No. 325 Visit the Historic Museum in Motul

Within the facilities of Sambulá cenote you can find the Historic Motul Museum, where, by means of informative panels, paintings, and 3D representations you will learn about the most relevant history of the city, from its origins in the pre-Hispanic times to current times, the evangelizing process and the henequen golden era which began in the coast’s pearl, as well as relevant historic characters, and of course the huevos motuleños dish, which was created in the city by Mr. Jorge Siqueff.

After the tour around the museum, you can enjoy Sambulá cenote, an enclosed-type cenote inside a grotto, with crystalline waters and a minimum depth of 3.2 ft and a maximum depth of 26.2 ft. It is a perfect place to go with the family and have time for refreshing, you can also learn about the legends from the cenote and the relationship it has with Felipe Carrillo Puerto life.

If you come from Mérida, remember to go to this tourist look-out located only 27.9 miles away to the east of the city. Come and enjoy this museographic place, accompanied by your family and enrich yourself with the extent history Motul has to offer.

Emilio Espadas, an artisan born in Uayma, Yucatán, is the only one in the region who works with clay the ancient way. He has been working with this technique for around 35 years, it is a family legacy, as the one who originally worked with this technique was his aunt Juana Dzul, who learned it from her parents. He works manually with clay; his work is almost a rarity in this area because anciently there were more potters. Currently, most of the artisans produce items of leather or embroidered garments.

His atelier is simple, and it is easy to find as everybody in the village knows him. Emilio Espadas will kindly receive you, and before you are aware, you will be buying something. If you are thinking about renovating your dishes or buying some accessories for your home, or even a present, visit Don Emilio. Prepare and bring some cash, he does not have a credit card terminal and there is no ATM in the village. Do not miss buying something!

Cenote K’om Há is located in Tekom village, a place full of traditions, kindness, and culture. The cenote is in the center of the municipality, under the main park, which is located in front the City’s Town Hall, and aside the village’s church.

To enter you have to descend 101 steps going down through access tunnels. It has 114.8 ft of diameter and on top of the vault it has a small opening which allows a little illumination. The entrance is affordable, the cost is only $15.00 pesos. You can enter to admire the marvelous nature or to refresh in its crystalline waters.

If you decide to travel to visit K’om Há cenote, do not miss the opportunity and explore Valladolid, the enigmatic Magic Town of Yucatán, which is nearby.

Nowadays, cenotes are nature sanctuaries and the best renowned places in the world to practice the apnea sport. Apnea as a sport is relatively new, and it consists in diving just with your lungs, going deep down in a vertical way guided by a line. The depths for beginners go from 16.4 ft to 49.2 ft, depending on each person. Since the first moment you experience apnea, it can catch the lucky ones who decide to try it; more than a sport, it becomes a discovering trip, half physical activity, half meditation, half adventure. Practice apnea in cenotes to go down to the Xibalbá underworld like a warrior and come back to the surface like a hero, having conquered what you are capable of, if you aim for it.

Only 43.4 miles from Mérida, at Nah Yah cenote, you can live this unparalleled experience, where expert instructors guide practitioners, novices, intermediate, or advanced levels, to enjoy this sport, which, if it is practiced under the right supervision, it is as safest as swimming. Dare to try something new and enjoy nature as never before.

Activate yourself and go on an incredible bike tour around four crystallizers with pink waters, where you will have the opportunity to see a unique landscape and take pictures in places which otherwise are inaccessible. You will go with an expert in nature guide who will explain in detail all the sea salt production process, and who knows the best photo shooting tricks so that you can take home the best souvenir of your trip. We want you to feel as part of Las Coloradas, so the tours are designed to provide you with a unique experience and be part of the preservation of these beautiful landscapes. During the tour, you can learn about the key features of the salt production process, take spectacular pictures to share with your family and friends, discover why waters are pink, learn how a healthy ecosystem allows sea salt production and everything else which makes special the Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve.

The Secret Gallery is an area devoted to contemporary art, which is hidden in Mérida’s historic downtown. It has five independent exhibition halls in a space that has hybrid qualities: museum, cultural center, industrial area for art and experimental art lab. They encourage culture through the gathering of diverse audiences to dialogue with artists. The concept of Secret gallery starts from the moment the first contact for a date is made, which is generally made through its Instagram account, then you go over a path of clues until finally the mysterious secret gallery location is revealed. Once inside the venue, the viewer will be astonished by what his eyes will see, a unique experience worthy to live. The project is an initiative of Mr. Mario Torre, in an effort to become involved in new horizons for art and culture, and in contributing to the construction of thought and identity.

