The second city of Yucatán state, Valladolid is around 40km east of Chichén Itzá, although it took a severe bashing in the nineteenth-century Caste Wars, it has retained a strong colonial feel. It is a tourist city of great attraction, by virtue of its colonial demeanor, its renowned cuisine and due to the proximity and road infrastructure that links with important sites for the flow of tourists. In 2010 it was the largest city in population in eastern Yucatan. It was also the second largest city and the third largest population of the entire state, only behind Merida and Kanasín. Due to the attractions that exist in the city, its history and colonial attractive; also their cenotes, its gastronomy and its climate, Valladolid is a national ranking competitor in tourism. The city is full of culture, as well as having majestic historic buildings and beautiful old houses with colorful facades, is full of traditions and artisanal and gastronomic richness. Among the variety of handicrafts that are produced locally it is warping hammocks, making traditional clothing, embroidery, jewelery, leather and stone carving. The most famous of Valladolid’s churches to have survived the Caste Wars is the sixteenth-century Iglesia de San Bernardino de Siena, 1km southwest of the plaza (Wed–Mon 9am–noon & 5–8pm; Mass daily 6pm). Franciscan missionaries began work on it shortly after the Spanish established Valladolid as an outpost in 1545. In 1848 Maya rebels sacked the church; despite this, a fine Baroque altarpiece from the eighteenth century remains, as do some striking seventeenth-century paintings on the side walls. Closer to the plaza, on Calle 41 between calles 38 and 40, the Museo de San Roque (Mon–Sat 9am–8pm) displays objects from the site of Ek-Balam, embroidery and other craftwork. If you need to cool down after a morning spent wandering, Cenote Zací, on the block formed by calles 34, 36, 37 and 39 (daily 8am–6pm) has broad stairs leading down into a huge cavern, with an open-air restaurant at the top. Unlike at many cenotes, swimming is not permitted. As the huipil-clad statue in the plaza’s fountain suggests, Valladolid is a good place to purchase craftwork; in addition to the women selling their embroidery, you can also visit the Bazar de Artesanías, the craft market on Calle 44 at Calle 39, or Yalat, a very nice shop on the northwest corner of the plaza that stocks clothing, chocolate and soaps. The central city market, the Mercado Municipal, is on Calle 32 between calles 35 and 37.

Whatever your budget, to eat well in Valladolid you don’t have to stray from the plaza, where you can get inexpensive snacks and coffee (at Mayan Coffee, on the west side) or treat yourself at a refined restaurant. As for nightlife, there are a couple of bars, but not much beyond people-watching on the plaza, where there’s usually some live music on Sundays. Food: are prepared with corn pork, chicken and venison served with spicy sauces habanero chilies and max. The main ones are: beans with pork, chaya with egg, stew of hen, stuffed cheese, salbutes, panuchos, pipi deer, papadzules, sausage, tenderloin of Valladolid, black filling Maculan, roasted suckling pig, joroches, mucbil chickens, chachacuas, espelón bread, and cast pimes tamales. Sweets: Traditional sweets that are made are the yucca with honey, donuts (made from cassava) with honey, Roan pumpkin, sweet potato with coconut, cocoyol in syrup, pumpkin seed marzipan, marshmallow, arepas, hawthorn syrup ciricote and sweet. Drinks: Drinks Typical of the municipality are xtabentun, balché, drink aniseed, pozole with coconut horchata, corn atole again and fruit drinks in the region. Valladolid’s bus station is on Calle 39 at Calle 46, a block and a half west of the plaza. The plaza is bounded by calles 39, 40, 41 and 42. The tourist office, on the southeast corner of the plaza (Mon–Sat 9am–8.30pm, Sun 9am–1pm), has plenty of information, including free maps of Valladolid and details of in-house, though it’s a pretty casual set-up; however, most hotels and souvenir shops on the plaza also have maps. With its small scale and light traffic, Valladolid is a good place to get around by bike; you can also reach nearby cenotes via bike paths. Bikes can be hired from Tours, which also runs guided trips, as well as a shop on Calle 40 just north of the plaza and the Rey de Béisbol sports shop, Calle 44 no. 195 between calles 39 and 41. The latter owned by Antonio “Negro” Aguilar, a one-time pro baseball player and all-around entertaining man. From Valladolid, the vast majority of traffic heads straight to Cancún and the Caribbean beaches. A few places merit taking time out to explore, however whether the beautiful sculpture at the ruins of Ek-Balam, the cenotes of X’keken and Samula or, further afield, the flamingo colony at Río Lagartos or the beach at San Felipe. If you want to go all the way to the coast as a day trip, you’ll need to make an early start the last bus from Río Lagartos for Tizimín leaves at 5pm. You’ll have to return at least to Tizimín to continue on to Mérida or Cancún.

