{"id":51840,"date":"2015-06-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-06-01T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/royalresorts.com\/blog\/searching-for-a-city-of-gold-in-the-yucatan-izamal\/"},"modified":"2021-11-16T05:47:01","modified_gmt":"2021-11-16T05:47:01","slug":"searching-for-a-city-of-gold-in-the-yucatan-izamal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.royalresorts.com\/blog\/news\/searching-for-a-city-of-gold-in-the-yucatan-izamal\/","title":{"rendered":"Searching for a City of Gold in the Yucatan, Izamal"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you like to go somewhere different each time you visit the Mexican Caribbean, how about a trip to Izamal, the Yucatan’s very own “city of gold?”\u00a0 This peaceful little town famous for its bright yellow buildings is often called the \u201ccity of three cultures,\u201d a reference to its pre-Hispanic and Spanish heritage and the traditions of today\u2019s Mayan inhabitants. Izamal is also one of Yucatan\u2019s two Pueblo M\u00e1gicos<\/em>, a distinction is shares with Valladolid. <\/em> The Mexico Tourism Board launched the Pueblos M\u00e1gicos program to promote communities with their own brand of magic and colorful traditions).<\/p>\n

Izamal has been inhabited since the days of the ancient Maya, in fact the earliest traces of human occupation date back to the third century B.C., making the site older than Uxmal and Chich\u00e9n Itz\u00e1. Izamal\u00a0later became a sacred place, attracting Mayan pilgrims from all over the Yucat\u00e1n, who worshipped Itzamn\u00e1 or Zamna, the chief god, inventor of writing, medicine and agriculture.<\/p>\n

Over 20 major Mayan buildings have been found in and around Izamal, along with a network of sacbes<\/em> or roads, house mounds and tombs. The Mayan sun god, Kinich Kakmo was also venerated here and the pyramid erected in his honor still dominates the skyline. Standing 35 meters high,\u00a0it is\u00a0the third largest building in Mesoamerica in terms of volume.<\/p>\n

After the Conquest, Spanish friars\u00a0took advantage of Izamal’s religious importance by building a huge Franciscan mission on top of the Pap-Hol-Chac temple. The San Antonio de Padua mission was founded in 1549 and\u00a0completed in 1618. Home to the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception, the patron saint of the Yucat\u00e1n since 1648,\u00a0it is one of Mexico’s ten most important shrines.\u00a0The fortress-like building\u00a0is also\u00a0said to have the largest closed atrium in Mexico and one of the largest in the world, with no fewer than 75 arches!<\/p>\n

Wherever you turn in Izamal you\u2019ll see cheerful yellow paint and a white trim, this tradition dates from the Colonial Period and started with the convent. Nowadays most of the historic houses, arches, churches and civic buildings sport the Izamal colors.<\/p>\n

Explore the streets and squares surrounding the convent on foot or hire a horse-drawn carriage or victoria<\/em>. Apart from the convent and\u00a0the\u00a0Mayan pyramids, other local landmarks include the Town Hall, the Community Museum in Calle 31, the colonial churches of San Ildefonso, Los Remedios, Carmen and Santa Cruz and a number of restored houses that now operate as restaurants or hotels.<\/p>\n

You may be lucky enough to visit a craft workshop during your visit. Local artisans produce embroidered cotton dresses, hammocks, wood carvings, henequen and seed jewelry and papier m\u00e2ch\u00e9. Folk art can also be purchased in the plaza, at several craft shops and galleries and at the Izamal Cultural Center. Funded by the Banamex Foundation and managed by a cooperative of enterprising young Izamale<\/em>\u00f1os<\/em>, the Cultural Center also has an exhibition of fine handicrafts from all over the country, an informative display on the history of henequen, a caf\u00e9 and a mini spa.<\/p>\n

As the sun goes down, spend some time people watching in the peaceful main square and stay on after dark for the La Luz de los Mayas Light & Sound Show staged at the Convent at 8:30 p.m., Monday to Saturday.<\/p>\n

The landscape around Izamal is dotted with henequen haciendas and the fields of the sage-green plant that played such an important role in the Yucatecan economy in the late 19th century. Most are abandoned but small-scale cultivation still continues at Chichih\u00fa. Haciendas Tzalancab and San Jos\u00e9 Tecoh are open to the public from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and offer bird watching trails. Guides are available at the Tourist Information booth in Izamal Town Hall.<\/p>\n

If you would like to visit Izamal, why not contact Thomas More Travel at tourdesk@royalresorts.com<\/a> to arrange a private excursion? The M\u00e9rida & Uxmal overnight trip available from Thomas More also includes an Izamal stop. If you decide to rent a car and explore at your own pace, Izamal is 158 miles from Canc\u00fan and 43 miles from M\u00e9rida, take the turnoffs signposted on the toll road or Highway 180.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you like to go somewhere different each time you visit the Mexican Caribbean, how about a trip to Izamal, the Yucatan’s very own “city of gold?”\u00a0 This peaceful little town famous for its bright yellow buildings is often called the \u201ccity of three cultures,\u201d a reference to its pre-Hispanic and Spanish heritage and the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\r\nSearching for a City of Gold in the Yucatan, Izamal - Blog<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.royalresorts.com\/blog\/news\/searching-for-a-city-of-gold-in-the-yucatan-izamal\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Searching for a City of Gold in the Yucatan, Izamal - 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