Kabah, which means “Lord of the strong or powerful hand”, is a place where you can breathe the splendor of the past of the Puuc Mayan style. The ruins are found in both sides of the main freeway, although just some buildings are open to the public, there is much to explore on site. The archeological site is characterized for its strategic location and quality of carved stones which embellish its constructions.

When entering, you will see a small housing complex with a main temple. To the right you will find the most famous structure of Kabah, the Palace of the Masks, built over a shallow platform, it is also known as Codz Pop (rolled petate) maybe because of the huge hooked-shaped noses in the masks. The building’s façade is an amazing view, covered by almost 300 Chaac masks, the God of Rain. The massive repetition of a set of elements is unusual in the Mayan art, the detail and work of each piece is astonishing. Just in front of it you can find the Glyphs Altar surrounded by many carved stones with glyphs. Kabah archeological site is a place where you can breathe the Puuc Mayan past splendor.

She is Rosalía Chay, a traditional cook born in Yaxunah community, at Yaxcabá, only 20 minutes away from the Magic Town of Valladolid. This municipality is one of many existing in the state who have preserved its living identity and roots. She is an international renowned chef and she just appeared in the Netflix series Chef’s Table: BBQ, where she describes the preparation of cochinita pibil, she shows her love for traditional cuisine as part of a legacy she wants to preserve and which has been inherited from generation to generation, full of history of the Mayan traditional cuisine.

Kaalmankal eco-tourist park is located in Tekax, Yucatán, just one hour and a half from Mérida. It is on Tekax’s hills and forms part of the Puuc Route, where you can see a beautiful landscape. This place offers camping services so that you can connect with nature and enjoy a gorgeous view from Tekax’s hills and spend a pleasant time with your family or friends by a bonfire.

You can prepare your own grilled meat, sausages, and marshmallows by the bonfire. You can also see the full moon and stars, as well as watch formidable sunrises from the hills, enjoy the swimming pool, hammocks, green areas, and ride the Kaalmankal swing on top of a hill, hike and watch the native flora, or perform recreational activities with family. They offer all the services required to spend a nice evening with your beloved ones.

They guarantee safety and fun. At Kaalmankal you can also practice adventure activities like walking inside a grotto, rappel descent, pendulum jump, and all activities are suited for the whole family. They offer the necessary equipment and a guide.

Rise in the heights towards the Yucatecan sky in a hot-air balloon, to a height of 82 ft, you will feel the unique calm environment in the territory, accompanied by an unparalleled heat generated by the hot-balloon burner.

You will have the opportunity to experience rising in the heights with the magic of a captive flight, a completely new experience in the southeast of Mexico. You will enjoy the panoramic view offered by the Yucatecan jungle and you can see one of the world’s seven wonders: “Chichén Itzá”, as the flight starts less than 0.6 miles away from the archeological site. You can take unparalleled panoramic pictures while you are up in the hot-balloon, then you will enter into the mysticism with a Mayan pre-Hispanic dance, which will make gods of the four elements energize you with pre-Hispanic rituals they have prepared for you, represented by people who have received this ancient knowledge from generation to generation. Besides, you will appreciate Mexico with a show of diverse dances representing culture and folklore from the Mexican States. The show is performed by the folk ballet group from the village called Nicte-ja, who show us that Yucatán has not only beautiful land and archeology, but it also has culture, territory, gastronomy, and unparalleled experiences.

Located two hours away from Mérida, you can find the City of Kings: Tizimín, where religious faith is overflown every January 6^th, due to the presence of the Three Wise Men, apart from being considered as the cattle capital in Yucatán and having one of the most beautiful ports in Yucatán, El Cuyo Port.

The city’s museum has an exhibition of items from the pre-Hispanic times, colonial period, and modern era, from Tizimín and its surroundings. The objective of this museum is to show part of the city’s cultural heritage, you can admire ancient stone items, tools, shotguns, music equipment, shells, pots, sewing machines, gala suits, among other things. Service is usually provided by Tizimín’s expert and historian, Master Luis Pérez Salazar.

Efraín Cetz, a Mayan artisan highly renowned locally, nationally, and internationally for the quality of his fine wooden artworks. This character from the Mayan culture receives you at his home with his family, he tells you about the origins if his art, and his Mayan lineage; you will visit his atelier, where he makes by hand all his artworks like masks, codex replicas, situations like the Mayan ball game, and Mayan gods replicas.

It outstands that his artworks are reliefs, made by hand with basic tools, many times his wife makes paint with natural materials the family makes on their own. After a pleasant talk and visiting the product exhibition, you can visit his two Mayan huts, where he lives, which eventually are for accommodation rental; these houses were built with materials from the region like wood, stone and huano palm, especially for the guests to learn about Mayan architecture.