Lying almost exactly halfway between Mérida and Cancún, Valladolid it was founded by the Spanish on an earlier Maya settlement known as Zaci, and quickly became an important religious center. In 1552 the Franciscans built the Yucatán’s first ecclesiastical buildings here, the Iglesia de San Bernardino de Siena and the adjoining Ex-Convento de Sisal. These have been restored, revealing original frescoes behind two side altars in the church. Also restored are the small Spanish colonial houses on Calle 41-A, the street from the town center to the church. The zócalo (Main Square) is the focal point, and often the liveliest part, of this quiet and attractive city. Maya women sell huipiles (embroidered dresses) around its perimeter, and in the northeast corner small, inexpensive restaurants serve tasty local dishes and fruit juices late into the night. Overlooking the square is the cathedral, with its elegant façade, and the colonial hotel El Mesón del Marqués. Also on the square is the Palacio Municipal (City Hall). In the first-floor hallway are painted panels showing the history of the town from Maya times, and portraits of military leaders from Valladolid who helped initiate the Revolution. A little farther out from the main square, the churches of Santa Ana (four blocks east) and Santa Lucía (six blocks north), are fine examples of stark Franciscan architecture. These churches were originally used by Maya converts, and are still the most popular in the town.

Valladolid, where the great passages in the history of Mexico happened, "The Caste War" in 1847 and "the first spark of the Mexican Revolution" in 1910: it is now known as "The Capital of the East Maya" deserved title not only by the architectural beauty of its ancient colonial buildings as the Convent of San Bernardino of Siena, City Hall, the Church of St. Servatius, the Ex Loom Aurora, the Museum of San Roque. Also for its strategic location in the center of the entire Eastern region being the most cosmopolitan city of the region, the ideal place to stay and see the wonders of the Mayan world (Chichen Itza, Ek-Balam, Coba, Tulum) and place the Colonial Mexico (Izamal, Tihosuco, Valladolid), among others the cultural legacy of its men and women. Valladolid, Colonial City. With all its colonial and full of a great Maya culture magic, Valladolid is only two hours by a modern highway from Merida or Cancun and just over an hour from the Riviera Maya circuits and other tourist attractions, stands as one of the most beautiful cities in Yucatan for its unique strategic position within the state is established as an important center of collection and distribution of national and international tourism in the east of the state. One of the most beautiful colonial cities of Yucatan and first to be accessed from the major tourist market is certainly Quintana Roo Valladolid, by the majesty of temples and the pedigree of their old neighborhoods. After Merida is the second largest city and the oldest of Yucatan. Its streets and buildings preserve its glorious past and was witness to many indigenous uprisings, as the "Caste War". Today is a placid city where you can admire beautiful old houses, has great commercial dynamism and is a key point in the development of the state because of its strategic location: north, Las Coloradas, Ek-Balam, Rio Lagartos and San Felipe; east, Coba and the Mexican Caribbean; and west, the impressive archaeological site of Chichen Itza and the colonial cities of Izamal and Merida. Since 1973, the city of Valladolid is divided into 6 main districts in addition to its historical center. Currently this historical center houses the main buildings and hotels in the city thereby making your stay in Valladolid is a pleasant and memorable experience.

