The Yucatán

Day 1:

Welcome to Mexico!

• Meet your Tour Director at the airport
  

Day 2:

Cancún - Mérida

• Leave the coast behind as you head inland to the Yucatán's cultured capital, where Spanish colonial grandeur and deep Maya roots have shaped one of Mexico's most distinctive cities
  

Day 3:

Explore Mérida

• Explore Mérida on foot with your Tour Director, tracing the grand Paseo de Montejo, the colonnaded Plaza Grande, and the stories of a city that has always stood at the crossroads of two worlds
  

Day 4:

Uxmal

• With a licensed local guide, explore the ceremonial heart of Uxmal, one of the Maya world's great cities — where the soaring Pyramid of the Magician and the intricate stonework of the Nunnery Quadrangle reveal a civilization at the height of its power
  
• Join a tour into the coastal wetlands of the Yucatán, where thousands of Caribbean flamingos feed in the shallows in one of the most striking wildlife spectacles on the peninsula
  

Day 5:

Mérida - Valladolid

• Continue east to Valladolid, whose cobblestone streets and pastel-colored colonial facades conceal one of the Yucatán's best-kept secrets
  
• Visit Izamal, the Yucatán's "Yellow City," where the Spanish built their colonial city directly atop an ancient Maya one, including a Franciscan monastery with an atrium second in size only to St. Peter's Square
  
• With a licensed local guide, explore Chichén Itzá, where the towering pyramid of El Castillo, a vast ceremonial ball court, and an astronomical observatory reveal the remarkable sophistication of Maya civilization at its peak
  
• Swim in one of the Yucatán's legendary cenotes — sacred freshwater sinkholes that were portals to the underworld in Maya cosmology, and today offer some of the most beautiful natural swimming in the world
  
• As darkness falls over Chichén Itzá, El Castillo and the surrounding temples come to life in a dramatic sound and light show that traces the story of the Maya civilization across the stones that built it
  

Day 6:

Valladolid - Playa del Carmen

• Trade the ancient interior for the Caribbean coast as you head toward Playa del Carmen, where turquoise water and the vibrant energy of the Riviera Maya await
  
• Spend free time on the calm, reef-protected shores of Akumal, one of the Riviera Maya's most beloved stretches of beach and a perfect place to slow down and take in the Caribbean
  
• Explore the clifftop ruins of Tulum, the only major Maya city built overlooking the sea, where ancient temples frame one of the most dramatic backdrops in all of Mexico
  

Day 7:

Playa del Carmen

• Free time or Optional Xcaret excursion
• Opt to visit Xcaret, an eco-archaeological park set along the Caribbean where jungle trails, underground rivers, coral reef aquariums, and Maya ruins come together in one of the Riviera Maya's most immersive natural and cultural experiences

Day 8:

Depart for home