No words nor even pictures can do justice to the splendor that is Chichén Itzá. Only when a visitor has the personal experience of staring down into the cenote of sacrifice, or into the eyes of the red jaguar, is the full force of the past truly felt. Come, indulge in the past, the glory of the Maya and Chichén Itzá. The major structures include the Castillo, or Temple of Kukulcan; the Nunnery Complex; the Caracol, which was the center for astronomy; the Temple of the Warriors, with its magnificent colonnade of carved stelae; the ball court and Temple of the Jaguar; and the marketplace.

Two cenotes and natural wells were the primary reason the city was situated at this location. One provided water for the people and the crops; the other was the sacrificial well, where animal and often human victims were tossed into the dark waters in rituals of purification, celebration and renewal. Every year on the fall and spring equinox the sun strikes the side of the building making a play of light and shadow which appears as a snake along the steps of the building. Chichén Itzá was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1988. It has been selected as one of the New 7 World Wonders.