In the center of town, the church whose patron is St. Servatius was originally built facing west. It was 3 ships and rustic construction; but it was destroyed because it was committed inside the so-called "Crime of Mayors". In 1706 it built the present, the Churrigueresque style, looking north. Here it is where currently major retailers, municipal authorities, government agencies and banks are located. It is the core of the main economic, political and social activities of Valladolid. Candelaria is one of the most beautiful neighborhoods for its colonial architecture, its surrounding park was built recently on the site of the old square. That was a place where the arena stood for the bullfights in honor of the Virgen de la Candelaria, traditional festival that characterizes the suburb and is one of the few that still survive. Even though it has become an annual celebration of the city. In this neighborhood the most important colony or worship in the city, reason are held in February and traditional religious festivities of the Candelaria fair with livestock exhibitions, craft, games, celebration that takes place conducted in late January and early February. This cult dates from the eighteenth century, and according to legend, a Mayan Indian was carrying palms on the back of various beasts, upon entering the town he looked up and saw a beautiful lady that was in his hand a lighted candle and the other was carrying a small child. She stared at him and asked him to build a roof with palms so she and her son would not get wet. The Indian domestic obedient to the mountain the next day to cut wood and there met another Indian who asked for help to build the request of the lady, returning to the farm where they worked, the butler question his absence and to explain the reason this did not believe them; the natives into believing they took him to where the lady who was impressed by the beauty of the image of the Virgin of Candelaria. The butler told him what happened to the owners of the property who built the Virgin one dressing room. The virgin was called Candlemas that carried in one hand a candle and in the other carrying a small child. The image of the virgin and child candle remind Catholics when Jesus was presented by his mother in the temple. Since then, the cult of Candelaria has emerged as one of the most important in the eastern region of the Yucatan Peninsula.

One of the first neighborhoods that was founded in the city is Santa Ana, where built the first church called Indians, because in her Catholic doctrine were the natives of this city, then called Villa Valladolid. Santa Ana is currently the suburb after the city center, has greater economic movement by the number of businesses established in the area. In this place the Church of Indians, whose patron saint is St. Anne, mother of the Virgin Mary, to whom he is annually organized religious festivities in the month of July was built. San Juan, as Candelaria has a typical colonial view surrounding the square having as its church in the East part of the park. The side walls of the temple are solid, with small battlements, also of stone, like St. Servaas, San Bernardino and Santa Lucia. The main entrance is also surrounded by a means arc point tabllerado; on it, a window of the choir framed with stone quarry and above these three small circular windows topped by a balustrade that connects the two towers. Inside is an interesting altarpiece Solomonic style with plants, four side niches and carved stone baptismal font. Currently he has a small atrium with Iron Gate. It was recently remodeled covering the walls with a special blend for protection. Its traditional fair held stopped about 23 years ago and attempts to live it in 1992 were unsuccessful. Santa Lucia, one of the suburbs was a settlement north of the city, where a church was built. Neighborhood was outside the walls of the Spanish city of Valladolid probably since the sixteenth century. The story tells that in 1910 this district was selected for concentrating a group of people who took up arms against General Porfirio Diaz ruled that oppressed the people. The rebels supported his survey with the Plan-Koop Dzel the site in which it was signed. The church of Santa Lucia is located in the district of the same name in the street 42 47; It is a temple of a single nave with barrel vault and sacristy, its facade is topped by a simple belfry with three clear for bells, door frames are carved in stone with plant motifs. The only information we have is that the beginning and the building area was in the early sixteenth century. In 1910 the center of this neighborhood was done only a small square in bullfights were held in the party that was organized in honor of the Virgin of Santa Lucia.

The neighborhood Sisal, was originally known as Se-Ha (fresh water) because there is a cenote where the Franciscans built there, starting in 1552 and until 1560, a convent in honor of San Bernardino of Siena, one of the most beautiful and important of its kind in the peninsula, along with those of Izamal and Mani. Convent attached to the church building. The Franciscans, who were dedicated to the cultivation of vegetables, taught religion and promoted human settlements around his temple, now this is one of the most populated districts of the city. Hence the "Calzada de los Frailes" is located; street now known as "41-A", which links the church and convent in the town center and inhabited by the mayors of the city, which was about 700 meters. The name and Sisal comes the Ziiz-Ha Mayan that translate into Castilian as Agua Fria, it would likely by cennote presnee there until the convent on whose vault is a famous garden Arable farming. It was the Indian village of Sisal from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century, located outside the walls of the then town of Valladolid. As befits the Indian towns highlights if majestic convent with three atrial front seats and two sides, according to 1805 census lived in the village not a single white, only indians. Sisal population was taken in 1549 by Baltazar Callejo thirty years later and hear a descendant, Baltazar de Montenegro. In the late eighteenth century, this was a town of the crown. The image of the Divine Redeemer occupies a place in the temple of Sisal for veneration and gives rise to the religious festival held every year in the Convent of Sisal in July.