The final Mayan ruin we visited was Ek Balam, one of the Yucatan Peninsula’s less well known treasures. It was also the only ruin we were able to climb on. That was terrifying (the steps are unequal heights and steep) and gratifying (the views were unbelievable).
Ek Balam is a short trip from where we were staying at Mayaland while we visited Chichen Itza, so was easy to get to. We combined the visit with a lunch and cenote swim as well, so it was a full day.
Many of the Mayan ruins no longer allow visitors to climb on them in order to better preserve the fragile structures. Ek Balam does allow you to climb on several of the temples.
El Torno
On El Trono, the tomb of a Mayan emperor, there is a well preserved jaguar carving. Ek Balam is widely associated with the jaguar in Mayan cultural references. This temple is replicated in the Gran Museo del Mundo Maya in Merida.
There were also winged Mayan warrior carvings, which I had not seen at other ruin sites. The jaguar mouth and winged Mayan warriors are about 2/3rds of the way up the El Torno temple, so if you cannot make it all the way up, they are worth the climb partway.
The grounds were surprisingly lush, but that is probably because it was January, and well before the heat of the summer. I have to say that that is probably the best time of year to visit. The day temperatures were in the 80s, and we had no rain. The summer temperatures get much hotter.
You should not miss a visit to Ek Balam–it truly is one of the Yucatan Peninsula’s lesser known treasures.