Whether or not you like to go visit ancient ruins, the Tulum Ruins is a MUST see for anybody visiting Tulum. Not only are the ruins right next to the city of Tulum, but they are also easy to navigate and fairly small (meaning your are not in the middle of the jungle), they are very well preserved, this is the only Maya ruin site right on the beach and you can also go swimming! Tulum, the current Mayan name meaning wall or fence, is suspected to have been formerly known as Zama, city of Dawn/Sunrise, as it is steeped on a 12 meter cliff from which you can see a spectacular sunrise. Based on current Maya ruins that have been discovered, Tulum is one of the few cities that had a perimeter wall that was about 7 meters thick and it protected the city on 3 sides as the fourth side was protected by the cliff/sea. The city of Tulum was built in the post-classic Maya period which corresponds to the late thirteenth century (about 700 years ago.) The ruins of Tulum are very well preserved and you can even take a swim right of the cliff where the most iconic emblem of the ruins sits; the Castillo, castle, which sits right on top of the 12 meter cliff made out of limestone.

Most ancient cities had some type of specific purpose to serve the empire. In Tulum’s case, it served as a trading port for the city of Coba, which is about 45 minute drive, and it mostly traded in jade and turquoise. It is still debated as to whether the city of Tulum was mostly reserved for priests and few outsiders were allowed on the premises.