Hotels in Chichen-Itza

The expensive hotels in Chichén all occupy beautiful grounds, are close to the ruins, serve decent food, and have toll-free reservations numbers. They do a brisk business with tour operators -- they can be empty one day and full the next. From these hotels, you can easily walk to the back entrance of the ruins, next to the Hotel Mayaland. Hotel Chichén Itzá (tel. 998/887-2495; www.mayaland.com) is the best of several inexpensive hotels just west of the ruins in the village of Pisté, which has little else to recommend it. Another option is to stay in the colonial town of Valladolid, 40 minutes away.