Merida

Merida is the capital city of the state of Yucatan. Known as "White City" because of the large use of white limestone and white paint this traditional city depicts much of the splendor of Colonial Mexico. This is by no means to say that Merida still exists in a time warp and the contrary could be said. There is old and new exhibited in everything from fashion to architecture.

Being centrally located, Merida is a practical hub to explore numerous ruin sites and ecological wonders. Many charters fly into Merida or you can take a four-hour bus ride from Cancun. There are also two highways connecting Cancun and Merida plus many roads winding their way through the jungle from Tulum.

Merida is a safe place to visit and the people are warm and friendly, in the year 2000 it was named by UNESCO as a Cultural Capital. Come to Mérida. You will be enchanted!

Celestun

This famed bird sanctuary makes for an excellent day excursion from Merida . Located on the Yucatan's west coast, 92 km. from Merida, Celestun is home to thousands of pink flamingos and other exotic waterfowl. Best viewing is during morning hours. Visitors can rent boats and venture into the peaceful 22-kilometer-long estuary for best viewing.

Cathedral of San Idelfonso

It is the oldest in Mexico and it may have been built over an ancient Mayan temple. Its construction began in 1561 as an initiative of Bishop Fray Diego Toral, and it is believed that the stones used in its construction were extracted from the pre Hispanic building.
The Cathedral, of plateresque style and finished by master builder Juan Miguel Agüero in 1598, stands out for the renaissance influence of its façade, which has three accesses with half-point arches, two belfries of three bodies, and a choir window with an eagle standing on a nopal tree (Opuntia ficus indica) over it.

Its interior presents a huge nave with Toscana columns, altarpieces of neoclassical style and several chapels, with that of The Christ of the Blisters, an image carved in a tree trunk that, according to a legend well spread across Mexico, burnt an entire night without suffering any damage.

Park of the Centenary

It has an attractive zoo that houses an interesting variety of flora and fauna species, some of them in a threatened situation. An aged tree planted in 1910, year in which the park was inaugurated, stands out in this place that offers visitors tables and parlour games.