Flights usually arrive in Mexico City in the evening, but you can arrive anytime today. Transfer to your hotel for the night.

No previous travel experience is required for this trip, just a basic level of fitness to enjoy the outdoors.

Exploring the Bohemian Side of Mexico City

Following a briefing, you start off by making your way to the south of the city and a particular house hidden behind cobalt blue walls known as Casa Azul. This is where the acclaimed artist Frida Kahlo was born; grew up and, eventually, lived with her muralist husband, Diego Rivera until she died in 1954 at the age of 47. Now a museum, the colonial house, set around a luxuriant garden doesn’t only showcase the collections and personal effects of the two great artists but is a window into the life of affluent Mexican bohemians in the first half of the 20th Century.

Join a Local Guide to Explore the Ancient City of Teotihuacan

The ancient city of Teotihuacan reached its zenith around 1,000AD when it was the 6th biggest city in the world with a population of about 125,000. Amongst the avenues and structures are the pyramids of the Sun and the Moon, the 3rd and 4th largest in the World. You will explore this impressive archaeological zone with an expert local guide to unearth some of the site’s secrets.

Mexico’s Collection of Artifacts

Before leaving Mexico City behind you will visit the Museum of Anthropology and History with its impressive collection of artifacts from Mexico’s many civilizations.

Take In Puebla, UNESCO World Heritage Site

You will spend this morning discovering the city of Puebla which has been given UNESCO World Heritage Site for its colonial architecture. You visit the Patio de Los Azulejos and the ex-Convent of Santa Rosa, both of which provide classic examples of how ‘talavera’ tiles were inbusinessd into buildings, inside and out. Early settlers who came from Talavera de la Reina in Spain introduced these tiles and associated ceramics. Today the glazed pottery has become synonymous with Puebla.

A Maze of Subterranean Passageways

Your next exploration of Mexican history takes you to the Zapotecan site of Monte Alban. Whilst the name dates back to a Spanish landowner in the 16th-century, previous names come from the Mixtec word ‘Sahandevul’ meaning ‘At the foot of the Sky’ or the Zapotecan ‘Danibaan’ meaning ‘Sacred Mountain.

In 500 BC the Zapotecans moved into the Oaxaca region and began the monumental task of levelling the top of a 1,600m high mountain that intersects and divides three valleys. Here they built the city of Monte Alban with a maze of subterranean passageways, rooms, drainage, and water storage systems.

Visit a Local Market to Collect Your Cooking Class Ingredients

Oaxaca is possibly the most famed region in Mexico for its cuisine and you get more acquainted with it as you head for a cooking class, learning dishes that can easily be recreated at home. The exact menu can change but you generally learn how to make two types of tortillas, three different salsas, guacamole, mole, a starter, a soup, a dessert, and a drink. You will visit a local market where different ingredients are showcased and explained before returning to the restaurant for your class and a succulent lunch.

The afternoon is free to wander around Oaxaca on your own.

Hand-woven Rugs and Don Agave Distillery

A short distance from Oaxaca is the village of Teotitlan del Valle known for its colourful, hand-woven rugs and your first stop today. From here you continue to the Don Agave distillery to taste some mescal. Distilled from agave plants, mescal is different to tequila and is most popular in the Oaxaca region.

Get Your Bearings in San Cristobal

Drive to San Cristobal (about 6hrs plus stops).

One of Mexico’s most popular cities with visitors, San Cristobal de las Casas is filled with cobbled stoned alleyways of whitewashed buildings with red-tiled roofs that give onto plazas and picturesque arcades.

Upon arriving in San Cristobal in the afternoon you will have a short orientation tour of the historic city before checking into your hotel.

Explore on Your Own or Book an Optional Tour

Today is a free day to explore San Cristobal at your own pace. Wander the colonial streets, take in the lively cafés, or buy handicrafts produced by the local Tzotzil indigenous groups with their different colourful dress.

It’s also possible to do an optional boat trip through the Sumidero Canyon and/or visit one of the traditional Mayan communities who live in the villages surrounding the city.

Waterfalls and Natural Pools

The road you be taken on towards Palenque is very windy but picturesque. En route, you will visit the waterfalls of Agua Azul (after about 5hrs driving plus stops). Agua Azul is a group of beautiful waterfalls that create wonderful natural pools and has been a protected area since 1980.

Following a stop at the falls, it’s a further 2.5hrs to the town of Palenque, named after the nearby impressive ruins.

Temples, Sanctuaries, and Pyramids

Emerging from the jungles of the Chiapas’ low-lying hills is one of Mexico’s most impressive ruins: the Mayan site of Palenque. The temples, sanctuaries, and pyramids, with their sculptured walls and ceilings, are some of the best-preserved and finest examples of Mayan buildings despite the city-state having peaked over 1,300 years ago in the 7th century.

Uncover the Stories of Uxmal

About two hours drive from Campeche is your second Mayan site: Uxmal. Quite open, it is in contrast to the jungle-ruins of Palenque we visited yesterday. This site, which dates to the late classic era (500-800AD) and features the Pyramid of the Magician; the Nunnery Quadrangle with long, elaborately carved facades; and a ball court where a traditional ball game was played, sometimes ending in human sacrifice.

Having worked up an appetite you will have lunch at a local Mayan family restaurant. Here you will get to eat Pollo Pibil and Cochinita Pibil – slowly cooked pork and chicken. The meat is roasted for about 5hrs along with achiote past and wrapped in banana leaves. This is a typical Yucatan dish and representative of the local cuisine.

Learn About Hammock Weaving

Your first stop is at the traditional Mayan village of Tixkokob where local families practice the age-old craft of hammock weaving.

Early Rise Catches the Best Views of Chichen Itza

Your final day starts with a visit to the most famous Mayan temple city: Chichen Itza. Having spent the night right by the site means you can get in nice and early before the hordes of day-trippers coming from the beach resorts.

Chichen Itza served as the political and economic centre of the Mayan civilization and thrived from around 600 to 1,200AD. The pyramid of Kukulkan, the Temple of Chac Mool, the Hall of the Thousand Pillars, and the Playing Field of the Prisoners can still be seen today and demonstrate the extraordinary commitment to architecture, space, and composition. The pyramid itself was the last, and possibly the greatest, of Mayan pyramids.

This afternoon you will be driven about 2.5hrs to Cancun to catch your flight out or stay the night (extra cost).