15 days from £989. SPECIAL OFFER: Save £27615 days from £989
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Special Offer
From £989* per person based on two sharing. Save £276 per person on the normal price.
* Valid from 11 April until 15 December 2010.
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Suggested holiday itinerary
Day 1: Transfer from the airport to your , family-run hotel, the Casa Blanca, in the culturally significant and financial district close to the Paseo de la Reforma, a short taxi ride from the historic colonial core.
Day 2: Tour of the city, including the centuries-old Spanish-influenced centre and a visit to the world-renowned Museum of Anthropology, one of our favourites in Latin America with its clear displays and comprehensive narrative.
Day 3: Day trip to visit the enigmatic pre-Aztec city of Teotihuacán, a huge archaeological site built on a plateau by unknown hands, with pyramids, temples and residences housing at its zenith 200,000 people. En route, stop at the contemporary Basilica where the image of the revered Virgin of Guadalupe is on show.
Day 4: Fly to the lively colonial city of Mérida on the Yucatán Peninsula, southwest Mexico. You’ll spend 3 nights at the popular Casa del Balam, set in the town centre close to the pretty squares, shops and restaurants which make this such an interesting base for visits to the land of the Mayas. There are artisan markets and spontaneous performances of music and theatre cropping up on street corners at any time.
Day 5: Full-day excursion to the Mayan archaeological sites at Uxmal and Kabah. Uxmal is possibly the most atmospheric of the principal sites, with bird-filled jungle surrounding the vast edifice of the Pyramid of the Magician.
Day 6: Full-day snorkelling expedition to the mysterious cenotes near the village of Abala, some 50km from the city. Cenotes are deep, steep-sided fresh water sinkholes formed by underground rivers, inviting you for a dip into their sparkling clear turquoise and emerald waters. They were sacred to the Maya as entrances to the Underworld and, on a more practical level, were the only source of water for the people.
Day 7: Drive to Chichén Itzá, the best-known and best preserved Mayan site, with extraordinary carvings among the temples, plazas, ball courts and colonnades. Following your guided tour and explorations you’ll be driven to your hotel on the Mayan Riviera, facing the Caribbean Sea, a couple of hours from the site. You’ll have a full 7 nights based at the Mahékal Beach Resort. This property is another of our longstanding favourites.
Days 8-13: You are well placed fully to enjoy everything the Riviera has to offer. The hotel is just a short beach walk from Playa del Carmen, a growing family resort where you can stroll along palm-lined, pedestrianised streets bulging with cafés, bars and restaurants. All sorts of excursions can be booked from the hotel or in Playa itself: water sports, cultural visits, and boat trips abound.
Day 14 Transfer to the airport at Cancún (1 hr) for your flight home.
|  Cenotes are mystical, water-filled holes that were sacred to the Maya
 The site of Teotihuacán contains some of the largest pyramids built in the pre-Columbian Americas
 The beach at Playa del Carmen
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