to enjoy the cooler air and the calm.
Yes, Ek Balam’s acropolis is one of the few pyramids you can still climb. The steps are steep and it’s very hot: take your time and bring water.
Allow about 1.5 hours, like we did, or 2 hours with a guide. You can then head straight to Cenote X’Canché, right next door.
By car, it takes about 30 minutes. Without a car, take a colectivo or a taxi from downtown Valladolid, negotiating the round-trip price in advance.
The Tren Maya doesn’t stop at the site, but at Valladolid. From there, you need to get to Ek Balam by taxi or colectivo, about 30 km away.
It’s not mandatory, but it’s useful for understanding the city’s history and the acropolis sculptures. We didn’t hire one, and today we’d recommend it. Guides wait at the entrance; negotiate the price as a group.
Chichén Itzá is more spectacular and more famous; Ek Balam is calmer and you can climb it. From Valladolid, the best thing is to do both, on two different days like we did.
Cenote X’Canché is right next door, reachable by bike. Valladolid and its cenotes (Suytun, Oxman, Hubiku) are 30 minutes away, and Chichén Itzá about an hour.
WHERE TO STAY IN MEXICO 🏨
During our one-month road trip in Mexico 🇲🇽, we stayed in 8 different towns, alternating between Airbnbs and hotels. And we were always very happy with where we stayed 😇.
We deliberately avoided “All Inclusive” packages. It’s not our idea of travel: we’d rather be in the heart of towns and villages, eat local and discover the country at our own pace 🌮.
OUR TIPS FOR CHOOSING THE RIGHT PLACE TO STAY
- 📅 Book ahead in high season: the best places go fast and prices climb.
- 🚗 Private or secure parking if you’re traveling with a rental car. You’ll see, it’s not always available, but depending on the town it can be really worth having.
- ❄️ Air conditioning: essential in Yucatán and Quintana Roo, where it’s hot all year round.
- 🏊 A pool: up to you whether you want one at some of your stays, because it can quickly push the price up.
- 📍 A place close to the center: so you can do everything on foot in the evening. That said, if you like places outside town and you have the car, nothing forces you to stay near the center
- ✅ Free cancellation, to keep your itinerary flexible.
AIRBNB OR HOTEL IN MEXICO?
Both have their advantages. An Airbnb is ideal for more space, a kitchen and living like a local. A hotel is more convenient for one or two nights passing through, with a reception desk and often breakfast included. As for us, we liked both. It all depends on what you want, whether you’re with family, solo or as a couple, and how you like to travel.
HOW MUCH DOES ACCOMMODATION COST IN MEXICO?
There’s something for every taste and every budget. We paid between €40 and €100 a night for two. To be completely transparent with you: €1,800 for 29 nights, or about €62 a night on average (that was in 2021, prices may have changed since).
👇 Here are the 8 places where we slept during our road trip, with our review of each one.
Tested during our road trip
Our 8 places to stay in Mexico
AirbnbHotel
-
AirbnbHolbox
An incredible room, with the pool right next door to cool off. Just perfect!
- Room
- Pool right next door
- Incredible room
- Hotel
Valladolid
A stunning setting and a super spacious room, ideal for catching your breath between two cenotes.
- Very spacious room
- Pool
- On-site massages
- Airbnb
Mérida
A whole house just for us, with a small pool to relax.
- Whole house
- Small pool
- A bit out of the way
- Hotel
Bacalar
A gorgeous place right in the town center, with a superb pool.
- Hotel
- Superb pool
- Town center, far from the lagoon
- Airbnb
Tulum
A whole place with a pool, but very far out: you'll need the car.
- Whole place
- Pool
- Far out, car essential
- Airbnb
Cozumel
A clean, well-located studio, so you can do everything on foot from the town center.
- Studio
- Clean and well designed
- Close to the center
- Hotel
Isla Mujeres
A beautiful seafront hotel with a magnificent pool.
- Hotel
- Magnificent pool
- Seafront, a bit out of the way
- Hotel
Cancún
Right next to the airport: perfect for the first or last night of the trip.
- Hotel
- Close to the airport
- Ideal for the 1st or last night
MY MUST-HAVE TRAVEL GEAR 🧳
It’s a question that comes up a lot when preparing a trip “What should I bring?” That’s why you’ll find below some essential travel accessories to set off on vacation with peace of mind (your documents kept safe) 🛡️ . Planning ahead and getting these items in advance helps you save money and avoid paying for some of them on the spot, where they’ll cost you much more 💸 These are the accessories we took to Mexico and still use for every destination we travel to 👇.
Our road trip checklist
What to pack for Mexico?
Most of these items came with us throughout our 30-day road trip.
0 / 12 in my suitcase · check what you already have
- Essential
ElectronicsUniversal travel adapter
In Mexico, outlets are the American type: French chargers won't fit.
- Essential
ElectronicsPower bank
Long days between ruins and cenotes: your phone lasts until evening.
- Essential
Health & protectionBiodegradable sunscreen
Mineral and biodegradable, kinder to cenotes and reefs.
- Essential
Health & protectionMosquito repellent
Mosquitoes are everywhere, especially in the evening and near the jungle.
- Essential
Cenotes & beachWaterproof phone pouch
To film in cenotes and at the beach without any risk.
- Recommended
Health & protectionFilter water bottle
Tap water isn't drinkable in Mexico: filter it and avoid plastic.
- Recommended
Health & protectionTravel first-aid kit
Band-aids, painkillers, anti-diarrhea meds: enough to handle small issues.
- Recommended
Cenotes & beachWaterproof bag
Papers and keys kept dry on boats, at the beach or by the cenotes.
- Recommended
Cenotes & beachWater shoes
For slippery cenote steps and rocky seabeds.
- Recommended
Cenotes & beachMicrofiber towel
Light and quick-drying: perfect for swim after swim.
- Bonus
Travel & securityTSA lock
To lock your suitcase on the plane, with no risk of it being broken at security.
- Bonus
Travel & securityAirTag
To track your suitcase if your luggage is delayed or lost.
OUR YOUTUBE VIDEOS IN MEXICO 
During our 30-day road trip in Mexico 
, we filmed everything! From Holbox to Cancún, by way of Valladolid, Mérida, Bacalar, Tulum, Cozumel and Isla Mujeres, we take you along with us step by step in our vlogs.
You’ll discover the cenotes we swam in, the Mayan sites we explored, the beaches that made us dream, our places to stay, our favorite spots to eat… and above all our honest take on each place: what amazed us, and what disappointed us a little 
.
If you’re planning your trip, or simply dreaming of getting away, these videos will give you a real glimpse of Mexico, far from the tourist brochures.
Our road trip on video
Our YouTube videos in Mexico
Now watching: Episode 1 · Discovering Mexico & Holbox
21 minEpisode 1Discovering Mexico & Holbox- 17 minEpisode 2Cenotes & Mayan cities
- 9 minEpisode 3Mérida, Uxmal, Cuzamá & the bats
- 13 minEpisode 4Bacalar, a hidden paradise
- 12 minEpisode 5Tulum, Coba, Sian Ka'an & Cenote Azul
- 12 minEpisode 6Cozumel, diving & snorkeling
- 17 minEpisode 7Isla Mujeres, jet skiing & the end of the road trip
21 min
17 min
9 min
13 min
12 min
12 min
17 minTHANKS FOR YOUR FEEDBACK
Thanks for reading this article all the way to the end 🙏! We hope it helps you plan your trip.
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